The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported that 4 out of 10 Filipinos are now using e-money, with Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan saying that they are confident they will reach their target of 50% digitalization of retail payments before the year ends.

BSP noted that in 2022, 42.1% of retail payments were already done in digital form. To maintain the upward trajectory, the BSP is currently discussing with banks and digital transaction platforms to lower or waive the fees for transactions lower than Php1,000.

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Tangonan pointed out that such fees “present a barrier and there is a reluctance to pay.” He added that offering micropayments may aid in encouraging Filipinos to make digital payments.

The BSP governor said that they will allow e-money platforms to have the time to study the impact of waiving transaction fees on their business.

Digital bank Maya already expressed their support for the BSP’s vision but also noted that the investments they made in technology and consumer promotions should also be considered.

Meanwhile, GCash said that operational costs incurred from its different services — a lot of which are also coming from third-party financial institutions — should be also taken into account.

To help promote digital transactions to consumers and SMEs, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) recently concluded the Cashless Expo PH 2023 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City where both the merchants and consumers can only make transactions in digital form.

DTI Assistant Secretary Mary Jean Pacheco highlighted how converting to digital retail payments is safe, secure, and convenient for both merchants and consumers.

Pacheco pointed out how e-money can’t be more easily stolen than physical cash. Plus, since everything is automatically recorded, merchants can easily backtrack past transactions — no need to manually record on a log book.

Via: ABS-CBN News

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