The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has advised users who send money to the wrong account to report the error to their bank or e-wallet provider immediately, saying that prompt action improves the chances of tracing and recovering the funds.
Digital payments in the Philippines are processed in real time, which makes wrong transfers harder to reverse. The BSP directed its advice at users of banks and e-wallet providers. GCash and Maya have also published their own procedures for these cases.
Users should report the error to the originating financial institution (OFI), meaning the bank or e-wallet used to send the money. The report should include the payor’s name, contact number and source account, the payee’s account details, the amount, and the date and time of the transfer.
If the receiving financial institution (RFI) is a different company, the OFI is the one to inform it. “Both the OFI and RFI should make reasonable efforts to recover the sum sent in error in accordance with existing regulations and industry conventions,” the BSP said in its Manual of Regulations for Banks.
The OFI has primary responsibility for providing assistance and redress to its clients. While a dispute is pending, both institutions should suspend interest, fees or charges where applicable and hold the disputed funds if they are still intact.
They should also offer reasonable accommodations, such as a non-withdrawable provisional credit or a temporary hold. Institutions have three banking days after an investigation ends to tell the client the result.
GCash said transfers are made in real time. “GCash can only reverse transactions if the account is inactive or not in use,” it said on its website. When the money goes to an active account, the company advises users to contact the recipient and ask for the money back.
For an old or inactive number, users can contact GCash support through the app. Refunds are made on a best-effort basis, with updates expected within three business days.
Maya advises users to verify the recipient’s account before confirming a transfer, since transfers to incorrect accounts cannot be reversed. “Please contact the recipient directly to see if they can transfer the money back to you,” Maya said in an advisory. Funds sent to nonexistent accounts are returned automatically within two banking days.
Under Article 2154 of the Civil Code of the Philippines, a person who receives something without a right to it, delivered through mistake, is obliged to return it. A viral case involving a ₱13,000 transfer to a wrong GCash number was resolved after BSP intervention.
The guidance draws on the BSP’s Manual of Regulations for Banks. No specific BSP circular number was cited.
