Manulife expands Peso Smart x RecoveREADS to include teachers, principals, and parents in webinars about financial literacy

May 23, 2022

Manila, Philippines ― More than 500 attendees from Gubat Elementary School in Albay, Guisad Valley National High School in Baguio, Pembo Elementary School in Makati, and Bambang Elementary School, Buting Elementary School and Francisco Legaspi Memorial School in Pasig participated in Manulife’s recent Peso Smart x RecoveREADS financial literacy webinars, in partnership with the Corazon Sanchez Atayde Memorial Foundation (CSAMF).

Through the webinars, employees from Manulife Philippines and Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation (MCBL) taught lessons covering basic financial concepts such as saving, budgeting, and investing.

Manulife’s award-wining financial literacy program Peso Smart continues to support the Department of Education’s initiatives to expand and improve its financial literacy curriculum for K-12 programs to enrich the capability of learners, teachers, and personnel.

“Peso Smart was created to teach young students how to make responsible financial decisions; however, in the course of running the program, we also saw an opportunity to extend it to include teachers, school principals, and parents, who play an integral role in helping advance financial literacy. By empowering communities embrace the importance of managing personal finances, we can guide more Filipinos on how to be smarter with their money and financially secure their future,” said Melissa Henson, Chief Marketing Officer, Manulife Philippines.

Margaux Romero Atayde, CSAMF Executive Director, added: “Partnering with Manulife Philippines has given us a better understanding of the country’s current state of financial literacy. We saw how the program has helped the families of the children and the teachers from the schools become smarter with their finances, especially during the pandemic. We are happy to continuously work with Manulife in expanding our program so we can change young Filipinos’ lives through Peso Smart x RecoveREADS.”

Peso Smart started in 2017 as a series of face-to-face classes dedicated to teaching the importance of saving and investing to students in public elementary schools. During the pandemic, it was redesigned to address the demands of remote learning, and expanded to more schools nationwide. The program has also been extended to university students to teach the importance of insurance, investments, and financial planning. More than 400 students have graduated from the Peso Smart program since its inception.

About Manulife Philippines

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company opened its doors for business in the Philippines in 1907. Since then, Manulife’s Philippine Branch and later The Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. (Phils.), Inc. (Manulife Philippines) has grown to become one of the leading life insurance companies in the country. Manulife Philippines is a wholly-owned domestic subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corporation, among the world’s largest life insurance companies by market capitalization. Learn more about Manulife Philippines by visiting their website www.manulife.com.ph and following them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ManulifePH), Twitter (@ManulifePH), and Instagram (@manulifeph).

About Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation

Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation is a strategic alliance between Manulife Philippines and China Banking Corporation (China Bank). It provides a wide range of innovative insurance products and services to customers of China Bank as well as the bank’s thrift arm, China Bank Savings (CBS). MCBL aims to ensure that every client receives holistic life, health, and wealth solutions to address his or her

individual needs.

Since opening in October 2007, the company has grown into a business of significance for both Manulife and China Bank. The two strengthened their partnership further in 2014 when China Bank raised its equity stake in MCBL to 40%. MCBL is setting its sights on its next growth phase and reaffirming its mission to be the biggest, most professional bancassurance company in the industry that delivers extraordinary customer experience.

About Manulife

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we provide financial advice and insurance, operating as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. Through Manulife Investment Management, the global brand for our global wealth and asset management segment, we serve individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide. At the end of 2021, we had more than 38,000 employees, over 119,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving over 33 million customers. Our principal operations are in Asia and Canada, and the United States, where we have served customers for more than 160 years. We trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong. In the previous 12 months we made CAD$32.7 billion in payments to our customers.

Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit manulife.com.

About China Bank

China Banking Corporation (China Bank), founded in 1920, is one of the leading universal banks in the Philippines, and is the country’s first privately-owned local commercial bank. It was listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange in 1927 (PSE stock symbol: CHIB), became the first bank in Southeast Asia to process deposit accounts on-line in 1969, the first Philippine bank to offer phone banking in 1988, and acquired its universal banking license in 1991.

It provides a full range of banking products and services to corporate, commercial, and retail customers through 637 branches to date, including 160 branches of its retail bank arm China Bank Savings (CBS), complemented by 1,034 ATMs nationwide (162 ATMs for CBS), as well as internet and mobile banking alternative channels and services. It also offers a wide array of allied financial services through its subsidiaries China Bank Capital Corp., China Bank Securities Corp., China Bank Insurance Brokers Inc., and affiliate Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corp.

With a century of enduring relationships, marked by quality service to its generations of clients and significant contribution to the country’s economy, China Bank remains committed to ethical and responsible banking, and as one of the largest and strongest, most respected and trusted financial institutions in the country. Visit www.chinabank.ph for more information.

Media Contacts:

John Robert Sion
Manulife Philippines
john_robert_sion@manulife.com

Dessa Virtusio
Virtusio PR International, Inc.
dessa@virtusio.com

About Us

Products

Services

External

Terms of Use Privacy Policy and Notice Customer Privacy Policy and Notice

Manulife China Bank Life (MCBL) is regulated by the Philippine Insurance Commission and is authorized to provide financial products or services in the Philippines.