Advancing everyday life through digital payments

The launch of tap-to-pay and scan-QR technologies at Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) stations last July 2025 marked a major step toward fast, secure, and cashless commuting. BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto E. Tangonan demonstrates how to pay train fares using the tap/ scan-to-pay turnstile.

From transit to daily transactions, the rise of real-time, account-based payments is reshaping how Filipinos pay and travel.

Every day, thousands of Filipinos take public rail lines—navigating queues, tapping cards, and rushing to catch the next train. For years, long lines at ticket booths meant lost time during busy workdays or evenings.

Today, that experience is changing.

A quiet but powerful transformation is underway. With digital payments now part of the daily commute, boarding trains are becoming faster, simpler, and more seamless — helping move more people and the country forward.

A smarter way to ride

At the center of this shift is the Automated Fare Collection System (AFCS) proof-of-concept (POC), launched in July 2025 on the MRT-3 line. The Department of Transportation (DOTr), in coordination with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), authorized G-Xchange, Inc. (GCash) to test next-generation cashless fare payments as part of the government’s broader transport modernization efforts.

The POC introduced three cashless payment options through a unified validator: (1) Scan-to-Pay using Account-Based Ticket QR (ABT-QR); (2) Tap Card using EMV-enabled debit and credit cards; and (3) Tap-to-Pay using NFC-enabled mobile phones.

Together, these options reduce reliance on stored-value card top-ups and signal a more open, interoperable fare system for commuters.

More than a convenience upgrade, the initiative offers a real-world glimpse of how Filipinos will move and pay in the future, where transport and digital finance seamlessly converge.

Cutting the queue

The impact is immediate and tangible.

Previously, commuters had to queue for tickets or reload stored-value cards for train rides—a process that could take over a minute per passenger during peak hours. With digital payments, they can now proceed directly to the turnstiles, bypassing queues altogether.

What used to take around 110 seconds can now be done faster.

At scale, those minutes add up. With thousands of passengers using digital lanes daily, the system is projected to save over 700 collective hours daily, time that commuters can spend more productively, whether at work, at home, or simply at rest.

With nationwide AFCS rollout targeted by 2028, this pilot marks an important step toward a faster, more efficient public transport system.

Driving digital momentum

Beyond the stations, the MRT initiative reflects a broader national shift toward digital payments. In 2025, digital payments in the Philippines accelerated sharply, underscoring the growing preference for cashless transactions among individuals and businesses.

The growing preference for digital payments is shown in the increased use of InstaPay and PESONet. In 2025, InstaPay processed a record of 4.7 billion transactions valued at P11.6 trillion, representing increases of 230.9 percent in volume and 57.3 percent in value from 2024. Similarly, PESONet processed 117.2 million transactions worth P13.2 trillion, representing a 16.3-percent year-on-year increase in volume and 30.9-percent rise in value from 2024.