July 18, 2025 T O : All Clearing Banks/Institutions R E : SURVEY AND FEEDBACK SOLICITATION ON THE ENFORCEMENT OF CHECK WRITING RULES – DATE OF ISSUE AND AMOUNT IN FIGURES FORMAT 1. Following the July 1, 2025 implementation of the policy on the non-acceptance of checks with invalid date formats and unnecessary special characters in the amount in figures, PCHC has received reports of ongoing issues and concerns from the banking public and clearing participants despite earlier issuances of reminders and clarifications. 2. Specifically, we note: • Reports of insufficient client awareness and outreach • Variations in banks’ interpretation of acceptable date and amount formats • Operational challenges encountered by frontliners and clients 3. To better understand these concerns and determine the next steps, we are conducting an official survey to gather clearing participants' feedback on the implementation status, issues encountered, and recommendations. 4. We request all clearing participants to accomplish the attached survey form, focusing on: • Actual field experience and operational feedback • Readiness of systems and processes • Extent of client awareness and outreach efforts 5. Kindly submit your responses on or before 24 July 2025 to: email: HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph cc: thonymanongas@pchc.com.ph 6. Your feedback is essential in ensuring a fair, consistent, and well-coordinated industry-wide enforcement of this policy. 7. We trust in your continued cooperation and support.

July 16, 2025 TO : All Clearing Banks/Institutions RE : NEW CLEARING PARTICIPANTS/BRSTN REGISTER UPDATES 1. With reference to various request letters/notices received from the clearing participant banks, we enumerate hereunder the following updates to the PCHC clearing participant banks/BRSTN Register and Operating Parameter, viz: 1.1. New Clearing Participants BANK/BRANCH BRSTN ADDRESS LBP - Cavite Capitol 41035-013-3 Lower G/F, Finance Bldg., Cavite Government Center, Brgy. San Agustin, Trece Martires City, Cavite BOC - Caticlan Branch Lite 29044-002-7 Arrival Lobby, Godofredo P. Ramos Airport, Bgy Union, Nabas, Aklan BDO - Sampaloc - G. Tuazon 01053-712-3 SCG Building 2, Along G. Tuazon St., Barangay 576, Sampaloc, Manila BDO - Bataan - Hermosa 06053-041-3 G/F, 925 Plaza, Mataas Na Lupa, Brgy. Culis, Hermosa, Bataan 1.2. Relocation/Change in Branch Name and/or Address BRSTN BANK/BRANCH NAME FROM TO 38004-001-0 BPI – Calapan Calapan City Nuciti Central, JP Rizal Street, Brgy. Camilmil, Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro 01026-210-0 Metro – Ortigas Xavier San Juan City Eton Square Ortigas, Ortigas Avenue, Barangay Greenhills, San Juan City 03026-006-9 Metro Agdao – Davao City Davao - Bajada – J.P. Cabaguio Ave. Agdao, Davao City, Davao Del Sur 26026-007-5 Metro–Cauayan- Cauayan City R4 Tower, Quezon Street, Cauayan Maharlika City, Isabela 01035-170-7 LBP SMC Complex – San Miguel Avenue – Ground Floor Mandaluyong City Hanston Square Building 17 San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center Pasig City 17053-002-8 BDO–Laoag-Balintawak Laoag City G/F & 2/F, Insular Life Building, Balintawak St., Brgy. No. 9, Santa Angela, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte 2. Pursuant to CICS OM No. 17-004 dated 18 January 2017, the aforementioned updates will be implemented effective at 9:00 AM, July 16, 2025. 3. For your information and guidance.

July 10, 2025 TO : All Clearing Banks/Institutions RE : CLARIFICATIONS ON STRICT ENFORCEMENT OF THE NON-ACCEPTANCE OF CHECKS ITH NON-COMPLIANT DATE AND AMOUNT IN FIGURES FORMAT 1. Further to MC No. 3887 dated July 02, 2025, we appeal once again to the Liaison/Clearing Officers and/or concerned officers/departments of all CICS participant banks to strengthen the information campaign within their branches and client networks, especially those accepting check payments, regarding the new check design format and the specific format requirements for the Date of Issue and Amount in Figures. 2. Despite earlier advisories, we continue to receive complaints from both banks and individual clients, citing the non-acceptance of checks due to reasons that do not pertain to the actual clearing format requir3ements. Some of these include: 2.1. Use of asterisks (***) in the Payee field or in the Amount in words 2.2. Use of symbols such as ampersands (&), dashes (-), or the word, "only" when centavos are present; centavos written in numeric or fractional form in the Amount in Words 2.3. Payee names containing apostrophes (') e.g., "Uncle John's" 2.4. Date of Issue using a dash (-) as separator or not fully enclosed within the boxes 2.5. Amount in Firgures not perfectly aligned within the amount box 2.6. Checks that do not match the acceptable illustrations in MC No. 3821 exactly 3. We would like to emphasize and reiterate that among all the check fields, only the Date of Issue and the Amount in Figures are subject to strict format validation for clearing purposes. The required formats are as follows: 3.1. Date of Issue: MM-DD-YYYY or acceptable variants such as M-DD-YYYY or MM-D-YYYY 3.2. Amount in Figures: Must contain two decimal places for centavos and comma separators for thousands, millions, etc. (e.g., 1,100,500.25 for One Million one Hundred Thousand Five Hundred and Twenty-Five Centavos) For as long as these two fields comply with the format requirements and the Amount in Words matches the Amount in Figures, other minor variations (e.g., use of "only," punctuation marks in the amount in words, etc.) should not be grounds for rejection of the check for clearing. 4. Recent media coverage has highlighted the confusion among clients and branch personnel - stemming from inconsistent or inaccurate application of these rules. As such, we strongly encourage front liners and receiving staff to be properly briefed and oriented on this matter to avoid unnecessary check rejections and inconvenience to clients. 5. For checks that are ultimately refused for clearing solely due to incorrect format in the date and in the amount field, please advise clients that such checks may still be presented directly to the Drawee Bank for encashment or deposit, as these do not go through the clearing process. 6. Should there be any clarifications needed on this or related circulars, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. Our Service Help Desk officers will be happy to assist: Email: HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph Telephone: 8537-2702 (Hector), 8537-2704 (Thony) 7. Please be guided accordingly.

July 02, 2025   T O      :               All Clearing Banks/Institutions   R E         :               CLARIFICATIONS ON STRICT ENFORCEMENT OF THE NON-ACCEPTANCE OF CHECKS WITH INVALID DATE FORMAT AND UNNECESSARY SPECIAL CHARACTERS/SYMBOLS IN THE AMOUNT IN FIGURES     1.      We wish to reiterate that following the second moratorium issued on June 3, 2024  ( MC No. 3814 ) and the subsequent reminder on proper check writing (MC No. 3821 dated July 2, 2024), the implementation date of July 1, 2025 (August 1, 2025 for Manager’s/Cashier’s Checks), remains firm. Despite prior guidance and public dissemination, we continue to receive numerous inquiries.   2.      To address recurring concerns, we emphasize the following clarifications:   2.1  Date of Issue • Must follow MM-DD-YYYY format or acceptable variants: M-DD-YYYY, MM-D-YYYY. • Examples for July 2, 2025: -        07-02-2025, 7-02-2025, 07-2-2025 • Checks remain acceptable even if the date is printed above, below, or outside the boxes, with or without dashes.   Example:                2.2  Amount in Figures • Must be in standard number format: commas to separate thousands, a period before centavos (e.g., 10,500.35). -        No symbols, underlines, or additional markings before or after the number. -         Acceptable: 10,000.00 -         Not acceptable: ₱10,000.00, 10,000--, ***10,000.35***, 10,000.00/100    -         If the amount is printed slightly outside the designated box, the check remains acceptable.  Example:         2.3  Amount in Words and Payee • No restrictions. -        Traditional writing styles, including the use of ampersands (&), dashes (-), or the word “only” are acceptable. -        Centavos may be written as numbers or fractions (e.g., 35/100) without affecting check acceptability.   2.4  Post Dated Checks ·       PDCs warehoused before July 1, 2025, remain acceptable for clearing on due date, provided they bear the “Warehoused” stamp on the dorsal side.   2.5  Other Reminders ·       The policy applies to Checks presented for deposit/clearing. ·        Checks not acceptable due to formatting issues may still be presented directly to the Drawee Bank for payment or encashment by the payee or issuer.   3.      Please be guided accordingly.

July 01, 2025 TO : All Clearing Banks/Institutions RE : NEW CLEARING PARTICIPANTS/BRSTN REGISTER UPDATES 1. With reference to various request letters /notices received from the clearing participant banks, we enumerate hereunder the following updates to the PCHC clearing participant banks/BRSTN Register and Operating Parameter, viz: 1.1. New Clearing Participants BANK/BRANCH BRSTN ADDRESS BPI - Ayala Malls Evo City 41004-044-3 Unit 129 Bldg E, Ayala Malls Evo City, Centennial Road, Bgy. Batong Dalig, Tabon Bridge, Kawit, Cavite SBC - Antipolo - Cogeo 01014-237-2 Langhaya Commercial Lot1 Langhaya, Barangay Dela Paz, Antipolo, Rizal SBC - Negros Occidental-Cadiz 04014-008-5 Abelarde St., Cadiz City, Negros Occidental SBC - Angeles - Friendship 06014-011-7 Fil - Am Friendship Hiway, near Poinsettia Ave, Angeles City, Pampanga SBC - Sorsogon City 16014-002-0 Maharlika National Highway, Sorsogon City SBC - Tarlac - Concepcion 22014-004-1 Ora Plaza Along L. Cortez Street Concepcion Tarlac SBC - Tarlac - Paniqui 22014-005-4 GF, Magic Star Mall, 008 Poblacion Norte, Paniqui SBC - Tarlac - Capas 22014-006-7 Capas - Concepcion Rd Brgy. Sto. Domingo, MacArthur Hwy, Capas, Tarlac SBC - Naic 41014-011-0 GF, The Stadium, Antero Soriano Hi-way, Naic, Cavite PSBC - Sta. Maria, Bulacan 13122-052-6 NSCI Annex Bldg., Pulong Buhangin, Sta Maria, Bulacan CARD SME - Pagadian City 72141-001-8 219 Rizal Avenue Balangasan District Pagadian City RBPPI - Calulut 06158-014-5 58-A-3 Barangay Calulut, City of San Fernando, Pampanga BKPDB - Toledo 02160-005-2 510 S. Osmeña St., Luray II, Toledo City, Cebu CBOC - Head Office 54204-002-3 Jose Abad Santos St., Kidapawan City, North Cotabato 1.2. Relocation/Change in Branch Name and/or Address BRSTN BANK/BRANCH NAME FROM TO 13026-025-7 Metro – Malolos - McArthur Malolos City, Bulacan CPN Commercial Complex, Km 38 Highway MacArthur Highway, Barangay San Pablo, Malolos City, Bulacan 01102-106-5 Asia United – Lagro Quezon City 847 Quirino Highway, Barangay Gulod, Novaliches, Quezon City 1.3. Deletion of the following branch/es BANK BRANCH NAME BRSTN Union - Mobile EON 01041-197-7 Union - TBS - Check SVC 01041-994-0 Union - Reyna Mercedes Isabela 26041-003-2 USB - San Mateo 01049-014-7 RCBC - SB - Mexico BC 06060-006-8 RCBC - SB - Padre Garcia - BBC 19060-007-7 RCBC - SB - Candon I S 32060-002-5 2. Pursuant to CICS OM No. 17-004 dated 18 January 2017, the aforementioned updates will be implemented effective 2. at 9:00 AM, July 01, 2025. 3. For your information and guidance.

June 23, 2025   T O      :               All Clearing Banks/Institutions   R E         :            1. STRICT ENFORCEMENT OF NON-ACCEPTANCE OF CHECKS WITH INVALID DATE FORMAT AND THOSE WITH UNNECESSARY SPECIAL CHARACTERS/SYMBOLS IN THE AMOUNT IN FIGURES 2. MORATORIUM EXTENSION FOR MANAGER'S CHECKS     1.      We reiterate PCHC's earlier directive that beginning Tuesday, July 1, 2025 all Checks presented for clearing must strictly comply with the following rules:   1.1.   The ' Date of Issue'  must be expressed in the MM-DD-YYYY format or acceptable variants as illustrated in MC No. 3821   1.2.   The ' Amount in Figures' must be free from unnecessary special characters, symbols, or marks that may hinder proper clearing validation.   2. As prescribed in MC Nos. 3814 and 3857, any check found to be non-compliant shall be returned using R eturn Reason Code “E,” with the following details:   Return Reason Code Description Usage Tran Code Re-clearingR-AllowedN-Not Allowed E Use of non-prescribed Date Format or Writing of Symbols or Marks or other details before and/or after Amount in Figures To return Regular Clearing Item where the issue date format does not conform to the standard MM-DD-YYYY or its acceptable variants, or use of inappropriate partition symbols to separate date characters, or inclusion of unnecessary symbols in the Amount in Figures to deter alteration. 24 N   3.     We emphasize that these rules have been the subject of previous moratoriums, providing ample time for clearing participants to inform and transition their clients to the required formats. As such, strict enforcement will proceed as scheduled for Regular Checks effective July 1, 2025. 4. However, in response to requests for additional lead time for internal adjustment, the effectivity of this directive for Manager's Checks is hereby extended by one (1) month, with full implementation set on August 1, 2025.   5.      We also wish to reiterate that Checks presented before July 1, 2025 that do not follow the prescribed Date of Issue and/or Amount in Figures format as outlined in MC No. 3821 dated July 2, 2024 will remain temporarily accepted under the moratorium but will lose re-clearing eligibility after June 30, 2025.   6.      Please be guided accordingly.

CICS MC No. 3884 PESONet MC No. 25-183 PDDTS MC No. 2025-124   June 20, 2025   T O        :               All Clearing Banks/Institutions   R E          :               BUSINESS AS USUAL OPERATIONS ON JUNE 24, 2025     1.      Further to PESO RTGS Advisory No. BPU-2025-024 dated 20 June 2025, referring also to Malacañang’s issued Proclamation No 925 declaring “Special Non-Working Day” in the City of Manila on 24 June 2025, please be advised that the Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC) will continue to operate Business-As-Usual on the said date   2.      All clearing operations will proceed as scheduled, and standard cut-off times will be observed.   3.      For your guidance and proper dissemination.

PESONet MC No. 25-183 PDDTS MC No. 2025-124 PAS MC No. 2025-037   June 20, 2025   T O        :               All Clearing Banks/Institutions   R E          :               BUSINESS AS USUAL OPERATIONS ON JUNE 24, 2025     1.      Further to PESO RTGS Advisory No. BPU-2025-024 dated 20 June 2025, referring also to Malacañang’s issued Proclamation No 925 declaring “Special Non-Working Day” in the City of Manila on 24 June 2025, please be advised that the Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC) will continue to operate Business-As-Usual on the said date   2.      All clearing operations will proceed as scheduled, and standard cut-off times will be observed.   3.      For your guidance and proper dissemination.

June 19, 2025   T O      :               All Clearing Banks/Institutions   R E         :               PARTICIPATION OF COOPERATIVE BANK OF COTABATO IN CICS                                                                 1.      We are pleased to announce that Cooperative Bank of Cotabato will start to participate in the nationwide Check Image Clearing System (CICS) operations as a Clearing Subscriber effective July 01, 2025.   2.      As communicated by the bank’s president, Ms. Edelle G. Hernandez on June 13, 2025, Cooperative Bank of Cotabato  – Head Office  will serve as its pilot branch with assigned BRSTN: 54204-002-3 .   3.      Cooperative Bank of Cotabato – Head Office is located at Jose Abad Santos St., Kidapawan City, North Cotabato.   4.      Said bank will continue to honor its issued checks bearing the BRSTN of Land Bank of the Philippines until further notice.   5.      Kindly disseminate to all your branches/offices and update as well your respective BRSTN Register accordingly.

PESONet MC No. 25-181 PDDTS MC No. 2025-123 PAS MC No. 2025-036 June 13, 2025 T O : All Clearing Banks/Institutions R E : Launch of Centralized Ticketing System for Exception Reporting, Inquiries, and Participants’ Requests for Assistance 1. To enhance service delivery and to streamline communication between PCHC and all participant institutions, we are pleased to announce the official launch of PCHC’s Ticketing System, a centralized platform designed to manage requests, inquiries, and incident reports more efficiently and transparently. 2. The ticketing platform will be introduced in two phases: - Parallel Run Period: June 16 to July 15, 2025 - Full Implementation: Starting July 16, 2025 3. Beginning June 16, all communication—including general inquiries, system-related concerns, service requests, incident reports, and updates to contact information—must be sent to HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph. This centralized email will serve as the official entry point for our new ticketing platform. 4. During the parallel run, PCHC will continue to respond to communications sent to existing individual email addresses and PhilClear@pchc.com.ph only for those concerns raised before June 16, 2025. 5. This initiative aims to: - Provide automated acknowledgments with a unique Request ID for easy reference and tracking - Ensure prompt routing and monitoring of concerns to the appropriate team - Deliver real-time status notifications (ticket creation, resolution, and closure) - Improve visibility and accountability in handling participant requests 6. For further guidance on using the ticketing platform, please refer to the attached Guidelines for Participant Institutions (Attachment A). 7. We encourage all participants to familiarize themselves with the process and best practices outlined in the guidelines to ensure a smooth transition and optimized experience. 8. Should you have any clarifications or need assistance during the transition period, our Helpdesk team is ready to assist. 9. Let’s work together in making this shift a success. Your cooperation is crucial in helping us deliver more responsive and reliable support services. 10. Please be guided accordingly. Attachment A of CICS MC No. 3881/PESONet MC No. 25-181/PDDTS MC No. 2025-123/PAS MC No. 2025-036 P CHC Ticketing System Guidelines for Participant Institutions 1. What to expect upon the launch of Ticketing System • All service requests, inquiries, and concerns sent via email will be automatically logged into the ticketing platform. Messages sent via other channels (e.g., calls, SMS, messaging apps) will require manual logging by PCHC staff. • Senders will receive an automated acknowledgment confirming receipt of their email. • Each incoming email will be assigned a unique Request ID for easy reference and tracking. • Upon receipt of the email, every message is automatically tagged with a unique Request ID for convenient tracking and future reference. • Ticketing System monitors all received messages so that assigned respondents are properly notified of any messages for their acknowledgment and/or appropriate response. • To keep track of the statuses of messages received, the system will send notification emails to the sender automatically upon creation, resolution and closure of their ticket requests. • All tickets (messages) received and assigned to intended recipient/s when responded to, will bear the centralized email address: HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph as the originator of the response/s in lieu of the usual individual email of PCHC personnel. 2. Guidelines for Proper Email Communication with PCHC Helpdesk • Always reply within the same email thread. Bank officers should always respond—when necessary—within the same, most recent email thread. This helps preserve message context and ensures accurate tracking against the corresponding ticket. • Do not change the subject line. Each incoming message is assigned a unique Request ID, which is automatically inserted into the email's subject line. This identifier enables the system to track conversations accurately. Replies must remain within the original thread using the updated subject line to avoid creating separate, unlinked messages. • Check your Spam/Junk Folders Regularly. During the initial rollout of the ticketing system, participant banks are advised to monitor their Spam or Junk folders to prevent missing important communications from HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph , as automated replies may occasionally be misclassified as spam • Avoid duplicate email submission for the same issue/concern. 􀀀 The ticketing system assigns a unique Request ID to each concern and tracks correspondence accordingly. Sending multiple emails for the same issue may result in multiple ticket entries, leading to confusion and potential delays in response. 3. T ips for Proper Classification and Timely Response • Be clear and concise in specifying or describing the issue or concern for easy classification and forwarding of such message to appropriate respondent/s e.g. “Cannot Access VPN”, “BRSTN Assignment”, “Branch Deletion”. • Include/attach relevant details. The body of the email should include all necessary information for the respondent/s to be able to quickly, appropriately and substantially reply to the message received like citing Memo Number, Section of the Rules, Error or Exception Message/s received, Payment System, Cycle Number, etc. 4. Key Considerations for Effective Communication via HelpDesk@pchc.com.ph • Clearly describe the problem. Precision or substantial information provided relevant to the issue or concern raised will help the respondent/s understand the real concern of issue at hand that may help get prompt response. • Supporting materials help. Raising issues/concerns may be effective by attaching any available materials to help explain the situation at hand e.g. logs, screenshots of system messages. • Availability of Contact Information. Sometimes, participants are unable to update PCHC of their authorized officers (already resigned, retired or re-assigned to other sections/department) so that respondent/s are unable to immediately relay info or further clarification via phone or via alternate officer’s contact information. • Previous Ticket Number. When an issue is recurring, mentioning previous engagement specifying ticket number/s if available will help provide quicker reference to hasten revert or appropriate response.