More Filipino business owners and casual sellers have readily embraced digital payments as a key component of doing business under the New Normal, propelled by ready business-in-a-box solutions from digital financial services leader PayMaya.
As of end-November, the number of micro-, small-, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) utilizing PayMaya's various digital payment acceptance solutions have grown exponentially by 2000% year-on-year, signifying a sea change in how merchants are doing business as a way to cope from the economic effects of the pandemic.
“With consumers now more conscious about health and safety, cashless has fast become the default preference of Filipino consumers. With this shift, PayMaya has readily enabled our MSMEs to pivot and thrive by providing digital payment capabilities as well as additional income opportunities through our various payment solutions,” said PayMaya President Shailesh Baidwan.
To respond to the growing demand for cashless payments at the height of the quarantine as many merchants turned to digital, the company launched the PayMaya Negosyo app in May. The app enables MSMEs to have their own merchant QR in as fast as 24 hours. They can then readily accept cashless payments via QR, bank transfers, and through e-Wallets, using only their mobile phones.
Aside from this, MSMEs are also able to generate additional income by selling mobile prepaid load or accepting bills payments through the same app. Soon, qualified businesses may also start accepting remittance transactions through the PayMaya Negosyo app.
Since its launch, the PayMaya Negosyo app has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times in the Google Play Store and has enabled MSMEs to instantly accept payments via chat, on their social media pages, or through their online stores.
Because of this development, the MSME segment now comprises over 95% of PayMaya's total merchant base in 2020, compared to just 78% in 2019.
PayMaya's solutions are designed to serve the country's more than 1.5 million registered MSMEs which accounts for more than 99% of all Philippine businesses and provides 62.4% of the country's employment. Based on data from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), there are 6 million more micro-enterprises that have yet to formally register, and PayMaya is already enabling this segment through its various solutions.
Aside from PayMaya Negosyo, the company also offers the PayMaya One Lite device for in-store card and e-Wallet payment acceptance, as well as digital payment tools such as Digital QR, Payment Links, and PayMaya Checkout payment gateway plugins which can easily be availed by visiting http://pymy.co/BeAMerchant.
“Today, MSMEs are getting smarter in utilizing all available sales channels and opportunities to reach their customers and offer their products and services. PayMaya's ready business-in-a-box solutions have become a perfect partner for growth and recovery for many MSMEs as they look to navigate uncharted seas in the years to come,” said Baidwan.
Helping MSMEs bounce forward
To further help our country's MSMEs, PayMaya has also rolled out innovative programs in close cooperation with DTI and private sector partners such as Go Negosyo.
In October, PayMaya launched the "Sulong Negosyo" Program wherein MSMEs are provided with ready-business-in-a-box tools such as the PayMaya Negosyo app, as well as marketing and rewards opportunities through PayMaya Negosyante Rewards. The program aims to help MSMEs accelerate their transition to e-commerce with the help of digital and cashless technologies.
Aside from this, the company has been working with local government units (LGU) through its LGUs Accelerating and Embracing Digitalization (LEAD) Program to create digital cashless ecosystems in their respective localities, which includes the empowerment of MSMEs to make and accept cashless payments from local residents.
PayMaya has also supported the private sector-initiated "Ingat-Angat Tayong Lahat"campaign that promotes the dual goal of public health safety and economic recovery.
PayMaya is the only end-to-end digital payments ecosystem enabler in the Philippines with platforms and services that cut across consumers, merchants, communities, and government. Through its enterprise business, it is the largest digital payments processor for key industries in the country including "everyday" merchants such as the largest retail, food, gas, and eCommerce merchants as well as government agencies and units.
Through its app and wallet, PayMaya provides over 28 million Filipinos with access to financial services. Customers can conveniently pay, add money, cash out or remit through its over 200,000 digital touchpoints nationwide. Its Smart Padala by PayMaya network of over 33,000 partner agent touchpoints nationwide serves as last-mile digital financial hubs in communities, providing the unbanked and underserved with access to digital services. To know more about PayMaya's products and services, visit www.PayMaya.com or follow @PayMayaOfficial on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.