City of Manila inks partnership with PayMaya for citizen benefits card for seniors, PWDs, and solo parents
MANILA, Philippines — Soon, select Manila city residents will be able to more conveniently receive financial assistance and other benefits as prescribed by law from the Manila City government as it taps PayMaya to power its all-in-one citizen ID card.
The partnership comes in response to the city ordinance signed by Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso last July which provides for monthly stipends for senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs), and solo parents in the capital city.
Through the PayMaya-enabled ID cards, disbursement of the stipends will be more efficient for the city government and more convenient for the recipients, because they no longer have to go to the city hall or other government offices to be able to receive their allowances.
“We are happy to partner with PayMaya for this groundbreaking initiative for the city of Manila, which will help empower some of the most vulnerable citizens of our nation’s capital. Utilizing financial technologies to deliver efficient and transparent government services is in line with our goal of transforming Manila into a ‘smart city’ of the future,” Domagoso said.
On top of being able to receive monthly stipends through their ID cards, beneficiaries can also utilize other financial services once they link the card to the PayMaya app. These include access to discounted airtime load for all mobile networks, accessible bills payment, QR and card payments in PayMaya-enabled stores, restaurants and and groceries, sending of money to other PayMaya account holders, and withdrawal of cash, among many others.
“We congratulate the City of Manila for this very progressive initiative, which builds on Mayor Isko’s string of citizen-centered initiatives over the last few months. PayMaya and the City of Manila have the same goals of enabling all citizens, and this partnership is just the first step toward that aspiration,” added PayMaya Founder and CEO Orlando B. Vea.
Expanding financial inclusion for all Filipinos
The collaboration for the citizens of the capital city is just part of PayMaya’s mission of enabling financial inclusion all over the country, particularly for the so-called unbanked and underserved segments of society.
By equipping them with an ID that doubles as a payment card, these citizens who are usually locked out of the traditional financial system are empowered with tools that give them access to a financial account and help build their credit history that will open up opportunities for them to sign up for more financial products in the future.
With at least 7 in 10 Filipinos not having a formal bank account according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the initiative will also help the BSP’s goal of increasing the percentage of digital transactions in the country to 20% by 2020, as outlined in the National Retail Payments System (NRPS) initiative.
“We are confident that with initiatives like this for the citizens of Manila, more Filipinos would be able to reap the benefits of digital financial services like PayMaya in their day-to-day lives,” Vea added.
PayMaya is the only digital financial services company with an integrated suite of solutions for consumers and merchants complemented by the widest remittance partner agent network. It is the financial technology arm of Voyager Innovations, the leading technology company in the country backed by PLDT, KKR, Tencent, World Bank’s IFC, and the IFC Emerging Asia Fund. Its "one payment platform" enables the country's top eCommerce sites, major retail and quick-service restaurants, government institutions, as well as MSMEs, allowing them to accept multiple kinds of cashless payments.
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