Private credit bureau, TransUnion Philippines, in collaboration with local and foreign banks, will soon recommend anti-fraud measures as they mark the first year of the Fraud Industry Council (FIC).
Established in late 2024, FIC’s objective is to strengthen the country’s defenses against fraud and to cultivate trust in the financial system, TransUnion said.
“Since its inception, the FIC has been holding regular meetings where members share insights and best practice, and work together to develop measures that protect consumers and help mitigate losses for both businesses and the public,” TransUnion told Malaya Business Insight in an email.
The council includes some of the country’s biggest banks: BDO Unibank Inc, Bank of the Philippine Islands, and Metropolitan Bank & Trust Corp.
Foreign bank subsidiaries HSBC and Citi Philippines are also in the council.
These are the same banks that TransUnion has been partners with since 2011.
TransUnion said they will release updates on the group’s initiatives “in due course”.
“In the meantime, TransUnion continues to provide advanced fraud prevention tools and regular insights that help businesses and consumers to safeguard themselves,” TransUnion said.
Ready to work with BSP
TransUnion said it supports the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) credit risk database (CRDPh), a web-based credit scoring system, which is now live/online with 33 banks onboard to give small and medium enterprises easier access to financing.
TransUnion said they support the CRDPh by “leveraging both traditional and alternative consumer data to help broaden access to credit in the Philippines, in line with our Information for Good® mission.”
In addition, the credit bureau said they believe any initiative that promotes financial inclusion, such as the CRDPh, is valuable. “The more efforts there are to expand access to credit, the better,” it said.
Fraud is a major concern
Based on TransUnion’s 2025 Credit Perception Index, 52 percent of Filipinos cited fraud as primary reason why they hesitate to use credit products.
TransUnion said they would like to be the industry leader as far as fraud insights and solutions are concerned, to encourage trust between consumers and businesses through data.
“We regularly release fraud reports that track global trends and spotlight key developments to help stakeholders stay ahead of emerging threats,” it said.
According to its H1 2025 Update to the State of Omnichannel Fraud Report, suspected digital fraud rate in the Philippines remains high at 13.4 percent in 2024, or 148 percent higher than the global rate of 5.4 percent. This is the fifth consecutive year that the country’s fraud rate has exceeded global levels.
TransUnion said 74 percent of Filipinos are targeted by fraud schemes, and 34 percent said they lost money averaging P44,700.
The fear of scams and fraud is the second biggest deterrent to applying for credit despite increasing trust and knowledge in credit, underscoring the significant impact on consumer confidence, the company said.
“As more Filipinos show interest in credit products, safeguarding consumers is more important than ever. This requires a multi-pronged approach through policies, industry collaboration such as the Fraud Industry Council, and continuous consumer education,” TransUnion said.
