The Philippine Embassy in Madrid, through the Philippine Overseas Labor Office, and in coordination with the Landbank of the Philippines and the Overseas Filipino (OF) Bank conducted a “Kumustahan with the Filipino Community and Financial Wellness Seminar” for Filipinos in Spain last Saturday, 17 October 2020, from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm Madrid time via Zoom.
H.E. Philippe Jones Lhuillier, Philippine Ambassador to Spain, sent his appreciation to the distinguished resource speakers and participants, and encouraged all overseas Filipinos in Spain and Andorra to acquire an entrepreneurial mind-set.
At the Kumustahan portion of the seminar, Consul General Adrian Cruz advised the participants to be extra-vigilant and aware of the situation in Spain amidst the coronavirus pandemic, and for those in Madrid and Catalonia to take extra precautions due to rising rates of infections in these regions. Consul General Cruz further relayed the Ambassador’s reminder that the Philippine Embassy shall still continue to operate and provide consular services to Filipinos in Spain.
The webinar proper consisted of discussions on the basic concepts of saving and investing by Landbank Overseas Representative Leover Loyola, while the presentation on the OF Bank (formerly the Philippine Postal Bank) was given by its Department Manager/Relationship Officer Jose Emmanuel Valdez.
No less than the OF Bank President and CEO, Ms. Leila Martin, responded to the queries of the participants on the process of opening a bank account digitally and the security measures to ensure the safety of their bank account and personal details. Mr. Glenn Aguda, Landbank Investment and Sales Department Representative, introduced the Premyo Bonds as a worthy, low-risk, one-year tenor, good yielding at 3% interest investment option that can be considered by Filipinos. Aside from being an investment mechanism, it also provides investors the opportunity to directly participate in nation-building.
The offering of the Premyo Bonds second tranche (PB2) will run from 11 November to 11 December 2020 which OFWs may invest in using the OF Bank mobile application. With a minimum investment of 500 pesos per bond, investors may also get to win cash and non-cash prizes on top of the fixed quarterly interest payments.
This collaborative project is among the Philippine Embassy in Spain’s initiatives to assist kababayans in Spain in mitigating the unprecedented challenges to their personal finances in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
