Digital platforms gearing up Philippines for improved financial inclusion

Digital platforms are no longer something new for Filipinos, and so G-Exchange Inc. president Albert Tinio believes that the country is “ready to take the next step” towards a financial services revolution.

Tinio, the head of G-Exchange which operates the mobile money payment service GCash, pointed out that the Philippines is a social media-savvy nation and it has proven to be comfortable in using the internet. However, there is a need to go “beyond calls and text” and people should be doing more with their mobile phones.

“Mobile financial services present an opportunity to complement mainstream financial services to serve millions of financially underserved Filipinos,” he said.

Currently, there are around 106 million Filipinos with active SIM cards. About 73 million are mobile phone users in the country, 34 million of which are unique smartphone users. On average, there are 67 million Filipino users who are online at any given time.

The growing number of people utilizing digital platforms could certainly help address the country’s dilemma on financial inclusion.

Among this group of active mobile and internet users, the youth — consisting of students, young professionals, and freelancers — can benefit the most from mobile financial services, followed by households in cities and, eventually, people living in provincial areas.

“We see that path, we see that migration: The youth, the urban centers and, then, to the rural centers. Is it limited to pure consumers? No. Included in that journey are the enterprises. The needs of those in rural and urban areas are the same. We’re all entitled to that financial service,” Tinio said.

He said that it is their company’s vision to “bring down that financial wall for every Filipino” by providing financial access to unbanked and underserved Filipinos.

via Philippine Star / Catherine Talavera