THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) announced that they had made several amendments in terms of the regulations of the return of banks’ bounced checks, as well as the rollout of the Intraday Settlement Facility (ISF).

In a statement, the BSP likewise said that the circular contained various amendments to the check clearing and settlement regulations in November last year.

The Central Bank also noted that under the revised rules, banks can now return high-value, “not sufficiently funded” (NSF), and defective checks as early as the day these are deposited.

"Currently, banks have until the next banking day to return bounced and defective checks to the presenting bank, with the transfer of funds to the drawee bank dated on the day of the check’s deposit," the BSP said.

The retroactive dating as well as the causes of changes in the balances of banks’ settlement accounts with the Philippine Payments and Settlements System-Plus (PhilPaSSplus), the BSP-operated facility that enables check settlement.

"As a result, the amended check policy ensures certainty of funds transfer from the check issuer to the payee. Hence, aside from improving confidence in the check clearing and settlement system, the enhanced policy enables better fund management among check users," the central bank said.