AND Financing Corporation (AND FC) targets to haul over 7 million beep card users via a "ride now, pay later" scheme which started this month.

Through their lendpinoy app, the firm is granting P500 “beep Pamasahe Loans” to Filipino commuters who are beep card holders.

Commuters can use the loan to pay for their fares in P2P buses, modern jeepneys, the MRT-3 and LRT 1 and 2.

The initial P500 loan should provide a minimum of three days' worth of transportation for a commuter going to MRT Ayala Station from MRT Quezon Avenue station and vice versa, based on AND FC's study.

"We talked to our clients, the working class, and there was a clamor for an innovative product," explained Nouella Kristi Bautista, AND FC Chief Operating Officer.

The service, launched June 7, 2021, provides a lifeline for unbanked Filipinos and supports the government's call for cashless transactions given the new health and safety protocols, she added.

And "We received a positive number of applicants for our Pamasahe Loan in our first week," company sources confirmed.

Employed commuters, one of the hardest hit demographics during the pandemic, are often forced to choose between spending their limited income either on lunch or on transportation, says Arvin Blanco, Marketing Head of AND FC.

A lot of Filipinos do not have access to formal financial institutions, whose strict requirements may be time-consuming and troublesome to deal with.

Now, beep users can download the lendpinoy™ app in Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

To qualify for a Pamasahe Loan and other types of products in the lendpinoy™ app, the user has to provide a valid ID, a selfie, other basic personal information and be employed for more than six months.

They can then tap their beep cards at a Stored Value Updater (SVU) and ride now, pay later, choosing a repayment term of 14, 21, or 30 days.

In March 2019, AND FC introduced lendpinoy™ to offer micro loans ranging from P1,000 to P10,000, with payment terms of up to 30 days.

The customers received the cash in their bank account in less than five minutes.

They can have unlimited repeat loans within their credit limit, earn bonus points, and are rewarded with increased loan amount and lower fee.

Then in May 2020, AND FC launched lendpinoyX, which allows customers to pay in installments.

They can borrow P1,000 to P12,000 for up to 30 to 45 days, payable every 15 days.

"When the pandemic hit, we innovated further to address the pressing concerns of our clients who took pay cuts or assumed greater financial responsibility as breadwinners," Blanco noted.

"Indeed, we started with cash loans but we realized that providing cash is not the only way to help our kababayans understand how to manage their finances," according to Bautista.

"When we talked to our clients, we zeroed in on two basic needs: three meals a day and transportation - at least for now," she added.

Customers receive cash and non-cash loans - in the form of load or credits - in full without collateral, no down payment, and no hidden charges.

They also enjoy reasonable interest rates and flexible payment terms.

And "We really do not resort to unethical collection practices. Up to this date, we received zero complaints about our practices," says Blanco.

"We encourage responsible borrowing. But in the event of possible delays, we get in touch with our clients to ask when they will able to pay. We inform them also about a reasonable penalty that may apply."

A non-bank financial institution, AND FC is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

It was established in November 2018 to serve millions of underbanked Filipinos through machine learning and artificial intelligence.

AND FC's products include collateral-free instant loans and lines of credit for salaried workers, lower-income families, and, soon, to small and medium entrepreneurs. It is a subsidiary of AND Global, a Singaporean fintech company.

Other Philippine partners include 7-Eleven, BDO, Security Bank, DA5, and Bapplware Technologies, Inc.