Philippines e-wallet GCash will start charging a PHP5 convenience fee for every cash-in transaction from Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and UnionBank starting in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to a report by Philstar Global.
GCash’s President and CEO Martha Sazon was quoted saying that the convenience fee is still lower than the PHP25 charged by traditional banks, adding that the fee is necessary to cover its rising costs.
She reassured users that GCash will continue to subsidise part of the operating cost for its cash-in transactions as it aims to keep its services affordable for the public.
Sazon also encouraged GCash users to cash in large amounts in one go to minimize the impact of the convenience fee.
The e-wallet had recently announced that it will be waiving the QRPh transaction fees or merchant discount rates (MDRs) for micro-merchants using the scan-to-pay service until the end of 2023.