Philippines-based thrift bank AllBank and payments gateway Dragonpay have partnered to extend QR payments to clients and merchants. As a result of the partnership, by leveraging AllBank’s QRPh-P2M (QR Ph Person-to-Merchant) capabilities, Dragonpay users will reportedly be able to pay using their e-wallets and bank accounts from any QRPh-P2M participating institution.

To enjoy this feature, users need to use their mobile devices to scan Dragonpay’s QR code for payment. A representative from AllBank stated in the official release that collaborating with Dragonpay is part of the bank’s extensive pursuit of broadening its digital payment endeavours. The official further added that their objective is to ensure the availability of their QR payment offering not only to their clients but also to other consumers.

The Philippines’ road to digitalisation The extension of QR payments via this collaboration was made possible by leveraging Allbank’s QR capabilities. The bank reportedly started its QR payment initiative for a cash-lite environment in 2021, as part of a wider national programme. The QR Ph Person-to-Merchant (P2M) payment facility was a project facilitated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and launched in October 2021.

The goal of the project was to enable digital transactions between customers and merchants, even in cases where they have accounts with different financial service providers. AllBank was purportedly the first thrift bank that became part of the BSP’s QRPh-P2M programme. The integration of the programme was part of the BSP's Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap 2020-2023 (DPTR), which sought to digitise a minimum of 50% of all retail payments in the Philippines and bring in at least 70% of the country’s adult population into the financial system by 2023.

What do AllBank and Dragonpay bring to the table? AllBank offers a set of digital banking products and services and reportedly has over 2,300 QRPh terminals. When it comes to its preferred market, the financial institution addresses its services to working-class customers as well as SMEs. Dragonpay is a Philippines-based alternative online payments provider. Its core solution enables businesses to accept and disburse payments through convenient channels, thus giving their customers the flexibility to opt for their preferred payment method.

The company boasts a network comprising more than 3,500 merchants, 85 channel associates encompassing 35,500 branches across the country, and has successfully handled more than 300 million online transactions for Filipinos worldwide. .