The robust economic environment and continuing expansion of branch network of banks nationwide boosted deposit growth. Deposits reached Php8.6 trillion in June 2015, increasing by almost 9% from Php7.9 trillion in June 2014, according to data from the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC). More depositors also continued to entrust their savings in banks with the number of deposit accounts up by 5.1% to 49.3 million from 46.9 million during the same period. The number of bank branches stood at 10,334 as of June 2015, up by 5.5% from the 9,793 branches in June 2014.

Based on PDIC's maximum deposit insurance coverage of P500,000 per depositor per bank, 96.6% or 47.6 million of total deposit accounts are fully insured as of June 2015. In terms of amount, 22.7% or P1.95 trillion of the P8.6 trillion total deposits in the banking system is insured.

Deposits in commercial banks rose by 8.9% while the number of accounts was 4.3% higher, essentially tracing the industry growth rate given its 75% share in terms of number of accounts and 90% share in terms of amount. Branches of commercial banks (KBs) increased by 5.5% to 5,734 branches, expanding their reach to more depositors. Thrift banks registered the highest increase in growth rate both in terms of number of depositors and amount of deposits at 7% and 11.4%, respectively. This is consistent with the 9.2% growth rate in branches of thrift banks with 2,060 branches as of June 2015. Although rural banks suffered a setback as its deposit levels were down by 4.1%, it registered the highest growth rate in terms of number of accounts at 8.7%, even with only 2,540 branches or 2.8% year-on-year increase in branch network.

PDIC President Cristina Que Orbeta remarked that she found the marked increase in the number of deposit accounts of rural banks very encouraging, particularly in light of the government's financial inclusion thrust. She said that the 8.7% growth rate is the highest during the last ten years. This is notwithstanding the closure of 16 rural banks during the one year period, which involved a reduction of 70,175 deposit accounts. She said that this development augurs well on the critical role of rural banks in promoting inclusive growth, their target market being small depositors particularly in the countryside.

Despite the expansion in branch banking network nationwide, 595 or 36.4% of municipalities and cities do not have banks yet, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Eastern Visayas (Region 8) and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) are the top three regions with the most number of unbanked municipalities and cities. This presents opportunities for growth for banks

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