Cebuana Lhuillier beefs up products with fintech deal

CEBU, Philippines —  Cebuana Lhuillier has entered into a partnership deal with fintech firm Advance, to expand its micro-finance products to providing financial assistance to employers for their workers’ salary loan requirement.

The partnership established the Cebuana Lhuillier Advance service, aimed at empowering employers to extend on-demand financial assistance to their employees. 

Cebuana Lhuillier President and CEO Jean Henri Lhuillier said companies that enroll in Cebuana Lhuillier Advance, will discover how convenient the program is, as it allows them to provide salary loans to employees without disrupting their firms’ cash flow. “It also comes without any cost or liability on their part.”

“With the program, we hope to help more Filipinos navigate their way through financial challenges and onto the road to financial wellness”, said Lhuillier.

Jaime de los Angeles, Advance chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder expressed confidence that with the partnership, more Filipino workers will be able to access financial requirement especially in times of need.

“We are elated to be now part of Cebuana Lhuillier’s ecosystem promoting financial inclusion and mobility. Now, even more companies and employees will benefit from Cebuana Lhuillier Advance. We look forward to the positive impact this product will make towards narrowing the national credit gap,” added De Los Angeles.

Advance is a Philippine-based fintech company that provides on-demand access to credit and other financial solutions to employees and businesses.

Aligned with its mission to serve the unbanked and underserved segments of society, Advance recently announced its expansion into Vietnam by acquiring BravoHR, a platform that provides digital solutions for employee engagement, benefits, and rewards. Advance plans to introduce more innovative financial products and offer its services to more businesses in the Philippines and Vietnam.

Cebuana Lhuillier Advance is the company’s first addition this year to their microloans product portfolio and serves as a springboard for other innovative products that will soon be launched this year.

Lhuillier underscored that with the way things are moving forward with Advance, Cebuana Lhuillier is most certainly well on its way to cementing its leadership in the Philippines’ micro-finance industry, from being known as one of the top players in the pawnshop business.