E-wallet app GCash said it will start charging by the fourth quarter of 2023 a P5.00 fee for every cash-in via linked BPI and UnionBank accounts.
GCash president and CEO Martha Sazon said at a recent media briefing that the fee is still “much lower” than the P25.00 that banks and other financial institutions usually charge for cash transfers.
“The P5.00 convenience fee is only 1/5 of what is normally charged by other financial institutions. As GCash continues to scale, we still subsidize most of the charges as well as heavily invest on upgrading our infrastructure and reinforcing security services,” Sazon said.
“This also ensures that our operations will remain seamless for all customers,” Sazon said. “Even with this fee, we will continue to subsidize part of the operating cost for cash-ins as we remain committed to keeping our services accessible to many Filipinos,” she said.
Sazon also advised GCash users to take their expected spending into account when cashing in.
“For example, you can cash in P10,000 rather than cashing in P500 every time. So plan your cash-in so you don’t feel the 5-peso charge as much,” she said.
Later this year, GCash is set to charge a cash-in or convenience fee of P 5.00. Cash-ins via linked bank accounts is one way to add funds to a GCash account.
Over-the-counter cash-in is also available through cash-in machines, partner convenience stores, pawnshops, supermarkets, department stores, drug stores, gas stations, sari-sari stores and retail stores, among others.
Meanwhile, GCash said it has waived fees for QRPH transactions for merchants until the end of 2023, giving micro-entrepreneurs extra earnings while using convenient cashless transactions. Other payment platforms charge up to 2% for QR-based or card payments.
GCash said it also continues to offer micro-merchants access to a wallet with a limit of up to P500,000 per month. GCash has also waived the 1.5% transaction fee for up to P100,000 in gross sales.
