Encash Inc., the first independent ATM deployer in the Philippines, rallies behind its mission of servicing both banked and unbanked communities amid the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.
As the health efforts during the COVID-19 crisis continue to steer the way we live, the necessity of acquiring and moving cash has never been higher. In the midst of this challenge, Encash has remained focused in carrying out uninterrupted operations for their partners and the communities they service.
“It is high time that companies within our industry step up,” shares Mike Mapa, president of Encash Inc.
“For Encash, we actually see that a situation like this requires us to be even more grounded in our vision.”
Encash’s vision has always been to grant financial freedom and security across the entire Philippines, including the country’s far flung areas. In keeping with this vision, the company has adjusted efforts to ensure that partners based throughout Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao continue to have access to cash despite the logistical hurdles. “With the government-imposed lockdown, financial accessibility has become a glaring priority for many households—and that’s a need we are committed to addressing,” says Mapa.
Encash supplies ATM terminals, transaction switching systems, mobile POS, and their recently rolled out SuperPOS, a handheld ATM which features both cash in and cash out functions. Now that people’s movements have become limited, Encash has been quick to lend out these SuperPOS devices to rural banks, cooperatives, town halls, and the like due to the product’s portability and flexibility. This has become especially helpful for the ongoing distribution of the government’s 4P’s releases.
The lockdown has led to an influx of transactions across over 1,200 Encash sites. Apart from keeping these sites operational during the lockdown, Encash has also committed to rush settlements as much as possible and to closely monitor cash balances of their deployed ATM machines considering the current challenges. “We are lucky to be working with partners who share in the same vision and are employing extra measures in light of the current crisis,” he says.
Encash assures that there will be continued services despite the ongoing lockdowns around the country. “This is why Encash was created. We are committed to continue operations for our partners and rural communities in need of financial access,” Mapa says.
Encash has made great inroads in providing ATM services to the Philippine countryside. As the first independent ATM deployer in the Philippines, Encash provides privately-owned ATMs and mPOS devices to areas not deemed viable by commercial banks, allowing users in remote locations to conveniently obtain access to their finances. Since 2006, more than 1,200 Encash terminals have been deployed in over 150 partner rural banks, cooperatives, tourist destinations, town halls, and other partner entities in more than 75 provinces all over the country.