GCash, the mobile wallet of Globe Telecom Inc., is set to charge a P5 cash-in fee when accountholders top up via its major bank partners beginning in the fourth quarter this year.
Martha Sazon, GCash president and chief executive, said the P5 fee is comparably “much lower” than the P25 that banks and financial institutions charge for cash transfers.
“This also ensures that our operations will remain seamless for all customers,” Sazon said.
But even with this fee, Globe continues to subsidize part of the cost of the transaction but reiterated the telco’s commitment to keep the service accessible to many Filipinos.
Sazon advised GCash users to plan ahead of their purchase activities: “For example, you can cash in P10,000 rather than cashing in only P500 every time. Plan your cash-in so you don’t feel the 5-peso charge as much.”
Later this year, a convenience fee of P5 for every cash-in via linked BPI and UnionBank accounts will be charged. Cash-ins via linked bank accounts is one way of adding funds to a GCash account.
Over-the-counter cash-ins are also available through cash-in machines, partner convenience stores, pawnshops, supermarkets, department stores, drug stores, gas stations, sari-sari stores and retail stores, among others.
But GCash has waived fees for QRPH transactions for merchants until the end of the current year, giving micro-entrepreneurs extra earnings while using convenient cashless transactions. Other payment platforms charge up to 2 percent for QR-based or card payments.
GCash also continues to offer micro-merchants access to a wallet with a limit of up to P500,000 per month. GCash also waives the 1.5% percent transaction fee for up to P100,000 in gross sales.
GCash has empowered more or less 845,000 small-scale community merchants with various digital financial solutions, the telco said.
