SMART PADALA EXPANDS DIGITAL SERVICES IN CEBU
Cebuanos can expect new and exciting digital services to come to a nearby Smart Padala center as the mobile remittance brand—now with a 26,000-strong agent network nationwide— transforms its partners into community digital hubs around the country.
Smart Padala now serves customers with a growing suite of digital services that includes bills payment, Add Money to PayMaya accounts, loans disbursement and QR payments.
“Smart Padala is a critical ingredient in building a ‘cashless’ Philippines. Our more than 26,000 agents around the country act as community hubs for financial and digital services,” said Paolo Azzola, chief operations officer and managing director at PayMaya Philippines. “We are grateful for the trust that our customers in Cebu have given to us and to our partner-agents all these years, which drives our determination to continue improving our services.”
According to the Inclusive Digital Finance Report released by FINTQ in 2017, more than 70 percent of provinces have medium to low access to formal financial services, leaving them out of the growing digital economy.
With majority of Smart Padala’s 26,000 centers nationwide being sari-sari stores, the service is able to reach even far-flung communities and barangays located outside the usual city centers--enabling convenience of
financial transactions for majority of Filipinos around the country.
In the case of conflict and disaster-stricken areas such as Marawi and Tacloban, Smart Padala centers have served as crucial backbones in reviving the local financial ecosystem, which helps affected individuals and families rebuild their lives after such calamities.
“Through our agent partners, Smart Padala continues to deliver crucial digital financial services that are accessible to Filipinos up to the grassroots community level,” Azzola added.
Aspiring entrepreneurs can quickly and easily start a Smart Padala business because there is no franchise fee required. Once complete business requirements have been submitted, the Smart Padala store can be built and operated in less than a week.