AUB sees competition in e-wallets this year
ASIA United Bank (AUB) said it sees competition in the electronic wallet (ewallet) space to intensify further this year.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has led to restrictions on mobility with the enforcement of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) measures,” the bank said in a statement issued last week. “This has driven more Filipinos to embrace digital tools such as e-wallets.”
AUB President Manuel A. Gomez was quoted in the statement as saying that even without the ECQ, e-wallets and mobile transactions “will continue to proliferate as many consumers who made the digital pivot are already discovering and growing accustomed to cashless and contactless modes.”
“This, in fact, has led to shifts in consumer attitudes, behaviors, and consumption patterns,” Gomez added.
In November 2019, two months before the Covid-19 outbreak, AUB unveiled its own digital wallet it calls “Hellomoney,” which enables account holders to perform various financial transactions such as fund transfer to any bank account, bills payment, prepaid mobile load and remittance to any of its accredited cash-out partner.
After the country implemented an ECQ on March 15, 2020, AUB said it saw transactions in its digital wallet “steadily surging even without spending on heavy advertising and promotions compared with competition.”
The bank added that as of enddecember 2020, registration in its digital wallet has already skyrocketed by 2,000 percent and the value of transactions has breached P7 billion.
The bank said it has also been steadily upping the ante in its ewallet offerings. Mobile app users can maximize the benefits of their digital wallet account as AUB is extending its free fund transfers to other banks until December 31, 2021.
In addition to the free fund transfer, users of AUB’S digital wallet can also get hold of cash when they avail of an ATM card that enables them to withdraw from over 20,000 automated teller machine (ATMS) nationwide and pay over the counter in over 200,000 Bancnet point-ofsale (POS) terminals nationwide. The ATM card is linked to their ewallet account and acts as a debit card, the bank said.
To remain competitive in the e-wallet race, AUB said it will continue to make its digital wallet robust “with new and exciting features so user experience will be more convenient and seamless.”
“We want to make sure that when more users open a Hellomoney [account], we are ready and able to welcome them into our world of contactless, cashless, and seamless transactions,” Gomez said. “They can then say ‘goodbye’ to holding physical money and reduce their risk from the spread of the virus. This will be the new reality.”