As the country’s premier postal agency, the Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost), through its digital transformation and modernization program, has partnered with UBX Philippines, the leading open finance platform in the country, to help the postal service achieve its goal not just the postal needs of Filipinos, but also maximize its power to make sure that nobody gets left behind as they move into the digital age.
The postal agency will digitally transform its 13 post offices in key areas across the country, modifying the offices into modern hubs that offer financial and data services to their locality.
After assessing and getting the support of local government units, UBX and PHLPost have identified 13 key areas that are ripe for digital transformation under Project Kasama Lahat. These are: Tuguegarao City; Sorsogon Province; Iloilo City; Zamboanga City; City of Manila; Taguig City; Makati City; Quezon City; San Francisco, Cebu; Davao City; Ilocos Norte; Tacloban, Leyte; and Marawi City.
The Post Office has introduced the “Kasama Lahat” project that aims to digitally transform post offices into financial hubs to promote financial and social inclusion.
“PHLPost will transform their post office branches in the country into financial services hubs to promote financial and social inclusion, especially in far-flung areas. UBX and PHLPost are now identifying each office’s specific needs and will tailor the solutions to be deployed based on their requirements”, Postmaster General Norman Fulgencio said.
Under the partnership, UBX will provide the necessary technologies in digital finance and open finance to hasten PHLPost’s digital transformation journey. With 4,000 outlets and 3,500 postmen spread across the country, PHLPost is well-positioned to provide its customers necessary financial services, promoting financial and social inclusion, especially in far-flung areas.
These areas will be the first to see PHLPost transform its outlets into financial hubs, offering various types of services such as disbursements, fund transfers, cash withdrawals, loan applications, payments, insurance, and collections, among others.
Soon enough, the goal is to convert each outpost nationwide into a one stop shop for data and financial services.
In the long run, PHLPost Offices and postmen will be established as Open Finance Hubs, which can process data transactions as well, such as validation of customer information for loan applications, asset validation, and even collection or debt restructuring services
“As firm believers of inclusivity, it is highly important for us to identify which areas have the strongest demand for the services which Kasama Lahat has to offer. We responded to the particular needs of each of these high impact areas to ensure that the project achieves its goal of fostering financial and social inclusion for all,” UBX President and CEO John Januszczak said.
The project will revolutionize PHLPost by creating and innovating products and services to meet their demands, shifting the agency to a sustainable business culture, reviewing and proposing amendments to the agency’s charter or Republic Act No. 7354, and overall contributing to social inclusion in the Philippines.
The transformation of the first 13 offices is expected to be completed within three months.
