Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that the combined value of transactions coursed through automated clearing houses InstaPay and PESONet have surged 42 percent from a year earlier to P24.7 trillion, underscoring Filipinos’ growing shift towards cashless payments as regulators press for broader adoption of digital finance.
The number of transactions surged even faster as volumes reached 4.8 billion, up 217 percent year on year.
InstaPay, a real-time digital payment system for transactions of up to P50,000, is widely used for retail purchases, toll and ticket payments, and e-commerce, supporting in particular micro, small, and medium enterprises. The central bank said InstaPay had surpassed ATM withdrawals in both volume and value since 2020, when the pandemic pushed many Filipinos to shift away from cash.
PESONet, by contrast, caters to large-value fund transfers, serving as an electronic alternative to the paper-based cheque system. Payments are processed in batches and cleared at set intervals, allowing recipients to receive funds within the same banking day, provided instructions are sent before the cutoff time.
By 2024, data showed digital payments accounted for 57.4 percent of all retail transactions, up from 52.8 percent a year earlier – a result that exceeded the government’s target of 52 to 54 percent.
According to the BSP, 97.2 percent of transactions made by the government were done via digital channels in 2024, the most cash-lite among the primary payment use cases that the central bank tracks. Meanwhile, the share of digital payments made by individuals rose to 72.2 percent.
The central bank’s next goal is to digitalize 60 to 70 percent of retail payments by 2028, primarily by expanding the digital payments user base by cutting transaction costs and strengthening antifraud safeguards, which are steps deemed necessary to building public trust in the system.
As more and more Filipinos have been adopting and embracing digital and cashless payments, the government and the banking sector has to ensure that it continues to bring more pros than cons to the general public. Reducing transaction costs and making systems more secure will certainly help, but improving accessibility by building better networks, and focusing on financial literacy will also be needed as the financial landscape changes, which always comes with opportunities, as well as risks and threats.*
