MANILA , Philippines —Mastercard holders will likely be able to use their cards soon to pay for their Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3 and Bonifacio Global City and Edsa bus rides.
Mastercard and AF Payments Inc., the company behind Beep cards, announced their strategic partnership that is seen to make commuting experience more convenient as passengers may use the same card for regular purchases. It will also eliminate the need to buy separate tickets to board trains and buses.
“This is expected to benefit millions of Filipino commuters in Metro Manila, enhancing smart mobility through initiatives that bring our transit systems in line with global transport standards,” AF Payments president and CEO Jonathan Juan Moreno said in a statement on Thursday.
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“From reducing queues at peak hours, to removing the need to carry multiple transit tickets or cash, cardholders will be able to use the same payment methods they already use for everyday spending,” MasterCard country manager for Philippines Simon Calasanz said.
The partnership is in line with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap, which seeks to shift at least 50 percent of all retail payment transactions into digital form by 2023.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is also pushing for the P4.5-billion unified fare collection system project. This will allow commuters to use credit or debit cards to pay for fare across different transportation systems including jeepneys, buses and trains.
The project is expected to complement the Beep card, a stored value contactless card used for fare payments in railways.