The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is preparing to pilot a stablecoin-based settlement rail for cross-border payments, targeting freelancers, virtual assistants, and other workers who receive income from abroad, according to local media reports.

The system is being developed in partnership with global digital clearinghouse Meridian. It is designed to reduce both the cost and processing time of inbound payments while maintaining the safeguards associated with traditional banking transactions, according to ABS-CBN and the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Under the proposed framework, stablecoins would serve as a settlement instrument. Funds would then be converted into Philippine pesos and credited directly to recipients' BPI accounts. By using stablecoins as a bridge asset, the pilot aims to bypass the multi-layer correspondent banking relationships that have traditionally driven up remittance fees — costs the World Bank has tracked as averaging above 6% globally for a $200 transfer.

BPI president and CEO Jose Teodoro Limcaoco described the exploration of stablecoin rails as a natural extension of the bank's broader digitalization strategy. He emphasized that the bank's objective is to enable funds to arrive faster and at lower cost without compromising security.

The pilot will initially focus on payroll payments and other categories of overseas earnings. BPI is planning a wider rollout ahead of the 49th ASEAN Summit, scheduled for November, a timeline that aligns with broader regional efforts to strengthen cross-border payment connectivity among Southeast Asian nations.

The bank stated that it would coordinate with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the country's central bank. Any broader deployment would be contingent on consumer protection standards, stablecoin reserve transparency, and other regulatory safeguards.

BPI, founded in 1851, is one of the oldest continuously operating banks in Southeast Asia and ranks among the largest commercial banks in the Philippines by assets. The Philippines is consistently ranked among the world's top remittance-receiving nations, with BSP data showing personal remittances exceeding $37 billion in 2024 — inflows that represent a significant component of the domestic economy. Reducing per-transaction costs by even a fraction of a percentage point could translate to meaningful savings across that volume.

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