EBay, Auction.ph, Bidshot, and Sulit.com.ph are just among the many online businesses that allow users to buy, sell, or trade items. Payment for products or services rendered include paid through direct cash payments, bank deposits, and money transfer.
However, a growing number of Filipinos are using mobile phone payment services to trade. Rival mobile companies Smart Communications and Globe Telecom pioneered the mobile payment gateway through, SmartMoney and GCash, respectively.
SmartMoney has at about 6 million users while GCash has about 1.2 million.
Rizza Maniego-Eala, president of Globe-owned G-Xchange Inc. said mobile payment for local services is seeing higher percentage of usage among those who have existing accounts, partly due to the presence of online businesses and trading portals.
Eala said that while uptake from new users of GCash remains slow, the volume of daily transactions have steadily increased.
She noted that much of these transactions are through P2P or person-to-person transactions, which means money is transferred from one user’s mobile phone to another. This is the typical payment method for buyers and sellers of online trading sites.
The company recently introduced a mobile payment system for buying items online. The new GCash Click allows users to buy from accredited online merchants from the Philippines and pay for these via GCash.
Another added security feature in GCash Click is an escrow system called SafeShopper System wherein the amount paid for items bought online will be withheld to the buyer until the items are delivered and accepted to the buyer.
Eala said they have around 50 online merchants partnered under GCash Click but they are enlisting other local firms.
July 24, 2009, 07:41:08 AM