The continued growth of digital payment systems is key is fuelling the country’s journey towards being a cash lite society. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reaffirmed recently that the goal of digitizing 50% of transactions remains within reach as more consumers and businesses are opening up to transacting online for money transfers, bills payment, remittances, financing, managing investment portfolios, and more. 

Pioneering payment gateway provider, Dragonpay, foresees that this trend will continue seeing that out of the 130 million transactions it has processed in 2022, 78% were facilitated through digital channels such as e-wallet and online banking. Meanwhile, 8% were done via physical channels and 4% using credit cards. 

More businesses are compelled to leverage the growth momentum of digital payments, especially ecommerce, and the promise of crossborder selling in global marketplaces. 

These two are largely accelerated by increased internet and mobile penetration in the country as well our COVID-19 experience. 

Robertson Chiang, founder, and chief technology officer of Dragonpay, “We have been working with businesses of all sizes to get them onboard in the digital economy. Creating  payment solutions for them means more opportunities to scale their businesses and reflects their impetus  by broadening payment options that are accessible, safe, and convenient for their customers.” 

Currently, Dragonpay’s network consists of more than 3,500 merchant and channel partners. Dragonpay is enabling over 60 payment collection and payout partners with 35,000 branches serving various communities across the archipelago. 

For Chiang, building trust among stakeholders is crucial in promoting a cash-lite society. Payment innovations need to enable a win-win ecosystem where merchants, customers, and communities all benefit from frictionless and secure transactions. “Alongside our continuous efforts to innovate alternative payments, we are also focused on ensuring efficiency in our systems through constant evaluation and improvements. Security is paramount whether they transact physically or digitally. Giving them the flexibility to pay must be coupled with making them feel that they are protected.”

For 2023, Dragonpay is looking to reach and serve more Filipinos nationwide and sees strategic partnerships with financial players as key to making this happen. Internally, Dragonpay is reinforcing its team’s capacity and work environment to get employees geared up to deliver the best service to its partners and end-consumers. 

Supporting the country’s bid to create a stronger financial infrastructure for the future, Dragonpay is ready to collaborate with businesses of all sizes so they can leverage fintech solutions that keep pace with unfolding market developments.