Leading online financial marketplace, eCompareMo.com, recently presented Finovation 2019: Real Problems, Real Solutions, the annual forum that gathers key industry stakeholders, policymakers, regulators, and cooperatives to discuss financial trends, industry challenges, and possible solutions to improve credit access among financially underserved Filipinos.
Guided by the goal of providing valuable financial services to more stakeholders, Finovation facilitated roundtable discussions covering topics from consumer behavior, industry-wide challenges, to regulatory initiatives.
Keynote speaker Dr. Benjamin Diokno, governor of the BangkoSentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), encouraged industry leaders to maximize technology and innovation to reach more financially underserved Filipinos.
With an esteemed panel of experts, Finovation 2019’s sessions delineated existing issues and action steps to empower financial institutions and strengthen financial inclusion in the country.
The first roundtable discussion interrogated Filipino attitudes toward financial literacy and credit, identifying prime solutions to combat the lack of financial education, lack of inclusion in formal services, and predatorial lending schemes.
Moderated by Vince Rapisura, President and Founder of Social Enterprise Development Partnerships, Inc. (SEDPI), the panel included Pia Roman-Tayag, Managing Director, Center for Learning and Inclusion Advocacy (CLIA); Mags Vasquez-Surtida, FVP, Cards Business Group Head, Asia United Bank; Harvey Libarnes, VP-Financial Service Head, Smart Communications Inc.; Hamilton Angluben, General Manager, Cashalo; and Stephanie Chung, Co-Founder and CEO, eCompareMo.com.
The second panel surveyed industry-wide challenges, identifying areas of improvement in credit infrastructure, data and verification, and digital financial ecosystems.
The discussion aimed to generate solutions that will strengthen collaboration between financial service providers and create an accessible and trustworthy financial ecosystem for more Filipinos.
Moderated by Atty. Aileen Amor-Bautista from the Credit Information Corporation, the panel was comprised of J.P Ellis, Co-Founder and Group CEO of C88 Financial Technologies Inc; Marlo Cruz, President and CEO, CIBI Information Inc.; Marty Gonzalez, Head of Integrated Solutions Group, TransUnion; and Simone Colombara, Managing Director, CRIF Corporation.
The last roundtable discussion looked into regulator projects and platforms, developing action steps toward creating tech-driven interoperable government databases, standard payment systems, and BSP report generation and storage.
Cathy Yang, Anchor and Managing Editor of ABS-CBN News Channel, facilitated the panel comprised of Raymund Liboro, Commissioner from the National Privacy Commission; Ira Paulo Pozon, Chief of Staff, Anti-Red Tape Authority; and Jaime Garchitorena, President and CEO, Credit Information Corporation.
In addition, enriching the discussions were presentations on best financial and digital practices to help facilitate increased financial inclusion.
Christo Georgiev, Country Manager and Chief Strategist of FinScore, talked about telco credit scoring, while J.P Ellis drilled down on digital onboarding for financial services.
eCompareMo.com, part of C88 Financial Technologies Inc., is the Philippines’ largest online financial marketplace, connecting banks, loan providers, and insurers to millions of Filipinos.
Since 2014, eCompareMo.com has helped consumers get approved for credit cards and loans, and find insurance products that suit their budget and lifestyle, while providing financial institutions a complete and secure digital financial technology ecosystem.
