Best Dollar Investments in the Philippines

Best Dollar Investments in the Philippines

Investing with US Dollars in the Philippines can be quite tricky. In my opinion, dollar investment decisions of individuals like you and I, and OFWs earning US Dollars, rely heavily on two things: your prediction of future exchange rates, and the financial risks and expected returns of the best dollar investments in the Philippines.

If you believe that the Philippine pesos will remain stagnant or will appreciate within the next five years, then your best move would be to convert your investment capital to Pesos now and invest in peso-denominated securities. Some of these have already been discussed in our post about the Best Investments in the Philippines 2022.

On the other hand, if you think the US dollar will bounce back and that the peso will gradually yet substantially weaken, then you may opt to maintain your investable funds in dollars and invest in dollar-denominated assets. Eventually, you may just liquidate your investments and convert to pesos again when the exchange rate reaches at a level that’s to your liking.

What are the Best Dollar Investments in the Philippines?

As of this writing, Philippine investors don’t actually have direct access to individual stocks that are listed in major foreign exchanges. One viable option to invest in US stocks is to invest in international brokers like GoTrade, Etoro, and TDA. Another would be through the availability of foreign-denominated equity such as UITFs (read our beginner’s guide here) , feeder funds, and mutual funds (learn more about it here).

In conjunction to the latter option, here are some commonly available US dollar-denominated investments in the Philippines:

	BDO Dollar Money Market Fund	BDO Medium Term Dollar Bond Fund	BDO Global Equity Index Feeder Fund
Minimum Investment	USD 500.00	USD 500.00	USD 500.00
Minimum Additional	USD 500.00	USD 500.00	USD 500.00
Minimum Holding Period	None	30 calendar days	None
Early Redemption Fee	None	1.00% of Original Participation Amount	N/A
Management Fee	0.25% p.a.	1.00% p.a.	0.50% p.a.
Benchmark	US Dollar Time Deposit Rate	Markit iBoxx Philippines USD 1-5 Index	MSCI World Net (custom 4pm LUX)

BDO Dollar Money Market Fund– suitable for individual and corporate investors with moderate risk appetite and who are looking for safe and liquid investments with yields relatively higher than those of US Dollar time deposit accounts. The Fund may invest in deposits in the Trustee’s bank or in other banks, securities issued or guaranteed by the Philippine Government or the BSP, tradable securities issued by any supranational entity and exchange-listed fixed income securities.
BDO Medium Term Dollar Bond Fund– suitable for individual and corporate investors with moderate risk appetite and who are looking for higher yields and are willing to take the attendant risks due to the relatively longer-term nature of the Fund’s investments. The Fund may invest in deposits in the Trustee’s bank or in other banks, securities issued or guaranteed by the Philippine Government or the BSP, tradable securities issued by any supranational entity and exchange-listed fixed income securities.
BDO Global Equity Index Feeder Fund– suitable for individual and corporate investors who have an aggressive risk appetite and who seek potentially higher returns through global stock market investments. As a feeder fund, the Fund shall invest at least 90% of its assets in a single collective investment scheme called the Target Fund. The remaining portion of the assets (maximum of 10%) will be invested and reinvested by the Trustee, with full discretionary powers, in deposits in the Trustee’s bank or in other banks

	BPI INVEST U.S. DOLLAR SHORT TERM FUND	BPI Invest US Dollar Income Feeder Fund
Minimum Investment	USD 500.00	USD 1,000.00
Minimum Additional	USD 200.00	USD 500.00
Minimum Holding Period	None	180 days
Early Redemption Fee	–	–
Management Fee	0.50% p.a	1.00% p.a.
Benchmark		35% MSCI World Index (USD Hedged), 5% MSCI Emerging Markets Index (Unhedged), 25% Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate Corporate Index (USD Hedged), 15% Bloomberg Barclays Global High Yield Index (USD Hedged), and 20% FTSE World Government Bond 10+ Years Index (USD Hedged)

BPI INVEST U.S. DOLLAR SHORT TERM FUND– suitable for investors with a moderately conservative risk profile and is aimed to achieve liquidity and stable income derived from a diversified portfolio of foreign currency-denominated short-term fixed income instruments.
BPI INVEST US DOLLAR INCOME FEEDER FUND– suitable for investors with an aggressive risk profile and those who look for regular income with a secondary focus on capital appreciation over a medium to long term horizon, and are comfortable with the risks of a global multi-asset fund.

FWD Global US Dollar Equity Index Fund– gives you a diversified and affordable exposure to some of the world’s top companies by closely tracking the total returns of the MSCI All Country World Index (MSCI ACWI), allowing you to participate in the long-term growth potential of international economies. Learn more about it here.

Best Dollar Investments in the Philippines