DIGITAL payments firm PayMaya Philippines, Inc. on Sunday said it is accelerating the nationwide rollout of QR Ph, the country’s Quick Response (QR) code standard for merchant payments, across its enterprise base.
“The company has rolled out the most number of QR Ph P2M (person-to-merchant) acceptance points across its enterprise base, now at over 160,000,” PayMaya said in an e-mailed statement.
“The number includes both online and on-ground touchpoints for all types of merchants, including large companies, government agencies, and MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises),” it added.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) introduced the QR code standard in April to enable P2M payments, with the goal of boosting the digitalization of small enterprises in the country.
“We are excited to be at the forefront of the full rollout of QR Ph P2M. It’s a boost, especially for our enterprise customers, as they can start accepting payments from more consumers using just their QR Ph P2M code enabled by PayMaya,” PayMaya President Shailesh Baidwan said.
“This is a major step towards building a stronger payment ecosystem across businesses, consumers, and the government,” he added.
With the QR Ph P2M, businesses can accept QR payments regardless of their customers’ bank or e-wallet accounts.
“PayMaya enterprises equipped with a QR Ph P2M code can now accept payments from consumers who have accounts with AllBank (A Thrift Bank), Inc., Asia United Bank Corp., Cebuana Lhuillier Rural Bank, China Banking Corp., Land Bank of the Philippines, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., Starpay, UnionBank of the Philippines, and USSC Money Services, Inc.,” the digital payments firm said.
A report from the BSP and the Better than Cash Alliance showed digital merchant payments climbed 33% in 2019, backed by low value retail transactions.
The study also found remittances and merchant payments done digitally climbed 39% and 66%, respectively, in 2019 from a year earlier.
PayMaya is a subsidiary of Voyager Innovations, Inc., the digital arm of PLDT, Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Arjay L. Balinbin
