Visa pushes mobile payments to boost financial inclusion

Digital payment firm Visa, is stepping up efforts to accelerate the use of mobile payment platforms such as Google Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay in the Philippines, aiming to deepen financial inclusion and expand the country's fast-growing digital payments sector.

- Ehda M. Dagooc

At an enablement workshop, the global payments firm convened regional partners including Google Southeast Asia, Vietcombank and Starbucks Vietnam to share insights on how local banks can integrate and scale mobile wallet services for Filipino consumers.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) recently clarified that such platforms are considered technology service providers rather than operators of payment systems, meaning they cannot hold funds directly and must be linked to a user's credit, debit or e-money account.

Once a Visa card is added to a digital wallet, it can be used for contactless transactions in stores, online and in apps.