USD to PHP: funding and paying out in Philippines
US dollar remittances are converted into pesos by BSP-authorised banks, whose interbank USD/PHP spot trades settle the next business day, and paid out to bank accounts over InstaPay or PESONet, to e-wallets such as GCash and Maya, or as cash. The main prefunding constraint is December, when inflows peak (a record US$3.52 billion in December 2025) while holidays cut the banking days on which PESONet and PhilPaSSplus settle.
| Origin | United States (USD) |
| Destination | Philippines (PHP) |
| Instant rails in Philippines | InstaPay |
| Holiday calendar | Philippines bank holidays 2026 and 2027 |
The market
- Overseas Filipino cash remittances reached a record US$35.63 billion in 2025, up 3.3% from US$34.49 billion in 2024, equal to 7.3% of GDP; personal remittances reached US$39.62 billion. source
- The United States was the largest source of cash remittances in 2025 at US$14.15 billion (39.7% of the total), followed by Singapore and Saudi Arabia. source
- BSP notes that the US share is overstated, because remittance centres abroad route funds through correspondent banks mostly located in the US, and banks attribute the origin to the most immediate source. source
- December 2025 cash remittances of US$3.52 billion were a record monthly high. source
How recipients get paid
| Method | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| bank account | Nium pays PHP to bank accounts in real time, 24x7, up to PHP 50,000 per transfer via InstaPay, and same day via PESONet for instructions received by 2 p.m. Manila time. | source |
| mobile wallet | dLocal pays out to wallets linked to a mobile number, including PayMaya, GCash, Coins, GrabPay, PalawanPay and others. | source |
| cash pickup | Nium lists instant PHP cash payout as a payout method in the Philippines. | source |
| card | Nium lists instant PHP payouts to cards via Visa Direct. | source |
Payout rails in Philippines
| Rail | Operator | Hours | Runs on holidays | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| InstaPay | Automated clearing house under the BSP National Retail Payment System; settled in PhilPaSSplus | 24 hours a day, every day, including holidays. | yes | source |
| PESONet | Automated clearing house under the BSP National Retail Payment System; netting by PCHC (Payments Network of the Philippines) | Instructions can be sent any time but clear only on banking days, in three settlement windows with cut-offs at 10:00, 13:00 and 16:00 Manila time; each bank sets earlier cut-offs of its own. | no | source |
| PhilPaSSplus (RTGS) | Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas | 09:00 to 17:45 Manila time on weekdays. | no | source |
Funding from United States
| Rail | Operator | Hours and cut-offs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fedwire Funds Service | Federal Reserve Banks | Business day opens 9:00 p.m. ET on the previous calendar day and closes 7:00 p.m. ET. Customer transfer cut-off is 6:45 p.m. ET (banks set earlier cut-offs for their own customers). Closed Saturdays, Sundays and Fed holidays. | source |
| FedACH (including Same Day ACH) | Federal Reserve Banks | Business days only. Same Day ACH transmission deadlines 10:30 a.m., 2:45 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. ET, settling at 1:00, 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. ET. Future-dated items settle 8:30 a.m. ET on the next business day. | source |
| FedNow Service | Federal Reserve Banks | 24 hours a day, every day, including Fed holidays; only between US institutions that have joined the service. | source |
| RTP network | The Clearing House | 24 hours a day, every day, including holidays; only between US institutions that have joined the network. | source |
FX and conversion
- The interbank USD/PHP spot market is open only to universal and commercial banks authorised by the BSP to deal in FX that are members of the Bankers Association of the Philippines; spot value date is the trade date plus one business day (T+1). source
- The BAP USD/PHP benchmark (BAP AM Spot Weighted Average) uses spot trades of at least US$500,000 dealt between 9:00 and 11:30 a.m. and is published by 11:35 a.m. on trading days. source
Who pays out in Philippines
| Provider | What they offer here | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Thunes | Pays to Philippine bank accounts, digital wallets including Coins, GCash, GrabPay and PayMaya, and cash pickup. | source |
| Nium | Pays PHP to bank accounts (InstaPay and PESONet), wallets, cards via Visa Direct and cash payout; bank payouts reach all major banks in the Philippines. | source |
| dLocal | Supports payouts in the Philippines via bank transfers and wallet transfers. | source |
| TerraPay | Partnered with Raenest in February 2026 to enable local-currency payouts to freelancers in the Philippines and India. | source |
| Coins.ph | Listed by the BSP as an active non-bank VASP (Betur Inc.); its business platform disburses PHP via InstaPay and PESONet and supports USDC and USDT payments. | source |
Stablecoin routes
| Provider | Route | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Coins.ph (Betur Inc.) | BSP-licensed VASP and official Circle and Tether partner; offers institutional crypto and FX trading with on and off ramps, and PHP transfers via InstaPay and PESONet. | source |
| Philippine Digital Asset Exchange (PDAX) | Listed by the BSP as an active non-bank VASP as of 15 July 2026. | source |
Prefunding this corridor
- Fedwire and FedACH do not run on Saturdays, Sundays or Federal Reserve holidays, so USD funding of a foreign payout partner by wire stops on those days. source
- PESONet clears only on banking days, so larger peso payouts sent over a weekend or holiday credit on the next banking day; InstaPay keeps running. source
- Pesos bought in the interbank spot market settle T+1, so a conversion done on the last banking day before a holiday settles only after it. source
- December is the peak month: cash remittances hit a record US$3.52 billion in December 2025. source
Size the balance you hold in Philippines for payouts during your top-up lead time plus local closures. Check this corridor's runway and the Philippines holiday calendar.
Regulators
- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP): Registers and supervises money service businesses, including remittance and transfer companies, which need authority to operate from the BSP under Circular No. 1206 (2024). source
- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), virtual assets: Licenses virtual asset service providers; its list as of 15 July 2026 includes Coins.ph (Betur Inc.), Maya Philippines and PDAX as active non-bank VASPs. source
- US state money transmission regulators (origin side): Sending money from the US needs a money transmitter licence in each state that requires one. At the end of 2024, 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico managed money services licences through NMLS. source
Seeing this corridor in Polynopsis
Polynopsis shows the balance at each Philippines payout partner, bank and wallet next to your USD funding accounts and the transfers in flight between them, and warns before the USD to PHP corridor runs dry.
Frequently asked questions
Which rail should large PHP payouts use?
PESONet, which has no network limit on amount and clears on banking days in windows with cut-offs at 10:00, 13:00 and 16:00 Manila time. InstaPay runs 24/7 with a PHP 50,000 limit per person-to-person transfer, and since 29 July 2026 InstaPay for Business lets businesses with corporate accounts at participating institutions send up to PHP 500,000 per transaction in real time.
When do pesos bought from a bank settle?
Interbank USD/PHP spot trades settle T+1. Only BSP-authorised universal and commercial banks that are BAP members trade in that market.
How much of the Philippines' remittance flow comes from the US?
US$14.15 billion, or 39.7% of 2025 cash remittances of US$35.63 billion. BSP notes the US share is overstated because many remittance centres abroad route funds through US correspondent banks.
When is the corridor busiest?
December. Cash remittances reached a record US$3.52 billion in December 2025, and PESONet and PhilPaSSplus settle only on banking days, which December holidays reduce.
Other corridors
Sources
- Cash remittances hit record high of US$3.5B in December 2025 · Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- Overseas Filipino cash remittances by country, by source (Table 11) · Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- Payouts to Philippines · Nium Atlas
- Philippines payouts · dLocal
- BSP: Real-time interbank fund transfer go live with InstaPay · Security Bank (reproducing BSP release)
- PESONet FAQs 2025 · RCBC
- BSP to implement 24/7 payment system in 2026 · BusinessWorld
- Fedwire Funds Service and National Settlement Service Operating Hours · Federal Reserve Financial Services
- FedACH Processing Schedule · Federal Reserve Financial Services
- About the FedNow Service · Federal Reserve Financial Services
- RTP network · The Clearing House
- FX Benchmark Administration (BAP FX Benchmark Guidelines) · Bankers Association of the Philippines
- Circular No. 1206, Series of 2024: Consolidated Rules for Money Service Businesses · Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- List of Virtual Asset Service Providers as of 15 July 2026 · Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- 2024 NMLS Money Services Businesses Report · Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS)
- Philippines rising: leading the digital wallet revolution · Thunes
- TerraPay partners with Raenest to enable faster freelancer payouts across India and the Philippines · TerraPay
- Coins.ph Business · Coins.ph
- Holiday Schedules · Federal Reserve Financial Services
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.