FINTECH | SME card launch expands access to digital business payments
The launch comes as the Philippines continues to push digital payment adoption. According to the companies, only one in five business payments are currently made digitally, while about half of Filipino adults have formal financial accounts.
Philippine small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can now access business payment cards without maintaining a bank account following the launch of a new virtual prepaid card program by Mastercard, PayMongo, and Paymentology.
Announced on June 9, the Virtual Prepaid Card is designed to allow businesses to issue and use digital payment cards within minutes through PayMongo’s platform. The companies said the card is aimed at helping SMEs manage spending, pay suppliers and contractors, and access digital payment tools traditionally available only to larger enterprises.
The launch comes as the Philippines continues to push digital payment adoption. According to the companies, only one in five business payments are currently made digitally, while about half of Filipino adults have formal financial accounts.
“SMEs are operating in an increasingly digital economy, but access to modern payment tools has not always kept pace. Through our collaboration with PayMongo and Paymentology, Mastercard is helping expand access to secure and accessible virtual payment capabilities, enabling businesses to participate more fully in a more connected economy through the scale and reach of our global network,” said Jason Crasto, Mastercard country manager for the Philippines.
Businesses using the service can set spending limits, monitor transactions, issue separate cards for teams or projects, and pay suppliers, freelancers, and employees digitally. Existing PayMongo merchants can access the card through the same platform they already use for payment processing.
Unlike corporate credit cards, the offering is a pre-funded prepaid card. Businesses load funds through their PayMongo wallet and spend from their available balance rather than using a credit line.
“We are giving Filipino entrepreneurs a real, honest shot at growing their business. We’re giving SMEs a financial tool they can control – one that enforces the discipline to spend only on what moves the business forward, and nothing else,” said PayMongo CEO Jojo Malolos.
The companies cited the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap, which reached its target of having 50% of retail payments conducted digitally by 2023.
Paymentology, which provides card processing services globally, supplies the card issuance infrastructure for the program. The companies said the platform operates under regulatory and security frameworks that include PCI-DSS 4.0 and SOC 2 Type 2 certifications.
“The Philippines is a market where small businesses power the majority of employment but have had almost no access to the card infrastructure that large enterprises do,” said Minh Ha Truong, Paymentology regional director for Asia-Pacific. “Through our collaboration with PayMongo and Mastercard, we are changing that by bringing global-grade card issuance to every Philippine business, regardless of size.”
The three companies said the virtual prepaid card is the first step in a broader effort to develop additional card-based financial tools for Philippine businesses.
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