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GCash Newbie

@chris_j11

You certainly are Chris and like many of your countrymen into 'gimmicks' and 'fads' that are unreliable and often lack functionality. The Philippines is often used by mobile app developers as a test market because Filipinos are probably the worlds leading nation when it comes to trying out new gadgets.They love them and have the childish psyche to bench test the product/service.

GCash posts occasionally pop up on this Forum. GCash is owned by Globe Fintech Innovations Inc.(Sounds impressive but then Filipinos are easy to impress) Directors are Filipino nationals. The app is infested with glitches. Don't take my word for it read the reviews in the following link:

Trustpilot is a Danish based company online review site. Denmarks ranking on the Transparency International perceived corruption Index site is, ahem, Number 1. The Philippines is, well I don't wish to embarrass you as a Filipino national. Lets just say its at the other end of the scale.

So other than feeling a bit insulting to the culture, how is your day going?

how is your day going?

@danfinn

Only just woken up Dan. I’m 7 ( soon to be 8 ) hours behind Filipino time.

In any country the rights of the consumer are paramount . Without consumer protection laws in place the con artists will thrive as they do in the Philippines. There IS no accountability. A a result the country continues to underperform its peers in Asia.

The level of customer service in the country is truly appalling on many measures. This leads to reduced inward investment because nothing works.

For some reason the Forum Police nixed my link to the consumer review siteTrustPilot. If every potential punter went to the site and put in the name GCash the company would wither on the vine or more likely be relaunched under a different name.

I suppose I am tired of reading about visitors and expats who have been ripped off by various private and government institutions in the Philippines.

@Lotus Eater

do you actually use the App yourself?

The app is not perfect, and the overall quality of the user experience is dictated by how modern your phone is (I have a cheap Oppo phone 3 years old, and a much more high-end Huawei phone - 1 year old). there is a significant difference between doing  even just general tasks.

for example: it can be somewhat frustrating that on my Oppo, it takes me several swipes to choose the bank account from the list of Bank partners with GCash, so i can transfer out from Gcash. my huawei phone does not have such a problem.

but to say iot is invested with glitches is an over-exaggeration. maybe you need some guidance to use the app ? Old farts aren't the most initiatied when it comes to modern gadgets and complex digital services.

do you actually use the App yourself?

@kristopherryanwatson

No. Never have and never intend to. Just as I would never fly Indonesia's Lion Air with one of the worlds worst safety records.

Why would I expose myself to potential fraudulent activity? You're a computer geek - would you ever expose your laptop to a computer virus?

I note that my above link has been reinstated by the Forum Police. I shall give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you have not read the reviews otherwise you would not have asked such a dumb question.

I have two gcash accounts, they charge after a certain limit to cash out, so I have two, I would not use it like a bank account, there has been trouble with money missing from accounts, I have BDO debit and credit card but put money in gcash to order things on line and not use my BDO or BOA cards on line, just in the bank or ATM

@chris_j11

Ignore all the negative posts here regarding Gcash. It is widely accepted in the PI and safer than using cash.  My wife uses it frequently to pay bills and vendors with no issues. Also want to say I have had 2 PNB accounts here, a China Bank auto loan, mortgage and all with fewer problems than I encountered in the US. It is not a perfect system, but not nearly the nightmare some of the posters here have relayed .

I wondered when Morg would show up.

So he ignores the TrustPilot reviews because his dear wife has had ‘no issues’ Same as swimming across a crocodile infested river and not been attacked yet. Right Morg?

@Lotus Eater

Lets get  real for once! Your negativity is nauseating.  Millions of people use G cash on a daily basis. I could give a rats ass about Trust Pilot.

@Lotus EaterLets get real for once! Your negativity is nauseating. Millions of people use G cash on a daily basis. I could give a rats ass about Trust Pilot. - @Morgacj200424

Oh really? Let me remind you that ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ is a highly regarded site especially for budding expats looking to settle down in the country. It's not a 'fake Fox Trump supporting' conduit for idiots who believed that bleach will cure covid. By ignoring the facts you do a disservice to the very people you think you are giving advice to.

The Philippines has much going for it. But of all the ASEAN (look that term up Morg) countries it is by far the most corrupt as confirmed by the 2023 Berlin non profit, non governmental organisation, Transparency International. Comes in at 115. Denmark that hosts TrustPilot is number 1. So you give a, quote 'rats ass ' to that??

Every facet of the Philippines whether governmental or non governmental is on the make. Yup from the top down. Many of the large corporations are owned, directly or covertly, by the politicians/families in power. Nothing gets done without their say so.

Gcash is the Philippines first 'Unicorn' (look that up too Morg) company.  There are no consumer protection laws or legal remedies in the country so its very much caveat emptor (buyer beware). The service is primarily geared to working class Filipinos who frankly cannot afford to lose even 500 Pesos let alone thousands. The growing popularity of digital payments have made it easier for large sums of money to move rapidly outside the traditional ( yes safe as houses by comparison 🙄) banking system. Criminals flourish in this environment. Guess what, the Philippines has facilitated this type of criminal economy to grow not least by legalising POGOS (offshore gambling operators) These are now banned (credit to Mr Marcus).

But they should never have been allowed in the first place.

I've said before on this site and I will state it again. Always 'assume' that any individual, government or corporate entity in the country is there to rip you off. Its people like you who condone organisations like Gcash without thinking that exasperate readers trying to forge their way through the trap laden labrynth of living a life in the Philippines.

Digital payments are now common all over the world. Plenty of foreigners and wealthy Filipinos use G cash, Apple Pay and other digital payment systems. Get with the times. Not sure why Trump was brought up or how this digressed into a tirade of how corrupt the Philippines is. 

@Lotus EaterLets get real for once! Your negativity is nauseating. Millions of people use G cash on a daily basis. I could give a rats ass about Trust Pilot. - @Morgacj200424

Many of us use GCASH and MAYA on a daily basis. The risks are probably higher than in countries that have functional consumer protection agencies, however my risks are moderated by the relatively low balances in my account, usually not more than hundreds of dollars. I haven't lost a peso in the several years I have used them but I have been spared the inconvenience of traveling to the elevtric utilities, internet companies, water utilities, postpaid phone and more every month after their online payment services became popular during the pandemic. Online loading of pre-paid phones is a great convenience too. I am not interested in the online banking and credit cards they offer; (debit cards ok), they may not even be available to foreigners but regardless I would never be interested in depositing savings in maya or gcash because I am am not confident yet that they might not "lose" my funds and I have no one official agency  to go to for help, so, lotus is correct in that respect...no big deal, any 85-90 IQ liberal anti-trumper could see that. This doesn't mean you give up on the option altogether, given that risks can be very low and convenience can be very high if you use them correctly.

@Morgacj200424

Not sure why Trump was brought up or how this digressed into a tirade of how corrupt the Philippines is.

Precisely because G cash is a Filipino company. If it was Singaporean we probably would not be having this exchange. 

I put my cash in any G String available.