CEBU, Philippines — Ayala-led telecommunications firm Globe Telecom is intensifying its participation in the Philippines’ bid to develop cashless economy with its recent partnership with a food vending company that sells household brands.
Globe has announced its cooperation with Vending Experts Night and Day Philippines Inc. (VEND Phils.) to come up with the first vending machines in the country that operate using the Quick Response (QR) code for cashless and contactless transactions.
A QR Code is a machine-readable code consisting of an array of black and white squares, typically used for storing URLs or other information for reading by the camera on a smartphone.
“Mobile technologies continue to evolve to make our life easier and we now see cashless payments using mobile phones gaining traction in the Philippines. Anyone who has used the QR code for payments will realize that it is much more convenient and secure than credit cards or cash,” said Globe chief finance officer Rizza Maniego-Eala.
In 2013, Globe started using GCash as payment for goods inside the company headquarters. It then went cardless in 2017 when GCash scan-to-pay was launched.
However, coffee vending machines in the building were not capable of contactless payment, prompting Globe to look for ways to shift to the QR system.
Payment via this method is performed by scanning a QR code from a mobile app like GCash.
“Technology continues to move forward and we believe that vending operations should also be aligned with the times. We are thankful to Globe for bringing this idea to us. We are proud to be the first vending company in the Philippines to successfully launch a cashless coffee vending machine through a QR code payment scheme utilizing GCash,” said VEND Phils. president and CEO Gilbert dela Cruz.
Instead of paying with bills, coins, or card, users simply have to open their GCash app and scan the QR code displayed on the machine and input the price of the item.
Once payment is successfully sent, they can already press the button of their desired drink.
At present, there are 18 QR-operated vending machines in the Globe corporate headquarters in Taguig.
The vending machines do not only promote cashless transactions but also support Globe’s sustainability campaign by giving customers a P1 discount on their transaction if they opt to use their own mug instead of disposable paper cup.
“We have incorporated mobile technology in our system so that end-users will have an enjoyable and satisfying interaction with us and our vending machines. We are looking forward to offering the same solution to all companies which are in the business of selling vending machines,” said dela Cruz.
VEND is the official vending partner of Commonwealth Foods Inc., maker of well-known Filipino household brands Cafe Puro and Ricoa.