Landbank adopting QR feature in cash aid disbursement

State-run Land Bank of the Philippines on Wednesday said it is adopting a quick response (QR) code function in facilitating the disbursement of cash aid to beneficiaries of the national government’s social amelioration programs.

In a statement, Landbank said it partnered with Traxion Pay as its fintech enabling partner to add QR functionality in its cards.

“As our newest fintech-enabling partner, Traxion’s technical expertise will be invaluable in the implementation of our plan to integrate QR code functionality into our cards to facilitate convenient, seamless, and secure cash disbursements, especially under the government's social amelioration programs," said Landbank president and CEO Lynette Ortiz.

"We expect to further accelerate our efforts to promote QR Ph code-enabled person-to-person and person-to-merchant payments with our partnership,” said Ortiz.

Landbank said cards with QR code will provide beneficiaries an alternative method to immediately receive and access their funds, ensuring timely assistance from government agencies especially during emergencies and other special subsidy payouts.

Under the partnership, the state-run bank said Traxion will also provide technology solutions to enable QR Ph person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) payments.

Landbank said Traxion’s technology will

will complement the lender’s digital banking solutions to service the requirements of government agencies for the seamless collection of fees and charges.

The adoption of QR code in payment services is in line with the thrust of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) of ensuring the safety, efficiency, and reliability of payment systems in support of advancing inclusive economic growth, according to Landbank.

The partnership with Traxion also covers the onboarding of over 200 Traxion partner cooperatives to the LANDBANKasama Program.

This is expected to boost the Bank’s reach in rural areas to bring financial services closer to more Filipinos, Landbank said.

Under the LANDBANKasama Program, the state-run bank is partnering with client cooperatives, associations, rural banks, local government units (LGUs), micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and private entities to help provide basic banking services on behalf of the bank.

Services include cash withdrawals, cash deposit, fund transfers, bills payment, and balance inquiry.

The program benefits clients, including beneficiaries of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Program of the national government, who need to travel to other towns and cities to conduct basic financial transactions, Landbank said. — Ted Cordero/RSJ, GMA Integrated News