THE House Committee on Trade and Industry approved a substitute bill on Wednesday seeking to amend Act 2137, or the Warehouse Receipts Law, which would allow farmers to use their crops as collateral for bank loans.
The unnumbered substitute bill consolidates House Bills 3366 and 4413 written by Bagong Henerasyon Party-List Representative Bernadette Herrera-Dy and Camiguin Rep. Xavier Jesus D. Romualdo, respectively. If passed, the bill will be known as the Revised Warehouse Receipts Law of the Philippines.
“It is high time that we update and improve Act 2137 so it can be attuned to the needs of our Agriculture Sector. We need to take advantage of modern technological advances that could be used to establish a system that is more secure, transparent, reliable and promotes ease of doing business,” Mr. Romualdo said in his explanatory note.
A warehouse receipt is a commercial document issued by a warehouse operator acknowledging that certain goods have been stored at a warehouse.
The bill seeks to establish a central registry for all warehouse receipts which will be made readily available online.
“With the use of a reliable and secure central electronic registry, banks and other financial institutions will not be reluctant to accept these Warehouse Receipts in exchange for loans as they can easily check the veracity of Warehouse Receipts, as will as the presence and quality of the corresponding goods and products in the Warehouse,” Mr. Romualdo said.
The measure also provides for the establishment of a seven-member Warehouse Accreditation Council to be led by the Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and will include the Secretaries of Trade and Industry, Finance, and Agriculture. The other three members will represent the warehouse industry.
The bill will be transmitted to the House committee on appropriations. Its counterpart measure, Senate Bill 632, remains at committee level. — Genshen L. Espedido
