MANILA, Philippines – TransUnion (NYSE: TRU), a global information and insights company and the Philippines’ first comprehensive private credit reference agency, today released its third annual Credit Perception Index (CPI). As an important part of TransUnion’s ongoing commitment to promote credit literacy and financial inclusion in the country, the CPI examines how Filipinos perceive credit, the drivers and barriers influencing their behavior, and the implications for the broader financial ecosystem.
The Philippines’ 2025 CPI score stands at 73 out of 100, only slightly lower than 74 in 2024, signifying overall stability in credit sentiment. While most CPI score factors, such as favorability, concept knowledge, product knowledge, reservations, and stigmas, remained relatively steady, trust in credit products increased significantly by six points.
Conversely, credit messaging receptivity—the likelihood to use credit after learning about its potential benefits—dropped by nine points. This decline may be attributed to external factors such as higher interest rates and growing concerns about digital fraud.
TransUnion CPI Score and Score Factors of the General Population
Knowledge and interest remain strong
The overall stability of the CPI score is underpinned by a well-established understanding of credit and a growing appetite to engage with financial products. More than two-thirds (69%) of Filipinos say they are knowledgeable about what credit is, in general. Moreover, interest in learning about specific credit products grew, especially for payday loans (+7 percentage points [pp]), micro loans (+7pp), mobile loans (+6pp), personal loans (+5pp), and buy now, pay later (BNPL) (+5pp).
“We are glad to see the CPI score holding largely steady in 2025, supported by growing trust in credit products. More encouragingly, this year’s CPI results also tell us that Filipinos are eager to learn more about financial options that are relevant, accessible, and suited to their needs,” said Peter Faulhaber, president and CEO of TransUnion Philippines. “This increasing openness is a positive indicator of progress. As financial literacy deepens, we anticipate even greater familiarity, trust, and responsible use of credit – key pillars in building a more inclusive and robust financial ecosystem in the Philippines.”
Barriers to credit use linger
Despite positive gains in trust and openness, external factors continue to hold back Filipinos from actively using credit. Across all three population groups surveyed—the general population, the unbanked, and the financial technology (FinTech) users—high interest rates emerged as the top deterrent to credit usage, cited by 59%, 52% and 61%, respectively. Concerns about scams and fraud followed closely, affecting 52% of the general population, 47% of the unbanked, and 52% of FinTech users. These figures highlight widespread apprehension about security threats across different population groups, regardless of their CPI score.
Indeed, security and trust emerged as key consumer considerations when choosing to engage with financial institutions, cited by more than half (58%) of the respondents, just slightly behind convenience at 60%.
These findings underscore a critical challenge: while trust is improving, consumers still require stronger assurances through safer and more supportive credit environments. Addressing these concerns will be key to unlocking broader participation in the credit ecosystem and advancing financial inclusion across all segments of the population.
Narrowing gap between general population and the unbanked
A closer look at population segments reveals that the TransUnion CPI score for the unbanked Filipinos rose by two points—from 65 in 2024 to 67 in 2025—reducing the gap with the general population from nine to six points. Notably, this two-point increase among the unbanked also outpaced that of the general population (+2 points vs. -1 point). This improvement was primarily driven by significant gains in credit product trust (+9 points) and knowledge (+8 points).
TransUnion CPI Scores of the Three Population Groups
| General Population | Unbanked Population | FinTech Users | |
| 2025 | 73 | 67 | 74 |
| 2024 | 74 | 65 | N/A |
The unbanked also demonstrated enhanced understanding across nearly all credit products surveyed, with marked progress in knowledge of mobile loans (+16pp), payday loans (+15pp), automotive loans (+13pp), micro loans (+12pp), personal loans (+10pp), and BNPL (+10pp). These trends suggest growing familiarity with formal credit options, although overall knowledge (56%) still trails behind the general population (69%).
FinTech emerges as the first financial product among younger generations
Recognizing the increasing influence and widespread adoption of FinTech in the country, TransUnion introduced FinTech users as a new population group in this year’s CPI. Among the respondents, FinTech usage is nearly universal, with 91% reporting they use at least one digital financial product.
Most commonly used FinTech products include eWallets (77%), online banks (51%), and digital payment apps (47%). Notably, over one-third (35%) of the general population reported an eWallet as their first financial product, surpassing bank accounts (30%). This trend is especially evident among younger generations, with Gen Z (47%) and Millennials (37%) more likely to start their financial journey with an eWallet, while Gen X and Baby Boomers favored bank accounts at 40% and 34%, respectively.
In terms of credit perceptions, among the three population groups surveyed (general, FinTech, unbanked), FinTech users posted the highest CPI score in 2025 at 74, along with the highest level of general credit knowledge (71%), outperforming both the general population and the unbanked.
“The strong performance of FinTech users and the narrowing gap between the unbanked and general population reflect encouraging momentum toward greater financial inclusion,” said Faulhaber. “However, to fully unlock the benefits of credit and drive broader adoption, we must continue addressing persistent barriers – especially concerns around fraud and security that still deter many Filipinos from engaging with credit. By fostering trust and enhancing financial education, we can empower more Filipinos to participate confidently in the credit economy, helping build a financially resilient population that supports the nation’s journey toward upper-middle income status.”
For more information and insights, please view the full report of the TransUnion Credit Perception Index study.
