TDG, NYK team up for seafarers’ fintech

MANILA, Philippines — Transnational Diversified Group (TDG) has partnered with Japanese shipping firm NYK Line to develop a fintech platform for seafarers.

MarCoPay will soon allow seafarers and vessels’ masters to make electronic money transactions aboard their ships.

Developed by TDG and NYK, MarcoPay is an app that is targeted for  launch in January 2020.

It will utilize QR codes that can be used for completing pre-boarding procedures, receiving and converting salaries into digital currency and spending this e-money for onboard purchases.

More importantly, it would be used for sending money to their families.

MarCoPay president and chief executive officer Toshiaki Fujioka said proponents want to make things easier for seafarers, who have been the lifeblood of their respective businesses.

“They spend most of their time at sea, and they are constantly faced with homesickness and worry from being away from their families and friends,” he said.

TDG has partnered with NYK since 1976, recruiting and supplying seafarers for the international shipping line that has been running since 1885. NYK is a Japanese shipping giant.

The seafarers service a fleet of about 710 ships internationally, which includes container ships, tankers, bulk and woodchip carriers, Ro-Ro car carriers, reefer vessels, LNG carriers and cruise ships.

MarCoPay is envisioned to service a global market of over 1.6 million seafarers, of which roughly 20 percent are Filipinos, according to a 2017 International Maritime Organization study.

Research firm MarketLine sees the shipping industry growing to a $210 billion-valuation by 2021.

MarCoPay chief operating officer Areson Cuevas said that the NYK line alone has 4,241 Filipinos servicing 217 vessels.

TDG and NYK are also planning to introduce value-added features anchored on its digital currency in the near future, such as enabling digital purchases in ordinary stores and giving out discount coupons.

Since its establishment in 1976, TDG now has more than 40 member companies that are major players in diverse industries such as shipping and logistics, travel and tourism, and information and communications technology.