Filipinos have turned to fintech during the pandemic: more than half a million digital entrepreneurs found a living by selling products online through social media platforms using GCash as a means to transact, all this while at least 26% of MSMEs have shut down in the country, unable to shift their businesses towards an online model. This proves that financial technology isn’t anymore simply a payment platform, but an emerging channel driving various industries forward.
GCash also had a very crucial role in distributing financial aid to the marginalized sector. Through government initiatives, the mobile wallet company distributed over PHP 16 billion to more than 2 million Filipinos while keeping them safe against COVID-19. This also addressed key challenges faced by the public sector in aid distribution, such as lack of transparency and accountability on the monies being distributed, and the inefficiency of having both government employees and beneficiaries manually giving and receiving cash for hours on end, among others.
Speaking at ANC’s Market Edge for the prestigious World Fintech Festival event, GCash President and CEO Martha Sazon affirms the role GCash will play in the years to come: “It is a very exciting time for us at GCash. We feel that our vision of “Finance for All” is at our fingertips, as more and more people realize how easy, accessible and convenient, technology is, particularly mobile wallets.”
“With the huge demand for our services, the market is ripe with opportunity. Now that our users have fully accepted us as a payment platform, we can’t wait to show them what other ground-breaking products and services we are lining up. As more and more companies sign up to partner with us, the possibilities for GCash are endless,” added Sazon.
GCash indeed has become the financial enabler it was aiming for since it was established in 2005. More than 26 million Filipinos now have GCash, and are using the service twice a day on the average. In fact, the app is so popular in the country that it not only is the #1 financial app for eleven consecutive months in 2020, but it also passed global app brands such as Tiktok, Twitter, and Netflix in rankings, per the global app ranking company App Annie.
Similar to China’s Alipay, GCash is now poised as an all-in-one digital lifestyle platform through its new GLife feature, enabling businesses to set up shop within the app without needing to invest in app development and establish their digital footprint on the get-go, and at the same time letting users shop, eat, and play without having to download multiple apps. Big businesses have already shown massive support, with Ayala, Globe Telecom, Puregold, and Lazada adopting GLife into their business initiatives and opening digital storefronts.
GCash is also the first and only fintech app in the country to feature innovative and democratized financial services to Filipinos, enabling them to save their money with an up to 4% interest rate, invest in mutual funds for as low as PHP 50, and enjoy medical coverage insurance for as low as PHP 25 a month. This comes as the brand realizes that unemployment and loss of income are the main drivers of insecurity among consumers, which also affects the growth of businesses and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). 7 out of 10 Filipinos remain unbanked and are unable to access financial services.
Globe Fintech Innovations Inc. (Mynt), which operates GCash, is part of the portfolio companies of 917Ventures, the largest corporate incubator in the Philippines wholly-owned by Globe Telecom Inc.
GCash is available for download on the App Store and Google Play. For more information, kindly visit https://www.gcash.com/.
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