The connection, made possible by Alipay+, takes place while Philippine tourism is on the upswing.
SINGAPORE – Agoda, a worldwide digital travel platform, now accepts payments made through the Philippine consumer finance app BillEase. This gives Filipino travellers greater freedom to pay in installments even without a credit card. Alipay+, a global, cross-border digital payment and marketing system run by Ant Group, has made this connection possible.
The collaboration occurs as domestic and international travel in the Philippines is recovering. When comparing the first quarters of 2023 and 2022, BillEase found that the number of buy now, pay later (BNPL) transactions in the travel category increased by more than 26 times. While domestic travel is anticipated to return to pre-pandemic levels in the second half of 20232, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) also recorded a 158 percent rise in the number of passengers in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same time in 20221.
In addition to offering personal loans, e-wallet top-ups, prepaid loads, bill payment, gaming credits, and a customisable BNPL that enables clients to access cardless installment plans, BillEase, an on-demand consumer credit app, was introduced in 2017.
Filipino travellers may use BillEase’s Pay Later or installment options to pay for their next lodging, airfare, or local activity on Agoda. Travellers may divide the total cost of their purchases into biweekly or monthly payments for as little as 0% interest or with the lowest interest rate on the market for up to 12 months of installments by choosing BillEase as a checkout option on both Agoda’s online and app platforms.
In a post-pandemic world where travel has been greatly disrupted, Georg Steiger, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of BillEase, said: “Our cooperation with Agoda signals a big shift in how Filipinos throughout the world may manage their travel expenditures. By giving customers greater financial freedom and autonomy, it enables them to return to the world of travel on their own terms. They won’t have to worry about paying for their reservation all at once, which will free them up to start exploring, reconnecting, and making new memories.
“We are proud to further our partnership with BillEase as our first BNPL partner in the Philippines, to offer Filipinos more payment flexibility at a global online travel site like Agoda,” said Peng Yang, Vice President and Head of Alipay+, Ant Group. Merchants must now cater to the varied payment habits of consumers. This is particularly true in the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia, where consumers have adapted considerably better to digital lives and are much more likely to prefer digital payments like e-wallets and BNPL. To reach these customers and better meet their requirements, we look forward to collaborating with new partners.
BillEase and Alipay+ announced their collaboration earlier this year in order to allow local customers in the Philippines to make online purchases from foreign retailers and pay in small, card-free installments. In the Philippines, BNPL use is on the rise and is projected to increase at a CAGR of 36.9% between 2022 and 20283.
- Manila International Airport increased by 158%.
- McKinsey: What will the Philippines’ economy look like in 2023?
- The Philippines’ Buy Now Pay Later Gross Merchandise Value is Projected to Achieve $9.9 Billion by 2028, according to Research and Markets.
Source: traveldailynews