As the government intensifies its efforts to digitize its processes, GCash, the leading mobile wallet in the Philippines, is also broadening its initiatives to support the Philippine Digital Transformation Strategy by providing digital payments solutions to government agencies.
By allowing GCash account holders to pay for government services, GCash is helping the government bring its services closer to Filipinos by leveraging readily-available digital financial technologies.
Through their GCash wallets, GCash users may enjoy the convenience and security of going cashless by paying for their taxes directly to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), or paying for their passport application fees to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), or sending in their contributions to the Pag-IBIG Fund.
Other forward-looking government agencies that have tapped GCash to hasten their payments processes are the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. (NHMFC), the National Statistics Office, and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration.
“GCash is one with the government in advancing our shared goal of improving government services through its digital transformation initiatives. Aside from promoting greater financial inclusion, two of our core thrusts in GCash is to help the government realize its goal of building a cash-lite society, while helping Filipinos unlock the immense benefits of digital finance,” GCash President Anthony Thomas said.
Filipinos using GCash to settle their government dues enjoy a better payment experience. Apart from cutting down the time they need to process government requirements, they benefit from a more secure and safer option than paying in cash.
For instance, instead of lining up at the payment centers of the NBI for a pre-employment requirement of an NBI clearance, GCash users may simply transact with the government agency by using their GCash wallets. By doing this, they are a step ahead of the process, making the traditionally-long task of availing an NBI clearance much simpler.
To settle government dues, GCash users only need to click on the Pay Bills tile on the GCash app, click on the Government tile, and choose the government agency they want to transact with.
“We are encouraged to see our government partners seeing the huge benefit of providing a cashless payment option for government transactions. Aside from improved quality and efficiency of public services, hastening processes also affords government offices to reach their revenue collection goals,” Thomas said.
Allowing the Filipinos to transact with the government via digital channels also supports the goal of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to increase non-cash transactions to 20 percent this year.
Already, with the help of GCash and other digital finance providers, the Philippines is close to reaching this target. According to a study conducted by the Better Than Cash Alliance, a United Nations-backed organization, digital transactions account for 20 percent of the total value of transactions, while 10-percent in terms of volume in 2018.
Moving forward, the central bank aims to transform the Philippines into a cash-lite society in the future, and GCash, as the pioneering mobile wallet in the world, shares the same vision.
“Our goal is to have a cash-lite society and not a cash heavy society, which means that at least 50 percent of the payments will be done digitally,” BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said in a recent speaking engagement.
GCash aims to contribute more to this goal by further developing new technologies, which at this point has already vastly democratized access to financial tools and instruments.
“We remain relentless in our vision of promoting fintech in all channels — be it through digital wallets, digital credit lines, fintech-powered insurance tools, and digital payments. The government’s thrust in creating a digital Philippines is making great progress, and we are excited to continue being a strong government partner to turn this vision into reality,” Thomas said.
