Did you know that while the Philippines ranks #12 (among 70) with the most number of mobile phone users, three out of four adults do not actually have bank accounts?
This means that while we can easily communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world, a lot of Filipinos are still deprived of the online shopping experience or even the convenience of cashless shopping.
“Here in the Philippines, three out of four adults do not have bank accounts. And even within the banked population, there are hugely underserved segments with only 3% credit card penetration, points out Xavier Marzan, President and CEO of G-Xchange, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Globe Telecom, which operates GCash.
Now Filipinos, especially those who cannot be served by banks and credit card companies, can have access to modern payment solutions with the new GCash beep MasterCard.
“We at GCash are enabling this market with financial services such as GCash beep MasterCard to give them all the convenience of cashless shopping and payment, among other benefits. “GCash beep MasterCard is an “everyday-all-in-one” card which functions as an ATM Card for cash withdrawals, a prepaid card for purchases, and a beep card for daily MRT/LRT commute,” adds Marzan.
GCash beep MasterCard is the first value-added card to be beep ready. Since the start of September 2015, GCash started selling GCash beep MasterCard in parallel with the expansion of the tap payment facilities in various MRT/LRT stations. beep is the authorized reloadable electronic payment under the unified LRT/MRT ticket system which started full implementation on October this year. It is operated by AF Payments Incorporated primarily owned by Ayala Corporation and Metro Pacific Investments Corporation.
Poch Villa-Real, MasterCard country head said: “We are very pleased with our collaboration with GXI on the launch of the new GCash beep MasterCard. As a valued MasterCard member, all GCash beep MasterCard users will now have access to over 40 million MasterCard merchant locations and ATMs worldwide. This card certainly provides a powerful tool to consumers in the Philippines, enhancing their daily lives given their expanding purchasing needs locally, overseas and in the digital space.”
As GCash beep MasterCard features the MasterCard functionality, cardholders can swipe their cards for all their purchases. They can use it for grocery, shopping and dining to name a few. Furthermore, cardholders need not worry as they can use it locally or overseas.
Aside from using GCash beep MasterCard to swipe payments at various merchants, the card also allows every Filipino to have access to online payments. With MasterCard acceptability, cardholders can now purchase apps for their smartphones, buy gems for their online games and shop at online retailers and deal sites.
“Making the lives of Filipinos a lot easier and better through technology is always our priority. Thus, we made sure that the beep functionality is part of the GCash MasterCard. With it, commuters don’t need to line up every time they ride the MRT or LRT which takes a long time, because with this new card, they can purchase their fare like a stored value card,” Marzan added.
The GCash beep MasterCard may be availed at any of the 35 selected Globe Stores nationwide and roving caravans for only P150. It includes a free prepaid Globe SIM card and P30 in GCash load. The personalized GCash beep Mastercard can be ready in just a few minutes once a valid ID is presented.
Funds for the card may be loaded by cashing in at any of the 10,000 GCash outlets nationwide. These outlets include all Globe Stores, 7-11 convenience stores, SM Department Stores, Puregold Supermarkets and pawnshops such as Tambunting and Villarica, among others. In addition, GCash subscribers can also use mobile and online banking to fund their Gcash beep MasterCard.
On the other hand, to reload the beep account, customers just need to place the GCash beep MasterCard on top of the Stored Value Card reader of the Ticket Vending Machine at any LRT/MRT station, choose the Stored Value option on the screen, insert the corresponding amount of money on the slot provided, and wait for the transaction receipt to come out.
Since GCash beep MasterCard is powered by GCash, cardholders can also enjoy other features and benefits. As a cardholder with a GCash account, customers may easily buy discounted prepaid Globe/TM phone load, send money to any Globe/TM user for free, receive remittances, pay bills and even withdraw cash from any automated teller machine (ATM) worldwide. Furthermore, with GCash, customers can also check their GCash balance anytime and monitor all their transactions.
For more details on GCash, please visit GCashBeep
