The country’s leading finance super app, #GCash continues to honor its partners in the public sector who have utilized digital financial technology to improve the lives of their constituents during its 3rd annual GCash Digital Excellence Awards (GDEA), held recently at Manila Peninsula, Makati City.
This year’s Digital Excellence Awards was co-presented by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), and was attended by distinguished government officials including Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Emilio Aquino, commissioner Kevin Lee, commissioner Bryant Fernandez, Dasmariñas councilor Kiko Barzaga, Victorias City vice mayor Francis Bantug, Tagbilaran City mayor Jane Yap, Bacolod City councilors Em Ang and Cindy Rojas, Lapu-Lapu City mayor Junard Chan, and councilor Anabeth Cuizon, San Jose del Monte mayor Arturo Robes and district representative Florida Robes, Makati 2nd district representative Luis Campos Jr., and Quezon City vice mayor Gian Sotto.
“We are very grateful for our public sector partners, not just for building a relationship with us, but more importantly for truly sharing our vision of ‘Finance for All’ and 'making the lives of Filipinos better each day’. Our partnership has always been for the service of the underserved and the underbanked, which is why we celebrate everyone present here with us now as champions of financial inclusion,” shared GCash President and CEO Martha Sazon.
This
year’s awardees were recognized in nine different categories. The
Excellence in Digital Empowerment Award was given to top-performing
local government units that have successfully facilitated the adoption
of digital payment solutions for public market vendors within their
respective public markets. These LGUs are Lapu-Lapu City, Tagbilaran
City, and Naga City.
For
the Excellence in Driving Digital Impact Award, both top-performing
LGUs and public markets were honored for effectively promoting and
facilitating the active utilization of financial accounts among public
market vendors, leading to increased financial access. The awardees
include Aliaga, Nueva Ecija, Mandaue City, and Quezon City. The
top-performing market awardees also include Pamilihang Bayan ng Aliaga,
Nueva Ecija, the City Mall of Antipolo, and Carbon Market in Cebu.
Taking
home the Excellence in Digital Adoption Award were Mercado de Calamba,
Lapu-Lapu City Public Market, and Mutya ng Pasig Mega Market for
embracing the digital lifestyle and fully integrating the different
solutions of GCash into their daily transactions.
The
Digital Breakthrough Growth Award was given to Dasmariñas City and
Victorias City for demonstrating their exceptional commitment and
success in embracing digital payment collection methods since their
adoption in less than a year. This award also celebrates their
outstanding efforts in promoting awareness and achieving significant
growth in digital collections.
To
honor key partners and LGUs for their consistent and impressive growth
in digital transactions from 2022 to 2023, the Excellence in Digital
Transformation Award was given to top LGUs and agencies for their
ability to maintain and build upon their success year after year,
reflecting their commitment, resilience, and effective strategies in
achieving sustainable growth. Among the recipients were Quezon City, the
Securities and Exchange Commission, and Small Business Corporation.
Recognizing
their efforts to actively promote and support digital innovation among
their constituents by enabling digital payment acceptance across
different use cases such as local tax payments, utilities, markets,
local transportation, and disbursements, the Excellence in Digital
Innovation title was also awarded to Mandaue City, Tagbilaran City,
Valenzuela City, Bacolod City, Lapu-Lapu City, San Jose Del Monte City,
and Antipolo City.
Meanwhile,
the Pioneer in Digital Financial Adoption Award, which recognizes
government institutions that have a long-standing collaboration with
GCash, was awarded to Makati City, the Department of Trade and Industry,
and the Pag-IBIG Fund. These trailblazers in digital financial
inclusion have set industry standards in their fields and play a pivotal
role in promoting the vision of offering financial services to
Filipinos.
Lastly,
one of the major highlights and the most prestigious Catalyst in
Financial Inclusion Award honored public, private, and special
initiatives that facilitate digital financial inclusion for Filipinos.
This year’s awardees were the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI),
Philippine National Police - Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG), Cybercrime
Investigation and Coordinating Center, MYEG, and the Department of
Trade and Industry - Nueva Ecija in recognition of their efforts to
actively support the vision of providing “Finance for All” by bridging
gaps and encouraging widespread access to digital financial services.
The
event was also graced by GCash’s key partners from the PNP-ACG led by
PMGen Sidney Hernia, NBI Deputy Director, Atty. Jose Yap and Asec Mary
Rose Magsaysay of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center
(CICC).
“We believe that partnerships with the government play a crucial role in achieving BSP’s goal of a cash-lite society by 2025. Since the time we started, we have on-boarded over 300 national and local government agencies, as well as Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations. But we are barely scratching the surface; this is just about 10% of the whole (government) pie, and we aim to achieve more in the coming years. We will continue to push for a more inclusive and digital economy so that every Filipino can have a better quality of life and experience a more elevated government service," said AVP and head of public sector and partnerships Cathlyn Pavia.
For more information, visit www.gcash.com.