More Filipinos see benefits of e-payments - study

MANILA, Philippines - More Filipinos are expanding their use of electronic payments, indicating that they now see the benefits of e-payment services, according to a study titled 2011 Government E-Payments Adoption Ranking (GEAR) commissioned by Visa Inc.

The GEAR study measures the extent to which governments in 62 countries provide e-payment services and the underlying factors that affect government e-payments adoption.

 “It is encouraging that governments are expanding their use of electronic payments. This study indicates that governments in the Philippines and the region are seeing the benefits, and this will help us to continue to build infrastructure and deploy electronic payment products and services tailored to their specific priorities,” said Elizabeth Buse, Group President of Visa, Asia Pacific, Central Europe, Middle East and Africa (APCEMEA). “As technological advances create new opportunities, Visa will continue to promote the development of electronic payment programs that are secure, affordable and convenient for users in the Philippines and elsewhere,”   said Buse.

In 2011, Visa launched Personal Payments with UnionBank of the Philippines to allow Visa cardholders to receive funds from overseas straight to their Visa cards within minutes. The Philippines was then the first country in Southeast Asia to offer Filipinos a faster and more convenient way to receive remittances from abroad.

Iain Jamieson, Visa Country Manager for the Philippines and Guam said: “It made a lot of sense for Visa to introduce an e-payment service connected to remittances as Philippines is one of the top receiving markets of funds from abroad. With e-payments like Personal Payments, Visa cardholders found it much easier to receive money from their loved ones. Funds are sent directly to their Visa cards and this allowed them to access the money through ATMs or even use the card immediately at point-of-sale. Visa aims to introduce more services such as this to provide Filipinos a faster and easier way to access their funds.”

The provision of some e-payment services has increased since the 2007 study was conducted. Nevertheless, there are still gains to be made, particularly for obtaining/paying for an ID card, requesting unemployment, workers’ compensation and welfare benefits, and disbursement of loans to businesses.

The GEAR study also looks to the future, noting that as governments work toward adopting and improving e-payment services, their strategies will almost undoubtedly reflect each country’s unique infrastructure and social, economic and policy context. No single approach to government e-payments adoption is universal. The study indicates several themes will play a role in e-payment adoption, including:

• Financial inclusion, particularly in the developing world, is likely to get a boost from the roll out of mobile banking services. Countries in Africa and Latin America are expected to see particularly strong gains in this area.

• Mobile payments will likely see a huge uptake in the coming years. With more than five billion mobile phone users worldwide, mobile payments are likely to boom.

• Automating standard services such as tax payments/refunds and social security contributions will likely be prioritized over other e-payment services.

E-payment security will remain an important issue to address and developing proven security measures will be necessary for the uptake of e-payments to flourish.