Singapore-based digital bank Tonik seeks to disrupt deposit-taking in the Philippines by launching its local platform with an eye-popping maiden offering of 6-percent per annum interest, the highest-yielding bank deposit facility amid a record-low interest rate environment.
Tonik, which offers deposit, payment and card products to consumers through its proprietary app, is the first independent digital bank to set up shop in the country.
Foreign banks ING and CIMB as well as local banks Union Bank, East West Bank and RCBC were among the institutions that earlier launched their own all-digital banking platforms.
“We started Tonik because we were fed up with how traditional banks mistreat their customers. The fact that 70 percent of the Filipinos remain unbanked shows that the tedious onboarding process of traditional banks and their ridiculously low interest rates do nothing to satisfy the needs of the consumers,” Tonik founder and CEO Greg Krasnov said.
By using technology to cut operating costs, Krasnov said Tonik was able to offer “game-changing” interest rates and eliminate “unfair” fees.