The Consumer Lending Association of the Philippines (CLAP) has pushed for tougher enforcement of the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act and a shift from a largely defensive stance to a more aggressive, coordinated campaign against financial fraud as digital transactions and online scams continue to rise nationwide.
At the “Decoding Deceit 2026: Building a Trusted Digital Credit Community” symposium, CLAP convened leaders from government, financial technology firms, financing and lending companies, and digital banks to confront the escalating threat of cybercrime and online financial scams.
The event was organized by Tala Philippines and Advance.AI in cooperation with Maya Philippines Inc., with support from Fuse Financing Inc. and Gatmaytan Yap Patacsil Gutierrez & Protacio.
Officials from the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas warned that fraud has evolved into a national economic concern, undermining public trust and discouraging vulnerable Filipinos from participating in the formal financial system.
Stakeholders underscored the need for stricter implementation of anti-scam laws, the creation of a seamless digital public infrastructure anchored on an integrated digital identity system, and the faster establishment of a National Anti-Scam Hub to improve coordination among regulators.
“We need to find the right tools and strategies, whether through technological innovation, operational reforms, or targeted regulation, to create friction for fraudsters and dismantle their scam networks,” said Arianne Ferrer.
