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digital payment

The worth-it way to celebrate Chinese New Year in Hong Kong and Macau

by Contributor February 11, 2026

written by Contributor

MANILA, Philippines — When you think of traveling to Hong Kong, it’s easy to see why Macau is often visited too—they’re just so close! With its endless shopping spots, iconic attractions, and mouthwatering delicacies, these places have become popular holiday destinations for many Filipinos – especially during Chinese New Year.

Trips to these cities can feel pricey, especially if you’re traveling with family. But it doesn’t always have to be that way! There are plenty of cool spots and tasty eats in both cities where you can score great value without sacrificing the experience.

With your GCash Visa Card and e-wallet, every swipe, scan, or tap helps your money go further—thanks to lower forex rates, more deals, easy payments, real-time spend tracking, and no more counting change.

And if you want great value, you can get that for sure when you use the ultimate shopping hack from GCash. All you need is your GCash Visa Card and e-wallet so you can Swipe-Scan-Tap. When you do, you can stretch every peso, thanks to lower forex rates, more deals, easy payments, real-time spend tracking, and no more counting change.

If you’re heading to Hong Kong and Macau for the Lunar New Year, check out these stops that are perfect for families and guaranteed to give a worth it experience.

Shop sulit and smart hauls at wholesale stores and markets

Hong Kong is admittedly a shopping haven – but if you want to shop smart, you need to know where to go. Lung Fung Mall offers beauty, skincare, and health products at friendlier prices than malls. You can find fragrances, skincare, and other beauty products at reduced prices at their many locations across Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, if you’re finally ready to buy that brand new item you’ve been saving up for, like new running shoes, a bag, or workout gear, Citygate Outlets is your best option. They carry many brands, such as Lululemon, Evisu, Marimekko, and many more.

For seasoned travellers who frequent Hong Kong, going to Mong Kok to buy clothes, snacks, and a wide variety of anik-anik is also a no-brainer. If you’ve ever heard of Sneaker Street and Ladies Market, you can find things for you and for your pasalubong back home. The best part is that you can still haggle the prices in certain stores, making shopping in the area even more budget-friendly—so get your tawad skills ready!

And when carrying multiple bags after your pasalubong spree becomes a hassle, you can tap your way to easy, convenient payments with GCash Tap to Pay. Available for all NFC-enabled Android smartphones, it lets you pay with just one tap—making it much easier to get around the often-crowded streets.

Lung Fung Mall

Lung Fung Area

Marvin and Anik Aniks

Discover hidden gems and family fun in Macau

Macau isn’t just about its famous landmarks and beautiful architecture – though it is worth going just to see them for yourself. But there are also many fun experiences that the family can enjoy, and it’s all just a convenient ferry ticket away! These boat trips take about an hour from the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal, and you can secure your tickets by paying with GCash Scan to Pay for a hassle-free experience. Simply generate your QR code and select Pay Abroad with GCash, and look for merchants with a QR code bearing the A+ logo to scan.

If you’re looking for local delicacies, head over to Taipa Village, where you can stock up on crowd favorites like beef jerky and almond cookies. These treats are delicious, affordable, and loved by locals!

You can also book tickets to teamLab SuperNature Macau, an incredible interactive art space with 8-meter-tall, colorful exhibitions that kids and adults will enjoy.

TeamLab Macau

Here’s a secret hack when paying with GCash abroad: some merchants also offer special promos and discounts up to PHP 1,500 off, just tap Travel and go into Travel Treats to browse what’s available.

Eat without the splurge at Yung’s Tangerine Peel Roast Goose and Cheung Hing Kee

One of the best parts of traveling to Hong Kong and Macao is the food. You can’t leave Hong Kong without trying their roast goose, and a great spot to try is Yung’s Tangerine Peel Roast Goose. Yung’s is rich and flavorful, and best of all, budget friendly.

Yung’s Tangerine Peel Roast Goose.jpgYung’s Tangerine Peel Roast Goose

When you hear that a restaurant has been recognized by Michelin, would you believe that you don’t have to pay a fortune for high-quality food? Because that’s what you can expect from MICHELIN Bib Gourmand Cheung Hing Kee Shanghai Pan-fried Buns at Lock Road. Other than their pan-fried buns, their scallion noodles and wontons are a must-try—perfect bites to snack on when you want to refuel while exploring the city.

CHK (1).jpg CHK (2).JPG

Scan, Swipe, and Tap for a sulit and enjoyable trip

Traveling on a budget doesn’t have to mean limiting yourself. When you pay with GCash abroad, you get real-time control over your spending, low forex rates updated instantly in-app, and fast, convenient transactions throughout your trip — all while enjoying to the fullest. Remember to scan, swipe, and tap for an experience you’ll definitely say is worth it! Download the GCash app today to get started.

February 11, 2026 0 comments

Business

E-wallet use jumps 75% in sari-sari stores, fueling digital transformation – Packworks report

by Contributor October 26, 2025

written by Contributor

MANILA, Philippines — Sari-sari stores are rapidly digitalizing their operations, driven by a significant increase in e-wallet use, according to a new report from Filipino tech startup Packworks.

The report used their internal transaction records as the starting point to conduct a direct survey of more than 2,000 sari-sari store owners within Packworks’ nationwide network of 300,000+ stores from January to August 2025.

According to the data, half of the store owners surveyed reported a 75% increase in e-wallet usage in their store operations between January and August. The remaining respondents also saw substantial growth: 20% experienced a 100% increase in usage, another 20% saw a 50% increase, and 10% reported a 10% rise.

Store owners largely attribute this growing adoption to increased consumer demand, as their customers are also turning to e-wallets to buy goods, access funds, and settle bills at their local stores.

“Maraming nang nagpapa-cash-in at cash-out at bumibili gamit ang mga e-wallet. Dahil dumarami, gusto namin masabayan ang pangangailangan nila. Nakakatulong din naman ito sa amin para magkaroon kami ng dagdag kita (A lot of our customers are making cash-in and cash-out transactions aside from buying products with e-wallets. Since more customers are using them, we want to keep up with their needs. It also helps us earn a little extra),” said Marijane Rea, a sari-sari store owner from Laguna.

Store owners are using e-wallets for a variety of business operations. About 40% use the platforms for in-store payments, 30% for bill payments, and the remaining 30% for cash-in and cash-out transactions.

This digital shift is quickly becoming a critical source of revenue. Around 13% of store owners say their e-wallet earnings equal their revenue from physical goods. Among the rest of the respondents, e-wallets still contribute significantly: 66% say that about 20% of their revenues come from e-wallet use, and the remaining 21% say their e-wallet earnings account for 10% of their total revenue.

GCash and Maya are the widely used e-wallets, with 85% of store owners reporting using GCash for their business transactions and 15% using Maya.

“Bukod sa kita namin sa tindahan, nagkaroon kami ng dagdag kita sa paggamit sa mga e-wallet kasi meron kaming tubo na PHP 10 hanggang PHP 20 sa pag-cash-in at cash-out, o di kaya tuwing nagbabayad ng kuryente, tubig, o Internet ang mga customer (Besides the income we earn from the store, we also get extra earnings from using e-wallets because we earn a profit of PHP 10 to PHP 20 from cash-in and cash-out transactions, or whenever customers pay for electricity, water, or internet bills),” said Rachel Miguel, a store owner from Bacolod.

To increase their transaction capacity and meet surging customer demand, sari-sari stores are strategically using up to five e-wallet accounts. According to the report, with each account having a monthly limit of PHP 100,000 to PHP 500,000, the combined monthly transaction capacity is up to PHP 3.5 million.

This trend supports the 30% of store owners’ interest in upgrading their e-wallets to business accounts to maintain a higher monthly limit of PHP 1 million.

Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas indicated that approximately 57% of total retail transactions were cashless in 2024, highlighting the increasing use of digital payments for everyday purchases and financial transactions.

Packworks Chief Platform Officer Hubert Yap highlights that sari-sari stores are rapidly embracing digital tools such as e-wallets to diversify their services and grow their businesses.

“The surge in e-wallet use proves that sari-sari stores are rapidly evolving into vital digital hubs for their communities. Aside from simply selling ‘tingi’ physical items, they are now diversifying their product range, offering high-margin, value-added financial services and integrating digital tools such as our app to fundamentally improve their operations and function as near-frictionless nano-banks for the neighborhoods they serve. These findings show that sari-sari stores have been at the forefront leading this digital transformation at the grassroots level,” cited Yap, “And there’s an urgent need to support these micro-entrepreneurs with the right fintech to ensure they can fully capitalize on this opportunity, as they often say in sari-stores, a peso saved is a peso earned!”

October 26, 2025 0 comments

Business

Pay with GCash and turn daily payments into big wins

by Contributor September 16, 2025

written by Contributor

MANILA, Philippines — GCash, the country’s leading finance super app, is making everyday payments more rewarding with “Pay It, Win It”, where every ₱50 spent on GCash builds your chances to win over ₱20 million worth of exciting rewards.

With “Pay It, Win It”, everyday payments turn into extraordinary wins with prizes designed to match the passion and lifestyle of all GCash users.

Every two weeks, new and bigger rewards drop, bringing you closer to the life upgrade you’ve been dreaming of.GCash takes it further by listening to what its users truly value and showing up where they are.

Whether it’s in the daily grind, their fandoms, or their passions, rewards don’t just excite, but they resonate in everyday life.

Upgrade Your Everyday

Every peso spent gives users a chance to win must-have prizes that can upgrade their everyday lives– from driving home a brand-new BYD Seal 5 DM-i Dynamic or zipping through the city on a Yamaha NMAX, to bringing home a Samsung Smart TV.

A Trip to the K-Land

For all dedicated and passionate K-pop fans, you can turn your bills and shopping receipts into plane tickets, taking you a step closer to your bias.

Win a trip for two to Seoul or Busan and make your ultimate K-dream a reality.

Level Up Your Play

For PC and console gamers, leveling up has never been this thrilling. Win the latest gaming console (PlayStation™ 5), a high-performance gaming laptop (ASUS ROG Strix G16), and the ultimate gaming phone (ASUS ROG Phone 9 Pro), because every gamer knows that better gear leads to better performance.

Joining is simple; just head over to the “Pay It, Win It” page by clicking the “Tap for Promos” banner on your GCash app and choosing a prize to register.

Every ₱50 spent instantly counts as a raffle entry.Pay any way you like, whether it’s scanning or generating a QR code, paying with your GCash Card, paying online, buying load or paying bills inside the GCash app, paying with GCash Tap to Pay, or generating a QR with your Huawei Watch. No extra forms, no fuss, just keep using GCash everyday.

Winners are drawn weekly and announced every Friday through the official social media channels of GCash and in-app promo page.

All winners will be notified via email, and in-app alerts.With “Pay It, Win It,” GCash proves that every payment isn’t just a flow of funds from users’ wallets; it’s a step toward progress, a connection to your passion, and a chance to unlock rewards that truly matter.

For more information about GCash, visit www.new.gcash.com.

September 16, 2025 0 comments

Business

Heads Up! GCash introduces Tap to Pay, now available for Android users

by Contributor August 8, 2025

written by Contributor

MANILA — GCash continues to bring future-forward innovations to the Philippines with the official launch of GCash Tap to Pay, a contactless payment system that lets users of the app pay merchants with just one tap of their smartphone. Now available to Android users, GCash becomes the first e-wallet in the country to enable NFC-powered payments, allowing users to log in to the GCash app, tap and pay at any Mastercard accepting POS terminal nationwide.

While Tap to Pay technology has long been the norm in major cities around the world, offering speed and convenience, this marks the first time such a seamless, NFC-based payment experience is being made widely accessible in the Philippines through a local e-wallet. With this innovation, GCash not only brings global payment standards to Filipinos but also reinforces its position as the country’s top fintech platform, continuously innovating to allow its users to level up their lives.

Tap into quicker – and safer – payments

From navigating morning grocery runs, commuting around the metro, to late-night dinner runs, errands, and schedules can already be difficult enough to manage, the last thing you need is the added burden of figuring out if you have enough cash to last you through the day.

GCash Tap to Pay is designed for ultimate convenience with quicker payments powered by Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. This allows devices in close proximity to exchange data securely. Each payment uses authentication protocols to verify user identity, while all transmitted data is encrypted, making transactions resistant to tampering and fraud. With this, GCash ensures that users enjoy a frictionless and protected payment experience every time.

Tap to Pay works at any terminal that accepts Mastercard payments, both locally and abroad. This partnership allows users to enjoy the same seamless tap-and-go experience wherever they go, even when traveling internationally, where it can be a huge hassle to be weighed down by a wallet filled with foreign coins, bills, and multiple cards.

Through this innovation, GCash eliminates the various everyday hassles by simplifying the payment process; just tap your phone, and you’re good to go. There’s no need to scan a QR code or fumble through your spare change, because all you need to pay for your morning cup of coffee or your unexpected grocery run is your smartphone – and no additional fees!

Experience payments in a tap today

Ready to experience effortless and secure payments? Activate GCash Tap to Pay and enjoy transactions in just one tap. Here’s how you can activate and use GCash with your phone:

One-Time Setup: How to Activate GCash Tap to Pay

Under “Settings”, open “Connections”.
Enable “NFC and contactless payments”.
Log in to your GCash app.
Tap “Tap To Pay”.
Agree to the stated terms and conditions.
Your “Tap To Pay” feature should now be activated!

How to use GCash Tap To Pay

Log in to your GCash app
Tap your phone on the store’s POS terminal. Done!

Experience it for yourself today and download the GCash app on the App Store or Google Play Store.

August 8, 2025 0 comments

Science & Technology

Wearable Wallet? GCash is first to do it in the Philippines with HUAWEI wearables!

by Contributor July 24, 2025

written by Contributor

MANILA, Philippines – Many Filipinos are masters of finding the next “life hack.” We’re always finding new ways to move smarter, live lighter, and stay ahead. And that’s why wearable payments feel like the kind of upgrade we’ve always needed.

Many of us have probably seen wearable payments in action while traveling abroad through a seamless checkout at a convenience store after a morning run or maybe a quick payment at a café right after a tour. It’s effortless, exciting, but also perceived to be out of reach. A perk reserved for those lucky enough to travel abroad.

At least until now, as GCash brings the next big life hack within everyone’s reach with Watch Pay.

GCash and Huawei are bringing the ease and convenience of wearable payments to the Philippines for the very first time with the launch of Watch Pay, a scannable QR code linked to your GCash wallet built right into your Huawei smartwatch. Whether you’re grabbing groceries, dining out, or buying a new pair of sneakers, your wallet can now be worn on your wrist – and you can experience payments on the go like never before.

Currently available on the HUAWEI Watch Ultimate, Watch 4, Watch 5, Watch Fit 3, Watch Fit 4 Series, Watch GT 4 and 5 Series, Band 10, Watch D2 2, Watch Pay introduces Filipinos to the next-generation way to pay. It’s secure, seamless, and always within arm’s reach, making smarter and more seamless payments available for all.

Simplified and convenient, powered by innovative technology

What makes Watch Pay exciting is the ease it brings to everyday moments all through the same smartwatch that powers your workouts. You’re already tracking your steps, checking your vitals, and logging your workouts with your smartwatch. Now, it’s your wallet too, so smart spending just got even smarter. There’s no need to carry cash or cards when out on your errands, now no more fumbling through your wallet when you’re in a rush or getting caught up with a minor inconvenience like a buggy card terminal.

With Watch Pay, all you need is the QR code that will be conveniently generated on your watch. This QR code will simply be scanned, and you’re good to go. This technology ensures that payments are quick and easy.

Since each transaction still runs through the GCash app, there’s also no need to adjust how you track your spending. You can still find your payments recorded in the app’s transaction history.

Watch Pay is available to all GCash users and is accepted across GCash’s wide network of partner merchants. Imagine how uncomplicated it would be to go grocery shopping at Robinsons Supermarket, buying new shoes at the SM Store, or even paying for a quick snack and coffee at Lawson – all without the trouble of bringing lots of cash with you. It’s subtle, but it does make daily errands feel a little more effortless.

How to link your smartwatch and use Watch Pay

Ready to activate your Watch Pay? Follow these steps below:

Open GCash on your smartwatch
Tap on Link
Scan the QR code with your HUAWEI or Android phone
Press Bind and enter the linking code
Confirm your device to bind

Easily use Watch Pay by following these simple instructions:

Open “settings” on your HUAWEI smartwatch.
Search for and tap “Payments”.
Tap on “Open GCash”.
A QR code will be generated, which the merchant can now scan.

GCash has been a go-to for everything from paying bills to sending money. With the arrival of Watch Pay, the country’s top finance app is taking things a step further once again, bringing a global innovation right to our wrists. With every new feature, GCash is quickly redefining what the best way to pay looks like. Experience it for yourself today and download the GCash app on the App Store or Google Play Store.

July 24, 2025 0 comments

Uncategorized

Now Belle Mariano can leave her wallet at home, thanks to BDO Pay

by Contributor July 8, 2025

written by Contributor

BACKSTAGE during her shoot as the face of BDO Pay, Belle Mariano confessed: She often leaves her wallet in her house or car. As someone with a packed schedule (performances and projects left and right), Belle tends to forget that detail, but couldn’t be bothered with the hassle of digital payments, like cashing in. Who has the time and energy?

So using BDO Pay comes naturally to her. It’s an everyday payment app where you can scan, send, and pay without having to cash in. The app is linked to your choice of bank accounts and credit cards—you can pick which one to use when making payments. No need to transfer funds from other apps, plus you’re not limited to just one source of money.

Now, it’s no big deal if Belle leaves her wallet. She even prefers using BDO Pay.

In a video shared with her millions of social media followers, Belle started her day by remembering she had bills to pay. “Paano kaya ako magbabayad? Kailangan pa mag cash in?” wonders Belle. “Ah buti na lang may BDO Pay, because I can just pay directly from my BDO bank account or credit card.”

“It’s super handy. Plus, with over 1,800 billers, paying bills is a breeze and no fees,” said a very satisfied Belle.

Belle, a foodie, found another way to use BDO Pay. “I can just scan to pay directly from any account,” she notes while paying for snacks over the counter. At the studio, she remembers to do more convenient transactions. “Sending money to other BDO accounts is free, and it’s just P10 to other banks or wallets.”

The Gen Z star caps her post with a big smile and announces: “I’m so happy BDO makes it easy and convenient to manage everything from my phone with BDO Pay.”

You too can enjoy easy and hassle-free payments every day. Download BDO Pay, sign up, and link your choice of cards.

· Scan to pay in merchants nationwide using your bank account or credit card.

· Send money to other BDO accounts for free, and to other banks or e-wallets for a low transaction charge.

· Split the bill among a group by dividing the amount equally or customizing it per member.

· Request money (or grant a request) through BDO Pay.

· Plus, you can even withdraw money from the ATM through QR withdrawal on BDO Pay, no physical card needed.

If you need any help with BDO Pay, you can call BDO’s 24/7 customer assistance hotline or head to the nearest branch to talk to personnel face-to-face, giving you the peace of mind that the country’s trusted bank provides.

Now you can leave your wallet at home with BDO Pay—just like Belle Mariano does.

To learn more, visit bdo.com.ph/personal/digital/bdo-pay/.

July 8, 2025 0 comments