Mobile Phone Banking Blog

Philippine Star - The Philippines is recognized among the leaders in developing mobile banking for the unbanked. Mobile banking utilizes the mobile phone to extend banking services such as deposits, withdrawals including remittances or money transfer, bills payments, and loan payments.

Telecommunications companies (telcos), such as Smart Communications (Smart) and Globe Telecommunications (Globe), were one of the first worldwide to start mobile money. Smart started in 2001 through Smart Money, and Globe followed soon after in 2004 with GCash.

But one of the leaders in terms of reach and number of subscribers is M-PESA of Kenya. It has 8.6 millions active users or 25 percent of the country’s population, and monthly person-to-person transactions worth over $320 million with average of $37 per user per month.

The telcos have put up systems that cater to the average bank users to the poorer segment of society that do not have banking relationships often referred to as the unbanked, as well as the under-banked that undertake limited banking services. READ MORE>>

cbalingit :: Mar.09.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

Philippine Star - Belgacom International Carrier Services (BICS), a leading global provider of voice, data and value added services and G-Xchange (GXI), the mobile-commerce subsidiary of Globe Telecommunications Inc., have signed an agreement to expand GXI’s existing number of remittance corridors, using BICS’ HomeSend Remittance Hub.

The HomeSend service, created in partnership with eServGlobal, provides a mobile-centric approach to international remittance. It allows subscribers of any mobile operator connected to HomeSend to transfer money electronically via a cellular phone to a GCASH subscriber.

This new cooperation, therefore, provides increased choice and convenience for Filipinos living or working overseas when sending money home to their families and friends in the Philippines. READ MORE

cbalingit :: Mar.09.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

Mobile Phone Banking Marketing Training held at Rang-ay Bank on February 20, 2010

In continuing support to the mobile phone banking services (MPBS) of GCASH accredited rural banks, the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) Microenterprise Access to Banking Services (MABS) Program supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), in partnership with Globe Telecom’s mobile commerce subsidiary, G-Xchange Inc. (GXI), launched a Mobile Phone Banking Marketing Program this year. Read the rest of this entry »

cbalingit :: Mar.08.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

MABS successfully conducted the second of this year’s mobile phone banking accreditation trainings on March 3 in Tagaytay, Batangas. Twenty-nine participants from 18 Luzon-based rural banks, five of which are already accredited to offer mobile phone banking services (MPBS) via Globe’s GCASH platform, attended the training.

Through the training, qualified rural banks can obtain accreditation to offer GCASH and apply to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for authorization to offer MPBS.  MABS provided the participants with a detailed workshop on the MPBS implementation process, mobile phone banking step-by-step procedures, and sets of MPBS manuals. Read more »

cbalingit :: Mar.04.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

Guagua Rural Bank (GR Bank) officially joins the Philippine mobile phone banking community as it formalized its partnership with G-Xchange Inc. in utilizing the GCASH platform to facilitate its mobile phone banking services (MPBS).

Signatories sitting from left: GXI Sales Head Jaime Fraginal, Jr.;,GXI President Rizza Maniego-Eala; GR Bank President Jay Carlos; and MABS Chief of Party.

Read the rest of this entry »

cbalingit :: Feb.19.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) Microenterprise Access to Banking Services (MABS) Program supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) conducted a mobile phone banking accreditation training course at Montevista Villas, Clark Field, Angeles City on February 17.

Held in partnership with G-Xchange, Inc. (GXI), Globe Telecom’s mobile commerce subsidiary, the training was attended by 21 participants from 10 Central Luzon rural banks. Read more »

cbalingit :: Feb.18.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

1st Valley Bank together with G-Xchange Inc. (GXI), the wholly-owned mobile commerce subsidiary of Globe Telecom, brings the benefits of mobile banking services to Filipinos in Mindanao.

Working closely with the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) and Microenterprise Access to Banking Services (MABS), a program supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), 1st valley bank helps Mindanao by making banking products and services even more accessible to clients.

Through GCASH, 1st Valley Bank is able to enhance its “at your doorstep” financial service offerings in Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, and the cities of Iligan Ozamiz, Oroquieta, Dipolog, Cagayan de Oro, and Zamboanga.

By pursuing pioneering banking products and services, 1st Valley Bank, with the support of RBAP-MABS and GCASH, has empowered micro-enterpreneurs like Aling Romela to increase their success through mobile banking.

cbalingit :: Feb.18.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: 2 Comments »

The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) projects a substantial increase in mobile phone banking services this year as G-Xchange, Inc. (GXI) plans to activate Globe Telecom’s nationwide sub distributer network of over 18,000 cash-in and cash-out outlets.

Combined with the mobile phone banking services developed by USAID-supported RBAP-MABS program, this will provide the rural banks with a virtual ATM network that more than doubles the current count of about 8,000.  “We see this as an opportunity to leapfrog the rural banking sector’s outreach in the countryside and we are gearing up to accomplish this in 2010,” said RBAP President Joseph Omar Andaya.   Read the rest of this entry »

cbalingit :: Jan.26.2010 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

Philippine Star – The magnitude of global mobile banking is forecast to hit $202 billion by 2012, and 60 percent of that will emanate from the Asia Pacific region.

Foreign consulting firm Edgar Dunn & Co. added that the Philippines, China, and India would be leading the way in the Asia Pacific region.

Lance Blockely, managing director of Edgar Dunn & Co. said that the Philippines is the global leader in mobile money transfer (MMT) and “the next few years will be a climate of explosive growth for mobile money transfers.”

By 2012, 364 million low-income, un-banked people could use mobile financial services. Likewise, the number of people without a bank account but with a mobile phone is estimated to grow from one to 1.7 billion.

This were some of the conclusion arrived at during the recently-concluded Mobile Money Transfer (MMT) Asia Pacific (APAC) conference in Manila, that brought in experts, providers and representatives of MMT practitioners from all over the world. Read the rest of the article on Philippine Star online.

cbalingit :: Dec.15.2009 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »

After the Mobile Money Transfer Asia-PacificConference (MMT-APAC) held on December 7-9 held in Manila, USAID-MABS and MicroSave conducted an M-Banking dialogue at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel in Manila on December 9 and 10. Selected microfinance practioners, networks including MicroSave, MABS, Mercy Corps, MICRA and ACCION, donor-supported efforts including USAID and IFC, various third party providers including EKO from India, and Mobile Money Issuers including Safaricom’s M-PESA and Globe X-Change Inc (GXI/GCASH) participated in the dialogue. Read the rest of this entry »

cbalingit :: Dec.11.2009 :: Mobile Phone Banking Clients' Stories :: No Comments »