‘SAVING GRACE’- Crised Dalaodao of Cavite City (left) and Shella Balle of Makati City (right) both found RCBC’s DiskarTech financial inclusion super app as a helpful tool to save up and to even double their earnings through the IponGaling promo.
Shellah Balle was undergoing a swab test for a possible COVID-19 infection when she received a message in her mobile phone saying that she had just won in DiskarTech’s IPON G4LING Promo.
The promo is part of the digital campaign of the Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation’s (RCBC) financial inclusion app DiskarTech, the first Taglish-Cebuano financial inclusion super app of its kind in the Philippines. The 30-year-old house helper assigned in Makati thought, the message could either be a saving grace, or a scam.
“I was surprised! But because scams were rampant that time, I did not take it seriously and focused on my RT-PCR test,” she said.
In Cavite City, 40-year old sari-sari storeowner Crised Dalaodao received a similar message in her e-mail. Seeing the frequent in-app messages warning users about scammers’ modus operandi, Dalaodao promptly sent a message to DiskarTech customer service to verify if the notification was real.
“DiskarTech notification would usually tell us not to click on unwanted messages. Its alert against scammers is really a big help,” she added.
Customer service quickly verified Dalaodao’s inquiry: She indeed won the IPON G4LING Promo.
Digital banking as a pandemic lifeline
When Balle received the confirmation message that she was indeed an IPON G4LING Promo winner, that good news was followed with her positive COVID test confirmation. Amid the bad news, she found some silver lining with her IPON G4LING win.
“When I learned that I won the promo, I was somehow relieved because at least I can replace the money spent for the swab test,” explained Balle, who spent P3,000 for the RT-PCR test.
In the Philippines where COVID testing remains expensive, having extra money to allot for such emergency expenses can be difficult, especially for the likes of Balle, who has been working as a house helper for seven years now. Originally from Capiz, the single mother does online selling and mobile e-load services on the side to make ends meet. Using DiskarTech has helped her facilitate transactions faster and cheaper.
“I transact with my buyers using my DiskarTech account. The QR code makes transactions faster and hassle free,” she said.
Less than a year since using the app, Balle already enjoys its benefits through the IPON G4LING Promo. Aside from receiving four-percent rebates for each of her qualified transactions, her average daily balance also doubled after being chosen as one of the weekly promo winners, bringing home more than P5,000.
“I feel so blessed because I did not expect I would win considering I started using DiskarTech only recently. Aside from paying for my swab test, I was even able to treat my mother on her birthday,” she said.
The incentive for saving via the app is that the 3.25-percent savings interest rate is one of the highest among all digital banking apps in the country. Thus Balle is able to save more for her child’s future.
“I am trying to save up for my child’s education. I never finished my schooling, so I hope my child won’t end up like me,” she said.
Future-proofing with DiskarTech
Dalaodao instantly thought of her sari-sari store business upon confirming that she won the IPON G4LING raffle promo.
“I am really grateful to DiskarTech for my additional savings. There’s so much I can do with the P22,000 price. I can even invest it in my sari-sari store business to keep the cash flowing,” she said.
Dalaodao has run her sari-sari store business for nearly 18 years. The pandemic made the business challenging, especially with the restrictions limiting their movement.
Dalaodao considers their sari-sari store an important source of income. This is why she made it a point to have it insured with DiskarTech’s Sari-Sari Store Insurance.
“It’s important to secure your livelihood, instead of worrying about it when something unexpected happens. That’s why DiskarTech’s insurance has been helpful to our sari-sari store business,” she said.
For only P35, DiskarTech offers a three-month coverage for sari-sari stores, inclusive of P5,000 fire cash assistance and P50,000 accidental death insurance for the owner.
The insurance feature is only among the many that Dalaodao’s family enjoys. Payment contributions to her Social Security System (SSS) account as well as other bills payments can also be paid through the app, without the need to line up in government offices, banks, or payment centers.
Dalaodao hopes to use a portion of her winnings to prepare for her daughter’s 18th birthday celebration.
“I’ll be happy to spend part of the money to make my daughter’s debut memorable. So when I see her debut photos, I will remember Diskartech,” she said.
Dalaodao plans to continue saving through her DiskarTech app, hoping to save enough to buy a car in the long run.
“Our long-term plan is to buy a car for the family. It’s so difficult commuting during the pandemic, since we risk exposure. It’s also inconvenient since we carry a lot of groceries for the store. Owning a car would really help us with the business and also with navigating through situations similar to this pandemic,” she added.
Since its launch in July 2020, DiskarTech has opened doors of opportunities for many ordinary Filipinos like Balle and Dalaodao to save up and earn additional income. For 2022, the financial inclusion super app eyes to expand its services by offering easier access to personal loans to its active users. This is aligned with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ push for a wider adoption of inclusive digital finance services in the country.