The contract signing ceremony between UnionBank and BENCH took place last November 14 at the UnionBank Plaza in Pasig City.

To help BENCH digitize its transactions, UnionBank will be generating in-store QRPH codes that will serve as additional payment channels for shoppers. This will allow them to quickly pay for their purchases without worrying about loose change. They also won’t need to use their on-hand cash or fall in line to withdraw cash at ATMs, saving them time. 

Because the partnership leverages QRPH’s wide range of accepted payment providers through partner banks and popular digital wallets, shoppers can pay for their purchases digitally without worrying about using services or apps they are not familiar with, and simply opt for those that they are already using.

“We believe that the use of QRPH in our offline stores should bring many benefits and convenience to our customers. We want to thank UnionBank for this initiative in tapping us as a partner,” said Vice President for Business Development Group of BENCH Bryan Lim.

“This great milestone promises to trailblaze the way we do our business in our respective fields and keep up with the changing needs of our customers,” said UnionBank Merchant Acquiring and Payment Gateway Head Gerry Austria. “This is a valuable opportunity to ensure that our customers will have a more enjoyable way of shopping.”

“With our drive to ‘Tech Up Pilipinas’ and be an enabler of the Philippines’ push to be a G20 country by 2050, we partnered with Globe Business to co-create innovations that are crucial to the success of our Digital Transformation Plan,” shares Vincent Paul M. Castillo, Vice President, Cash Services Group Head. “Together, we innovated technology derived from our internal and external customers’ unique experiences and perspectives.”

As part of their partnership, UnionBank will utilize the wide range of fleet management solutions offered by Globe Business, which are powered by Globe’s next-generation connectivity and expansive nationwide coverage enabled by its thousands of cell towers located in strategic areas nationwide.

Among the benefits provided by the partnership are improved correspondence between UnionBank’s vehicles and their communication centers, top-notch internet connectivity for each vehicle for better use of relevant in-vehicle tools and apps, and stronger security measures to protect the vehicles and their operators especially while on the road.

Ultimately, the partnership will help UnionBank serve its customers across different segments better, while making it easier for its fleet personnel, as well as those who work in its bank branches being served by the vehicles, to perform their roles more effectively in line with UnionBank’s goal of promoting inclusive prosperity in the country.

“We’ve always looked at UnionBank as very like-minded, and we’ve always been very proud about being able to provide solutions and partner constantly in being able to digitally transform and always be a step ahead of all digital banking initiatives in the Philippines,” said Globe Business Vice President for Enterprise Sales Tanya Gil-Padilla.

“This solution will ensure productivity, save fuel costs, and offer fleet management efficiency,” said UnionBank’s Chief Security Officer and Head of Security Management Group, retired RAdm. Rommel Galang. “In line with the desire to deliver innovative solutions, we stand firm with the Bank’s promises to power the future of banking through innovation.”

The proceeds will be used to refinance its maturing USD loan and existing USD bonds, and fund its general corporate purposes.

“This shows how UnionBank continues to gain the market’s confidence in our strategic priorities. After our ₱11 billion digital bond issuance in June, which was 11 times oversubscribed, we now have successfully executed this $358 million syndicated loan facility, which is almost 2.5 times upsized. This enables us to better manage our financing requirements and continue executing our strategy as the market remains volatile,” said Johnson L. Sia, Treasurer and Head of Global Markets.

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited and MUFG Bank, Ltd. were the Mandated Lead Arrangers, Underwriters, and Bookrunners on the transaction.

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) has always been among the first to embrace technological innovations to empower its customers. It embraces the future of banking and is committed to be the Philippines’ leading digital bank to best serve the growing needs of Filipinos everywhere.

UnionBank recognizes the value of nurturing relationships with partners like corporations and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) who continue to stay, believe, and remain working together with the Bank through the years. As part of its celebration of its 40^th anniversary, UnionBank recently held an appreciation event, the Future Forward Awards for its partners. 

As UnionBank President and CEO Edwin R. Bautista shared, “Our success today has been a product of our co-creation efforts, looking ahead into the future and preparing for the evolution of banking. “Together, we can be future forward and leap to being a bank of enduring greatness.”

Moving Future Forward

The Future Forward Awards acknowledged the vision, dedication, and hard work of partners who supported and closely collaborated with UnionBank for the design and successful execution and implementation of the Bank’s digital business solutions. 

There were three main award categories: 

Steadfast is an award given to long-time clients of UnionBank who became supporters and partners of the Bank’s innovative quests. Recipients were recognized as having been vital to growing the bank’s core transaction banking business over time, paving the way for its digital transformation. The awardees include both a leading bookstore/office supplies chain and a pioneering laser-printing/paper copying technology company. 

The Pathfinder award was given to Corporate and MSME clients who collaborated closely with the Bank for it to be able to create and refine its business solution products, which then became instrumental for these clients’ financial growth. Among the winners of this award are a leading pharmacy chain and an active community of mothers/entrepreneurs.

Finally, the Trailblazer, is an award for digital forward thinkers. Just like UnionBank, they are clients who think out of the box, find new ways to engage customers, grow their enterprise, and improve their business processes. These awardees are role models to other companies of what it means to innovate in the digital age. Recipients of the award such as the country’s premier micropayments service and a multinational investment/financial services company, all built their ecosystems with UnionBank’s solutions and integrated their services with the Bank. They are committed to building a future driven by growth and innovation. 

“No matter the size or scope of their business, one common denominator among all awardees is the dedication to ingenuity and progress,” said Bautista. “These businesses are the ones with the vision to shape what the future could be. We couldn’t be prouder to work with them.”

Innovation never stops

UnionBank’s digital transformation is an ongoing journey, continuously raising the bar with the end goal of improving customer experience and operational efficiencies.  During the event, UnionBank highlighted one of its game changing product Unified Payments and Collections Solution, also known as UPAY for Business. 

UPAY was created with the vision of helping enterprises offer complete payment channels to its customers. UPAY provides a complete suite of payment channels that clients may integrate with, made more simpler, housed under one platform. The UPAY platform can even track payments until these get settled to a business account and tagged as paid in its system. 

“It doesn’t just make the payment process easier for business,” clarified Samantha Lacorte, Vice President and Product Owner, UPAY for Business. “Clients now have a wider range of choices when settling their payments. They also get added peace of mind with real-time confirmation and settlement of their transactions in a breeze.”

Overall, UPAY creates a payment experience that is beneficial for both payee and payor –something that captures the spirit of innovation crucial to UnionBank. 

Client partners can continue to look forward to more UPAY features that leverage the InstaPay Person-to-Biller feature coming soon! This will enable scanning a QR code to quickly pay bills and invoices in real-time. 

For UnionBank, the possibilities are endless, the recipients of the awards are testaments to how close partnerships can result to business growth. Congratulations to all Future Forward winners! 

Banks must continue to find new ways to ensure that micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are able to borrow for their business needs more easily especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the key message of Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) President and CEO Edwin Bautista during his speech at the APEC Global MSME Forum where he was a panelist.

“The problem is not the MSMEs. They know this [e-commerce] is the way to go. I think the problem is more of the banks,” Bautista said. “As banks, we have been trying to tell to MSMEs, ‘you need to pivot, you need to do this,’ but I think it’s about time that we recognize that it is us [banks] who need to do most of the pivoting rather than the MSMEs.”

Bautista cited the need for collateral and other risk controls that limit access to financing options from banks for smaller companies as among the biggest reasons why MSMEs are wary of borrowing, saying that banks must pivot in order to create a credit landscape that is more accommodating and responsive to the needs of these businesses.

For its part, UnionBank continues to think of new ways to make business financing easier and more accessible for MSMEs, especially amid the uncertainties of the pandemic when they need it the most. Among the numerous solutions of the Bank in this regard are SeekCap, Sentro, and GlobalLinker.

SeekCap is the Philippines’ first same-day approval lending marketplace that links borrowers with banking and non-bank lenders. It’s a platform where businesses can find the financing options that fit the current needs of their business the most. One of the many advantages of using the platform is that no collateral is needed, and the Bank determines a business’ capacity to borrow based on their cash flows, which is measured by the platform. 

“It’s very important that they must join a platform because if they are in a platform, the bank can now lend based on the flows. We can lend money based on the receivables. It’s something that we were never able to do in the past.”

Meanwhile, Sentro is the country’s first online shop builder that gives users all the tools they will need to easily create a fully featured online store, from customizable menus and layouts to payment gateways and logistics-related solutions, among other features.

“Sentro is an online shop builder for those who want to participate in an online platform but are not big enough to participate in the big platforms. We allow them this opportunity.”

And finally, UnionBank GlobalLinker is a platform where MSMEs can access a global marketplace for selling their products. One notable advantage of using the platform is that users also have the option to interact with other MSMEs who are part of the platform, so they can learn from each other and also establish strategic partnerships.

“One of the things that we realized is MSMEs want to help each other, so here is a networking site where they can talk about their businesses, they can get advice from people with similar situations, and they can also search wider markets for the products that they sell.”

But even with the Bank now leading the way in offering easier access to financing options geared toward MSMEs, Bautista said a lot still needs to be done to ensure that these smaller businesses are able to thrive during these challenging times. 

“Our message to ourselves is ‘guys, we need to walk the talk.’ These guys we’re trying to preach to, they’re convinced because to them, it’s e-commerce or death. To us, we have other choices. We have to ask ourselves the question, ‘how serious are we in trying to help MSMEs?’ And if we are, let’s do more of the pivoting,” Bautista concluded. 

For more information on UnionBank’s MSME initiatives, visit www.unionbankph.com

We cannot deny the fact that the novel coronavirus disease, COVID-19, has disrupted people’s lives and business activities nationally, regionally, and globally.

In the Philippines, the nationwide lockdown forced upon us by the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the lives of everyone we know. It has caused anxiety as health and safety concerns coupled with economic and income uncertainties weighed down every Juan and Juana, setting back a broad spectrum of businesses.

The MSMEs, dubbed as the backbone of the Philippine economy comprise 99.5% of business establishments in the country and provide employment to almost 70% of the country’s workforce. They are struggling, hoping to see the recovery through the various supports they can receive.

The desire to strike the perfect balance between lives and livelihood, is a challenge and with more than 50 percent of the MSMEs have closed down, then reopened again on a downsized scale. With the advent of COVID-19 Delta variant virus, the imminent ECQ is another setback to the MSMEs considering that it is only now that the momentum of the business is gaining ground.

Much as it tries, the government is still struggling to enforce policies which are evident by their “spin-a-wheel” type of quarantine decision-making and the much delayed and highly politicized vaccination program that still far away from the ideal herd immunity remains farfetched.

As the pandemic continues to disrupt the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) identified the urgent need for more attention, care, and rejuvenation to help these businesses overcome the challenges they currently face. As the best banking partner of MSMEs across the country, UnionBank created a one-stop hub that will enable MSMEs to do business with ease remotely, helping them to manage cash flows, get access to financing, and utilize an all-in-one payment facility.

Following the launch of the MSME Business Banking App in January 2021, UnionBank continues its commitment to uplift the business of MSMEs all over the country. With its latest product offering, UPAY, an all-in-one payment acceptance hub, UnionBank completes its portfolio of comprehensive products and services catering to the banking needs of the MSME sector.

“Our main purpose is to empower MSMEs to uplift their businesses and enable inclusive prosperity by extending products that go beyond traditional banking services,” said UnionBank’s Vice President and SME Segment Head Jaypee Soliman. “We also believe that in order to achieve this, our organization had to shift and pivot as well by educating them on the use of concrete solutions that will help keep their businesses afloat in the now normal.”

Next level experience with MSME Business Banking Hub

The all-new UnionBank offering, UPAY, allows business owners to conveniently collect payments by simply sending a link that contains the amount that needs to be paid. They can also pay through various payment channels including Instapay and UB Online, as well as over the counter with partnered branches such as 7-11 and ECPay outlets. This allows them to skip through the hassle of having to give their bank details, total amount, and manually typing the description of the order and sending it to customers through a messaging app.

With the addition of UPAY, UnionBank builds on its robust MSME platform that caters to MSMEs and their every need. Unionbank GlobalLinker (UBGL) allows them to build their online store profile and promote their products. UBGL also allows them to connect with fellow business owners, get tips from successful entrepreneurs through workshops and events, and find access to market trends, industry updates and shared experiences of other businesses.

Another is the MSME Business Banking App, a single platform that lets MSMEs access and manage finance-related needs including digital account opening, paying bills, deposit checks online, and pay the supplier and government-related dues. SeekCap is also a platform where business loans and supply chain financing are easily accessible to Filipino business owners for credits and payments, 24/7.

A partner for growth and business success

With the MSME Business Banking Hub, UnionBank aims to continue to reach out to the country’s one million registered enterprises and 12 million self-employed micro-entrepreneurs to help empower them further as they embark on their journey to recovery. With the addition of UPAY, the transition from pre-pandemic brick and mortar to fully digital business is now possible alongside UBGL, MSME Business Banking App, and SeekCap which are designed to be tailor-fitted for every MSME. 

“MSMEs are the backbone of the Philippine economy and their success is crucial especially amid challenging instances like the current pandemic,” said Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Inclusive Executive Chut Santiago. “That being said, we want to make sure that every MSME goes to us for their digital and financial needs because we believe that we always come prepared with the right solution and answer for them when they do.”

Duarte began the discussion by differentiating UnionBank’s Transaction Banking solutions, which he defined as simply offering customized solutions to help digitize our corporate clients.  Traditional transaction banking helps manage the flow of funds by facilitating collections and payments, over-the-counter check deposits, to the provision of armored car services for high cash transaction situations, among others.

The main focus of Duarte’s discussion was UnionBank’s The Portal, it is a digital banking platform specially designed for corporate clients. Offering a host of solutions that include bills payments, payroll, fund transfers, check writing services, merchant payment gateway systems, and credit facilities, The Portal provides corporations with all their essential banking needs in a single platform.

Knowing that each corporate entity has needs and priorities that are uniquely theirs, UnionBank designed The Portal in a way that allows it to provide utmost flexibility to clients, making it the preferred platform for those who don’t want the one-size-fits-all approach of most competitors when it comes to the corporate banking solutions they offer.

Part of the flexibility offered by The Portal comes by way of various customization options available to clients. Depending on the current needs of their organization, clients can choose only the solutions that they want to avail of at the moment, and then adjust later on. To make it easier, the Bank created a number of packaged solutions based on what it thinks would make sense for clients, which they can avail of any time via The Portal website.

Another key feature of The Portal in terms of flexibility is the possible configurations for transaction approvals. With this feature, corporates will be able to establish a specific maker-checker process for each transaction made by their team members. This will give them free control over who can make which transaction, as well as the maximum amount for each transaction depending on who makes it, among others.

With The Portal, UnionBank aims to make transaction banking as seamless for users as possible, and the Bank wants to make this very clear right from the moment a client starts using the platform—the onboarding process.

Onboarding is typically one of the most stressful phases of using a new platform for many corporates since it involves learning a new set of interfaces and processes. This phase can take a few days or weeks or even a few months to finish. With The Portal, however, UnionBank also digitized the onboarding processes so that clients can get into the platform in less than a day, usually within a few minutes, with no further training needed.

These are only a few innovative features of The Portal. As the Bank continues its digital transformation journey, more services will become available in the coming months.

The Portal is not based on any third-party digital framework. Instead, it was built from the ground up. In creating The Portal, UnionBank was guided by the principle of having a simple integrated platform in order to ensure the best user experience for customers. For the Bank, providing superior transaction banking experiences to users is a top priority, and The Portal is the perfect representation of what it believes transaction banking should be.

UnionBank of the Philippines (UnionBank)’s UShare continues to digitize its foundations, non-profits, academic institutions and faith-based organization segment as its digital collection solution is now powered by the Bank’s Payment Gateway e-commerce platform.

Since 2011, UShare has enabled organizations to digitize their payments and donations. Most recently, it made significant impact for NGOs at the forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic. As more institutions demand online and contactless transactions, UShare has given these opportunities to digitize collections so organizations can sustain operations and relief programs amidst continuous community quarantines. UShare also extends financial solutions to educational institutions through offering a secured and convenient platform to collect tuition fees and other payments.

“UnionBank is a firm believer in the sense of community. Through UShare, we ensure non-profits, schools and universities have access to digital tools that empower them to best serve their communities,” said Arvie de Vera, UnionBank Senior Vice President and Fintech Group Head. “Community transformation is a team effort and we are committed to supporting organizations by providing them with robust and innovative payment solutions.”

Through UShare, NGOs, religious groups and academic institutions gain access to an affordable financial management platform that can integrate with websites and online platforms. This allows them to easily receive and manage donations and payments from the Philippines as well as overseas. Moreover, with UShare’s enhanced payment facility, donors and payees will even have more payment options. These enhancements will be made available throughout the year.

UShare clients such as Victory Christian Fellowship- Dumaguete, one of the first UShare clients on the enhanced platform, now have access to a robust, transparent and secure payment facility that can handle greater volume and have more payment options including transactions using any Visa or Mastercard Credit/Debit Card.

Schools and universities such as De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) has been enabled by UShare to accept tuition fees online for this school year. This allowed the institutions to provide their students a safe, convenient and efficient means of settling tuition payments while observing the community quarantine and social distancing protocols.

“Ushare facility is an exciting way of navigating through this difficult period of the pandemic. It offers a convenient platform to process disbursement transactions allowing us to continue with our business even as we are all working from home.  We hope to explore other facilities covered by Ushare,” said Laarni San Juan, DLS-CSB Controller of Finance.

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) continues to bring innovative solutions amid the pandemic with another digital-first: the corporate remote digital account opening (CRDAO).

With the CRDAO platform, corporations may now open checking accounts within 15 minutes anytime, anywhere – without the need to go to a UnionBank branch.

The CRDAO allows relationship managers of the bank to upload digitized documentary requirements into UnionBank’s system remotely.

Corporations can then safely and conveniently manage their accounts from their home or office through UnionBank’s business banking platform The Portal.

UnionBank retail banking center head Mary Joyce Gonzalez said the bank is actively providing digital solutions to the needs of its clients.

“During this time of the pandemic, we have the ability to provide the service and information that our clients need,” Gonzalez said, echoing the citation received by UnionBank as the second most helpful bank in Asia-Pacific during COVID-19, and the only Philippine bank in the top 20 list.

By Alithea De Jesus

Filipinos based in 24 countries have invested a combined P1.95 million in the five-year PROGRESO Retail Treasury Bonds (RTBs) through the mobile app Bonds.PH, the Philippines’ first digital platform that enables small investors to buy government securities using their smartphones and other digital devices.

The use of the Bonds.PH app enabled the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) to reach Filipinos based in as far as Greenland, the Bahamas and Cuba, underscoring the efficiency and convenience of digital technology in expanding financial inclusion and providing 24/7 service to potential clients anywhere in the world.

Overseas Filipinos residing in Singapore were the biggest subscribers to the PROGRESO bonds via the Bonds.PH app, buying a total of P710,000 in RTBs from July 16 to August 7.

The sale of the PROGRESO bonds via the Bonds.PH app amounted to P48.2 million, with small investors in the Philippines accounting for P46.26 million of the investments, the BTr said.

Bonds.PH was launched last July 16 by the BTr in partnership with Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) and the Philippine Digital Asset Exchange (PDAX).

In addition to Filipinos in Singapore, those based in the United States bought a total of P350,000 of the PROGRESO bonds via the mobile app, while Filipinos living in Qatar invested P275,000 combined.

Australia-based Filipinos invested P100,000 in total, followed by those living in France with P55,000, and the United Arab Emirates with P50,000 combined.

Filipino expatriates in Switzerland, the Bahamas, Japan, Bahrain, Malaysia, United Kingdom, Denmark, Kuwait, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Italy, Spain, Cuba, Greenland, Guam, Hungary, Taiwan, and Vietnam invested P40,000 and below in the bonds via the mobile app.

According to National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon, small investors accounted for about 80 percent of the close to 3,000 transactions made through the Bonds.PH app that was for amounts of P10,000 and below.

Their pooled investments will contribute to government efforts to raise funds for its COVID-19 response and economic recovery plan, she said.

The Bonds.PH mobile app was downloaded 25,000 times via the Apple App Store and Google Play with users located in 85 countries, de Leon said.

In coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the BTr engaged with overseas Filipinos (OFs) in Japan, USA, Singapore and the Caribbean to explain and offer this investment option to them.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III was among the pioneer investors in the five-year PROGRESO RTBs, also known as RTB 24, during the first auction done through the Bonds.PH app last July 16 at the BTr’s Ayuntamiento Building in Intramuros, Manila.

The PROGRESO bonds were offered via the Bonds.PH app, other online channels, and over-the-counter in banks in multiples of P5,000.

Such bonds offer a 2.625% fixed annual interest rate payable every quarter, with a maturity date of August 12, 2025.

Many small investors preferred Bonds.PH app because of the simple verification process and easy cash-in method via Instapay, PESONet, GCash or Paymaya.

The BTr settled P516.3 billion-worth of PROGRESO bonds.  The total issue size consisted of P488.5 billion in new subscriptions and P27.8 billion more from the bond exchange program.

Following the positive reception of the BTr’s offering of the RTB 23 in February, the second RTB offering for 2020 was met with overwhelming demand from the investing public, with the issuance being oversubscribed by more than 10 times the planned minimum issue size of P30 billion.