Citi Says Philippine Banks Can Close AI Gap Quickly as 44% Already Run Systems
Updated
Updated · Philstar.com · May 31
Citi Says Philippine Banks Can Close AI Gap Quickly as 44% Already Run Systems
3 articles · Updated · Philstar.com · May 31
Philippine banks can move from AI exploration to production faster than many expect, Citi said, arguing the gap with more advanced markets is still small enough to close quickly.
44% of Philippine financial institutions had at least one AI system in production in the BSP's 2024 review, while 60% had AI or machine learning in their roadmaps.
Citi said the most immediate gains are likely in lower-risk internal uses such as document summarization, report generation, data extraction, compliance monitoring and workflow automation before wider use in trading or portfolio decisions.
Governance remains the main constraint: the BSP found maturity weaker in consumer protection, ethics and accountability, while Citi stressed humans must stay responsible for decisions, especially where privacy, bias and cybersecurity risks rise.
Over the next 3 to 5 years, Citi expects adoption to accelerate if banks pick practical use cases and upskill staff, with AI becoming a routine banking tool rather than a showcase technology.