The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) says more banks are expected to waive or lower InstaPay transfer fees within days, now that its new pricing rules under Circular 1238 have taken effect. The regulator's forecast follows moves by Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) to make interbank InstaPay transfers free, while digital wallets GCash and Maya cut their fees to ₱10 from ₱15.
Key Takeaways
- BSP Circular 1238, a pricing framework for person-to-person (P2P) electronic fund transfers, took effect on July 4, 2026.
- BPI made InstaPay and PESONet transfers free from July 1; RCBC followed with free InstaPay P2P transfers on July 4.
- GCash lowered its InstaPay fee to ₱10 from ₱15 effective July 4; Maya's cut to ₱10 takes effect July 6.
- BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said the regulator expects more banks to follow "in about two days."
- Under the circular, fees to another bank or e-wallet must not be materially higher than transfers within the same institution.
Why Banks Are Dropping InstaPay Fees Now
Speaking on the sidelines of a book launch, Governor Remolona said more lenders are expected to waive or lower electronic transfer fees now that Circular 1238 is in force. "In about two days. We expect more banks to follow," he told reporters when asked whether the BSP anticipated additional fee cuts after BPI and RCBC acted.
Remolona framed the shift as a boost to the country's digital payments ecosystem, noting that payment systems become more useful as more consumers and institutions take part — a network effect similar to how a phone line becomes more valuable the more people can be reached on it.
What Circular 1238 Requires
Circular 1238 introduces a pricing framework for P2P electronic fund transfers under the National Retail Payment System. Rather than banning fees outright, it sets guardrails for how they can be charged:
- Banks and payment service providers must adopt a "reasonable, fair and market-based" pricing mechanism, supported by an analysis of the actual cost of delivering the service.
- Fees for transfers to another bank or e-wallet must not be materially higher than transfers within the same institution, except for switch costs directly tied to processing a transaction.
- Electronic payment fees should remain lower than manual or over-the-counter charges.
- Recipients of P2P transfers must receive the full amount, without deductions.
In other words, the rule targets the gap between free intrabank transfers and the fees many institutions still charge for sending money to a different bank or wallet.
Which Banks and Wallets Have Moved
| Institution | Fee change | Effective date |
|---|
| BPI | InstaPay and PESONet transfers free (app, online, VYBE, BanKo, BizKo) | July 1, 2026 |
| RCBC Pulz | Free InstaPay P2P up to 30 transfers/month, each at least ₱100; ₱10 beyond the limit or below the minimum | July 4, 2026 |
| RCBC DiskarTech | All P2P InstaPay transfers free, no minimum or monthly cap | July 4, 2026 |
| GCash | InstaPay fee lowered to ₱10 from ₱15 | July 4, 2026 |
| Maya | InstaPay fee lowered to ₱10 from ₱15 | July 6, 2026 |
RCBC president and CEO Reginaldo Anthony Cariaso said the bank's move is part of a broader push to make digital banking more accessible. "At RCBC, we believe the best digital innovations are those that make banking simpler, more accessible, and more affordable for every Filipino," he said, adding that free InstaPay transfers on both Pulz and DiskarTech "reflect our commitment to delivering practical solutions that create everyday value."
The fee cuts build on a wave of changes over the past week. BPI's decision to scrap InstaPay and PESONet fees for its more than 9.5 million enrolled users kicked off the round, while GCash and Maya — which together dominate everyday mobile payments — trimmed their own charges. You can see the earlier wallet moves in our coverage of GCash and Maya setting a ₱10 InstaPay fee, BPI removing InstaPay and PESONet fees, and RCBC waiving fees on Pulz and DiskarTech.
Why It Matters for Filipinos
For everyday users, the change chips away at one of the most persistent frictions in Philippine digital banking: paying to move your own money between institutions. A ₱15 fee on a routine transfer is small in isolation, but it adds up for gig workers, small vendors, and households splitting bills across multiple apps. With BPI and RCBC now free and the wallets down to ₱10, competitive pressure — backed by a regulator openly expecting more banks to follow — makes it likely that interbank transfers keep trending toward free. The trade-off to watch is how institutions recover switch costs elsewhere, since Circular 1238 still allows cost-based charges.
FAQ
Are all InstaPay transfers now free?
No. BPI and RCBC (via Pulz and DiskarTech) offer free InstaPay P2P transfers, subject to conditions on RCBC Pulz. GCash and Maya still charge ₱10 per interbank InstaPay transfer.
When does Maya's lower fee start?
Maya's reduction to ₱10 from ₱15 takes effect on July 6, 2026. GCash's ₱10 fee took effect July 4.
What is Circular 1238?
It is a BSP pricing framework for person-to-person electronic fund transfers that requires fair, cost-based pricing and bars interbank fees from being materially higher than same-institution transfers.
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