EPISODE 125: Banking Rules, Unofficial Practice, and the Price of Trust

Should banks be held liable for unauthorized withdrawals from a depositor’s account, particularly those involving substantial amounts, if they fail to exercise the highest degree of diligence required by law? Listen to the #SupremeCourtPH Podcast with guest Atty. Reinier Paul R. Yebra, an examiner in Commercial and Taxation Laws during the 2023 Bar examinations. He served as Undersecretary for Legal Affairs of the Department of Transportation from 2017 to 2025 and as Acting Deputy Director in the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) from 2011 to 2017. A graduate of the San Beda University College of Law, where he was class valedictorian in 2009, he also topped the Bar Examinations that same year. He teaches commercial law and has authored various publications on the BSP, microfinancing, and special banking laws. Supreme Court Chief Communications Officer Atty. Mike Navallo and Atty. Yebra discuss unauthorized bank withdrawals, as well as banking rules and unsanctioned transactions within the context of the case of Banco de Oro Universal Bank, Inc. v. Seastres, G.R. No. 257151. This Decision was penned by Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa and promulgated by the Supreme Court Third Division on February 13, 2023.