Today, stepping outside our houses to do things we usually do may make us prone to risk because of the constant threat of COVID-19. Those usual things include physical transactions such as handing people money, paying your water and electric bills, shopping, buying groceries, and banking to our accustomed places such as, malls, supermarkets, and banks.

Online Shopping.

For those reasons, Filipinos consequently shifted their usual physical transactions into a contactless or cashless transactions through online platforms. Online shopping could be possible through popular shopping mobile applications such as Lazada, Shopee, and Zalora. Those apps has replaced our regular mall courses at the tip of our fingers, and it made us appreciate the wonders of cashless transactions. Just a few clicks, add some products on your virtual cart and then pay through your preferred payment method—easy and convenient.

E-wallets.

Speaking of payment methods, it's also easy to pay, to receive and to send money online through e-wallets. Today, there is a surge of e-wallets usage in the Philippines especially because it offers easy access to many functions like paying your bills, buying load, as payment method to your shopped items in an online shops, transferring funds to banks and vice-versa, and buying crypto coins. All you need to do is to register your phone number and verify your account through KYC process—also online. I just don't recommend you to bind your bank account to any of your e-wallets just for you and your money's safety. Cyber thievery is very rampant right now, we will never know when and how they attack your accounts so just be careful.

Electronic Fund Transfer.

Now, those wallets are not actually the one responsible for transferring funds, e-wallets are for keeping some funds and not directly transfer funds for us, because other platforms doing that for us. Transferring funds are possible because of the seamless electronic fund transfer(EFT) platform of InstaPay and PesoNet. Those two allow Filipino to transfer funds between two different accounts of BSP regulated bank accounts and non-Bank e-money users. So when you want to decide to pay or transfer funds, you can use those platforms to transfer funds from your preferred e-wallets to another e-wallets or bank accounts.

For additional convenience, those wallets were also supported QR payments. It is a method of contactless payment by scanning a QR code through a mobile scanner. So it's scan and pay—easy right?

Online banking.

Banking also goes online, while many mainstream banks like BDO and BPI, to name a few, are offering some online services through their apps, Digital banks like ING, Diskartech, CIMB, and Unionbank are making the opening of a new bank account trouble-free. It is as easy as making your first Facebook account; but verifying is another story. To verify your account, you need to pass their KYC process, as we all know and explained in my past article, KYC is needed for a better client understanding and avoid fraud. Valid ID's and basic information are also needed together with your clear selfie. Of course, they would unwillingly let fraudulent acts to happen while they are doing business.

Circumstances brought by the pandemic must not be enough reasons that people will stop to do the usual routine. While technology is constantly improving, we must make it an advantage to improve and adapt whatever the situation is. Humankind are still alive because of our ability to adapt. We may now in our "new normal", but the good thing is, we are still striving to move forward using the gift of human knowledge—the technology.

Thanks for reading.

Lead Photo source: https://www.google.com/amp/s/getborderless.com/borderless-contactless-payments/amp/