MANILA — Filipinos are urged to develop skills on blockchain programming, as the skill set for this technology is seen to be in demand in the coming years, a local bank’s executive said.
Blockchain is a digital ledger with a large network of entities, where data is stored in “blocks” — not in any single location — that are continuously updated and are secured using cryptography.
In a media roundtable during the bank’s two-day Tech-Up Expo concluded Friday, Union Bank of the Philippines President and Chief Executive Officer Edwin Bautista told reporters that the country has to prepare its workforce to meet the demand of this emerging technology.
Bautista said blockchain technology is being used in other economies. However, it is not yet widely recognized in the Philippines.
Blockchain is commonly associated with bitcoin, but it can be adapted by various industries like banks to accelerate processes and make transactions safer.
UnionBank has already adapted blockchain technology to its internal system as it embarks on its digital transformation journey.
“We have to develop our blockchain programmers. We need trainings for that, so we can provide good employment to Filipinos,” Bautista said in Filipino.
Bautista added that in UnionBank’s 761 internal processes, there are many bank processes that can be “blockchainized”, such as fund transfer and opening of accounts, among others.
He mentioned that UnionBank is also working with rural banks to use blockchain technology in its system.
The executive noted that the blockchain platform is also a cost-saving initiative for UnionBank by making processes and transactions more efficient.
Investing in blockchain technology is also cheaper than legacy technologies, he added.
For the last two years, UnionBank started its digital transformation technology as it eyes to become the country’s premier digital bank.
“When you take a look at our income for the last two years, our core income has been growing at a very fast clip — 20 percent year-on-year. And you can only achieve that when you do something significantly different,” said Bautista.
“The net effect of that is we can book more loans because we are faster, we are able to turn out products much faster, we’re also able to increase our balance sheet sides without increasing our cost,” he added.
A Microsoft 2018 report noted that digital transformation can add USD8 billion more to the Philippine economy by 2021. (Kris Crismundo/PNA)
