Lito Villanueva, executive vice president and chief innovations and Inclusion of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., the country’s 6th largest lender by assets, called for stronger cross-industry collaboration and more adaptive regulation to accelerate digital banking across Asia.
Speaking at Money20/20 Asia in Bangkok, Villanueva told a global audience of financial leaders, regulators, and fintech firms that the region is moving beyond building digital infrastructure toward delivering measurable economic and social outcomes.
He said Asia’s rapidly expanding digital payments ecosystem now faces a more complex challenge, ensuring that innovation keeps pace with regulation without undermining financial stability or inclusion. The next phase of growth, he noted, will depend on how effectively regulators and industry players align their efforts.
Villanueva proposed the creation of a “living” version of regulatory sandbox criteria, a dynamic framework that would allow companies to assess their readiness for scaling and licensing in real time. He argued that static guidelines are increasingly inadequate in a fast-evolving sector.
“The industry does not need more guidance documents. It needs a mirror it can check itself against,” he said, pointing to the need for more transparent and iterative regulatory tools.
He added that “true financial inclusion will only happen if innovation is designed with the underserved in mind from the very beginning, not as an afterthought,” underscoring the need to embed inclusivity into digital finance strategies.
He also highlighted a broader shift in regulatory approach across Asia, from traditional oversight to active co-creation between regulators and the private sector. This model, he said, is key to building trust, strengthening accountability, and sustaining innovation.
During panel discussions, Villanueva joined officials from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Monetary Authority of Singapore, as well as regional industry leaders, to discuss regulatory collaboration and emerging payment integration initiatives.
Villanueva reiterated that as financial services become increasingly digital, stakeholders must ensure innovation expands access rather than deepens existing inequalities.
