BSP mandates full adoption of QR Code standard by July 1 Telcos OK with extension of SIM card registration

Philippine telecommunications companies are amenable to a possible extension of the SIM Registration deadline.

The National Telecommunications Commission reports that over 42.6 million sim cards have been registered as of March 9, 2023. But that figure only represents 25.24 percent of over 168.9 million total active sim users.

The initial deadline for sim registration is April 26 or less than 50 days to go.

Smart, which has a 32 percent registration rate, told ABSCBN, it welcomes the proposed extension period.

“We are here to continuously support government in its SIM Registration initiatives. While we have led in the number of registrations to date, Smart and TNT welcome the proposed extension period for SIM registration by the DICT to days from the date of the memorandum. give more time to all, especially the marginalized sectors and those located in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas,” Smart said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is mandating the full adoption of the Philippine QR Code standard by July 1, 2023.

Globe, which has a 20 percent registration rate, said it also welcomes the possible extension. One of its representatives said it will give subscribers more time to register their SIM.

When asked by media if the SIM registration period can be extended given the low turnout, Department of Information and Communications Technology Usec. Anna Mae Lamentillo said that the DICT can extend the registration period for another 120 days.

Globe, Smart and DITO have set up several SIM registration booths nationwide in order to assist the public. They have also implemented promos such as free data and ra ffles for subscribers who register.

In a statement on Friday, the BSP said its policy-setting Monetary Board has approved the guidelines that will facilitate the full transition of all quick response (QR) code-enabled payment services to the National QR Code Standard, or “QR Ph.”

QR Ph is the country’s QR code standard, based on the Europay-Mastercard-VISA (EMV) standard, a global standard for secure payments. It was developed to standardize the use of QR codes.

The BSP said the guidelines mandate BSP-supervised financial institutions (BSFIs) acting as payment service providers (PSPs) and offering QR code-enabled payment services to use and display QR codes on their internet and mobile channels starting July 1, 2023.

The central bank said PSPs, including those participating in the InstaPay automated clearing house, are required to submit the status of their compliance with the QR Ph standard within 30

“With the active development of the industry in this space, it is timely for the BSP to ensure that QR-enabled payments are supported through the interoperable QR Ph standard. This way, PSPs and their clients would be able to fully realize the benefits brought by the convenience, speed, and ease of using QR Ph,” said BSP Governor Felipe Medalla.

“The QR Ph standard is currently being adopted for two high-impact use cases in the country, namely person-to-person and person-to-merchant payments. These transactions form FBSP, A3