Cross-border payments made easier for Filipino freelancers

MANILA, Philippines – The new world of work presents a baffling but exciting scenario where one could work for any company anywhere in the world anytime without having to leave one’s home country, provided that one has the right skills that companies operating in a global environment are looking for – and a reliable high-speed internet connection.

The new army of so-called self-employed, flexible and independent workers have become a force in emerging countries where full-time work is often scarce.

An article published in the Hays Journal titled “The rise of the freelancer economy” cites figures from the UK National Statistics Office indicating that there are 4.8 million self-employed workers in the country as of May this year.

In the Philippines, the country’s freelance workforce doing online jobs for overseas companies is estimated to reach two million. They are people skilled in work that can be done remotely like graphic design, web development, technical report writing, editing, content creation, marketing strategy, social media management, research, and other jobs within the digital ecosystem.

There is, however, a minor hitch. Collecting fees or receiving payment for outsourced work can be cumbersome, especially for one-time deals or short-term projects, more so if one does not have a bank account. And even for those who have bank accounts, other innovative payment schemes are welcome if the transaction could be made simpler and more convenient.

Global digital payments company PayPal has been making it easy for people and companies to transfer funds over the internet and has been serving the freelance community for years. All one needs is the email address of a person to send money to. If the intended recipient has no PayPal account, he or she will be invited to open an account online and can receive the amount sent to his or her online PayPal wallet immediately.

A good number of companies paying for freelance work have been using PayPal for one good reason: convenience. There is no need to deposit over the counter in a bank or go through the usual tedious process of fund transfer. For people receiving PayPal funds, they can link their bank accounts to the PayPal account and upon receipt of payment, withdraw the funds via the ATM.

Rahul Shinghal, PayPal general manager for Southeast Asia, who was in town recently, said that PayPal is so far one of the best ways to receive money from overseas. 

“If you have a client in Europe or the US, we are by far the best option,” he said. “But we have a problem here in the Philippines – bank penetration is low, so it isn’t a preferred choice.”

Outside of the country, though, PayPal is recognized as one of the largest payment companies in the world, with 192 million active customer accounts in almost 200 countries. In  its last earnings report for the third quarter, the company said it processed 1.5 billion payment transactions, which translates to 30 payment transactions per active account on a trailing 12 months basis, a 13-percent increase from a year ago.

Many online freelance workers in the Philippines actually have PayPal accounts, according to Shinghal. So the company has partnered with emerging financial services provider PayMaya Philippines to allow PayPal account holders in the country to exit their funds via the PayMaya mobile app or the Visa-powered debit card that comes with the app.

With the app linked to one’s PayPal account, one can use the money to pay bills, send telco load or money to another person, pay for online purchases, book a flight or a hotel room, or pay for food delivery. With the debit card that can be linked to the app, one can pay at the coffee shop, restaurant, grocery where Visa is accepted, or withdraw the money in any Bancnet ATM.

“When you think about freelance work and cross-border payment, the one company that comes to mind is PayPal. For the past two decades, it has enabled small merchants and individuals who make their own living to access that flexible lifestyle and get paid in a very efficient way, giving them tools to succeed,” said Paolo Azzola, co-COO and managing director of PayMaya Philippines. “We are very excited about the partnership.”

PayMaya is eyeing its user base to grow to seven-digit numbers by the end of this year, according to Azzola. The collaboration with PayPal is among the growing initiatives it is pushing to achieve this goal and to further grow the use of digital financial services in the Philippines. 

“Our digital workforce drives the economy and they deserve a convenient channel to access their hard-earned funds,” said Orlando Vea, president and CEO of PayMaya Philippines and Voyager Innovations.