CEBU, Philippines — Microfinance services provider, Cebuana Lhuillier, has strengthened its push to empower micro, small and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) as it combines forces with SeaMoney, an affiliate of the leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, Shopee.
The Cebuana Lhuillier-Shopee partnership enables MSMEs to accelerate their businesses further by giving current and potential customers access to the Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payment option through SPayLater, which is offered on Shopee.
“Cebuana Lhuillier and Shopee’s partnership is a significant development in the Philippine e-commerce landscape. It is a testament to both our companies’ commitment to empowering online sellers and consumers,” said Cebuana Lhuillier President and CEO Jean Henri Lhuillier.
Recently, Cebuana Lhuillier also opened its doors to the Kanegosyo Center, a one-stop shop that not only teaches MSMEs how to manage their businesses and budding entrepreneurs how to start their own but also guides them every step of the way using products and services that help them thrive and prosper.
“Cebuana Lhuillier continues to forge on with its mission of financial inclusion for MSMEs, whose impact on economic progress is irrefutably significant at this time,” Lhuillier added.
Meanwhile, in 2022, the banking arm of Cebuana Lhuillier group, Cebuana Lhuillier Bank (CLB) opened its first branch in Cebu kicking off its active expansion plan in Visayas and Mindanao.
The Cebu branch is the 6th CLB branch in the Philippines, since it started its rural banking business in 1998 in Bacoor, Cavite.
Located on Acacia Street, barangay Kamputhaw, Cebu City, the rural bank aims to aid mom-and-pop businesses by offering affordable loan access, said Cebuana Lhuillier Bank president Dennis Valdes in an interview.
True to the mission of becoming a partner for progress, CLB’s first-ever branch here in Central Visayas is open to all, especially to the more than 65,000 MSMEs looking to further grow their business, he added.
Established in 1998, Cebuana Lhuillier Bank has a total of six branches nationwide. It continues to expand its reach through over 3,000 Cebuana Lhuillier branches across the Philippines. — (FREEMAN)