Globe Telecommunications, Inc., together with sister company Ayala Corp., is all set to put up the Philippine’s first mobile microfinance banking unit. That is because the Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas approved the Globe and Ayala’s entry into the banking industry.

The new bank, will be called “BPI Globe Banko, A Savings Bank” will be using Pilipinas Savings Bank. BPI senior vice president Teresita Tan was named president of the new bank. She said it will be launched this month.

Globe will have a 40 percent stake on the new bank, together with BPI who will also get 40 percent. The Ayala Corp. will be having a 20 percent stake on the bank.

The new bank will be nicknamed “Banko” according to Tan, this means “my bank.” She said they would soon open their first branch in Greenhills.

She said, “We’re required by the BSP to have at least one satellite branch per region but this will really be a mobile bank.”

Banko will be offering microfinancing P3,000 to P150,000. It will also offer SMEs (small and medium enterprises) loans worth P150,00 to P500,000, and wholesale funding to microfinance-oriented non-government organizations (NGOs) worth between P500,000 and P80 million.

Personally, as I am wanting to get back to my business soon, this additional channel is a good news to me. I just hope that they open a satellite branch near my place soon.

The two major mobile telecommunications company in the Philippines, Globe and Smart reduced their call rates this weekend – October 3 to October 4, 2009.

Globe and Smart lowers call rates to three per minute.

Globe users will enjoy the reduced rates starting 12:01 a.m. of October 3 up to 11:59 p.m. of October 4. For subscribers of Smart and Talk ‘N Text (TNT), the P3/minute rate will be effective from 2 a.m. of October 3 up to 2 a.m. of October 5.

The reduced call rates are applicable only when the calls are made on providers own network; i.e. for Globe users – calls made to Globe and Touch Mobile and for Smart users – calls made to Smart and TNT.

Meanwhile, Globe said its system is 99 percent back online and expect it to be 1oo percent restored very soon.

Many Globe subscribers in Metro Manila and Calabarzon have lost their signals at the height of tropical storm Ondoy last weekend.

Here’s good news to all prepaid subscribers like me: The expiration of prepaid load credits will be finally extended. The telecommunications companies have agreed to a government order to extend the validity of prepaid load credits, although they have asked for time to carry out the changes.

The extended validity of load credits is as follows:

- P1 — 1 day to 3 days
- P10 to below P50 — 5 days to 15 days
- P50 to below P100 — 30 days
- P100 to below P150 — 45 days
- P150 to below P250 — 60 days
- P250 to below P300 — 75 days
- P300 and above — 120 days

Globe Telecoms, Smart Communications and Digitel Mobile likewise agreed to comply with another order from the NTC (National Telecommunications Commissions) to stop sending unsolicited text messages or spam promotion starting July 23. After the said date, only those who requested for such information will be sent messages.

There is no exact date as to when the implementation of the new extended phone credits validity would be, because of the need to change the company’s software. But Smart confirmed that they were going to comply with the extended duration of prepaid load starting July 19, but only partially because of the time required to make some changes in the programming.