The second is in changing the game to disrupt traditional services. I’m proud to see how we help everyday Filipinos and businesses, especially MSMEs, discover more growth and livelihood opportunities as we offer more relevant services—first as their tool for survival during the pandemic and now as their essential digital life hack. As an example, I think of the people who may have been laid off during the pandemic, but who turned into entrepreneurs with the help of cashless payments.

None of these would have been possible without the purpose-driven team that is at the heart of GCash. Our vision has driven our efforts to build a complete digital platform that provides at least one relevant product for each of our 69 million users.

What challenges do you see now in your respective industry? How do you intend to help address these challenges?

MS: We see the biggest challenge as to how to truly embed value-adding financial services into the daily lives of Filipinos. Low financial literacy is still the most prevalent barrier to adoption, especially across underserved segments. Unfortunately, the majority are not familiar with financial concepts. Also, talking about money and its management remains a taboo subject across many Filipino households.

With this, financial education remains one of our key priorities as we launch more game-changing services and engage with more Filipinos at the base of the pyramid. We continue to over-educate and establish partnerships with both the private and public sectors for us to reach more underserved segments. From there, we curate the most relevant educational content and financial literacy sessions so that they can avail of financial services confidently. 

More from Tatler: What do women want when it comes to financial education?

What can you say to those who’d like to follow in your footsteps?

MS: It’s important to find your purpose. The purpose is your “why” or what you strive for, and it’s what directs your actions. It will keep you going even when times are tough. That’s why working for GCash is extremely fulfilling for me. Our purpose is “Making Filipinos’ Everyday Lives Better”, which is aligned with my personal purpose of helping people be the best version of themselves.

I can’t stress enough the importance of knowing your strengths and weaknesses and striving to be the best version of yourself. Accept yourself and know what you can bring to the table. For example, coming into GCash, while I knew that I didn’t come from a financial services or tech background, I knew what value I could add—my deep knowledge of the consumer.

At the same time, learn to rely on your team. It gives me confidence and energy that, while I may not know everything, my team has my back. They’ve carried me through both wins and tough times. Not to mention, they’ve brought so much energy, passion, creativity and commitment to our cause. If things don’t go as expected or we encounter setbacks, it’s ok. We learn together and work on improving and growing together.

Of course, life is not just about work. You must also take the time to enjoy life and be grateful to God and the people who support you.

What are your plans for the coming years and what keeps you going?

MS: We are currently working with our key partners to make financial services such as local and global stocks, and cryptocurrency available to Filipinos through our app. It is our goal to make these relevant in the lives of Filipinos, similar to what we’ve been doing for our savings, investment, insurance and lending products.

What energises me is knowing how GCash has been making major strides to serve our country’s underserved segments, contributing even to the national agenda. We share the same vision with our central bank of creating a cashless Philippines, leading to financial inclusion. Now, around 80 per cent of the adult Filipino population has a GCash Account, which means that more of the unbanked have access to financial services. With this, we have also directly contributed to the rise of digital payments in the last couple of years, with the country’s digital payments rising to 30 per cent of total payments in 2021.

It inspires me to know how we have impacted not just the community as a whole, but the individual lives that have become better and easier, because of our help. This includes Filipinos who discovered opportunities as social sellers and the previously unbanked Pinoys like fishermen, wet market vendors and riders who, through our efforts, now have a way to save and invest. That is why I’m also excited about reaching more Filipinos whom we are eager to serve and empower.

With our scale and influence in the Philippine financial services industry, we look forward to taking on the challenge and responsibility to continue innovating for the good, of our customers.

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