Philippines – Visa and USSC Money Services, Inc. (UMSI) have onboarded 100 tourism merchants in Siargao to a smartphone-based payment tool that removes the need for traditional card terminals, according to Visa.
The merchants, spanning homestays and accommodations, restaurants and cafés, surfing instructors and souvenir shops, can now accept contactless card payments through U Accept. The feature is built into uGrow, UMSI’s digital enablement platform for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Visa says U Accept runs on Visa Accept, a solution that turns a smartphone into a payment acceptance device. Merchants need an eligible smartphone to use it.
Beyond taking payments, uGrow lets merchants send digital receipts to buyers by email and check their transaction history. These functions sit alongside the app’s sales monitoring and inventory management features.
The app also allows near-real-time settlement to merchants’ U Visa Prepaid Card, the companies say.
The rollout is a joint effort with the Department of Tourism (DOT) and the Provincial and Local Governments, announced on 9 November in Surigao del Norte. It forms part of a wider Visa–DOT collaboration to expand payment acceptance and strengthen the digital capabilities of tourism micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
The timing coincides with Siargao’s first hosting of the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour. The event brings 40 surfers to compete at the island’s Cloud 9 reef break.
Visa and UMSI onboarded the merchants in the weeks leading up to the tournament. The companies say tourists now have more secure and seamless ways to pay at a wider range of local businesses.
The Department of Tourism described the initiative as part of a broader policy push on MSMEs and tourism infrastructure.
“This successful public-private collaboration is part of our bigger policy thrust of capacitating our MSMEs and transforming our tourism infrastructure by building a resilient, tech-enabled tourism sector. When we empower our MSMEs and tourism frontliners to accept digital payments, we enable them to keep in step with evolving tourist preferences and give our visitors the best that Filipino hospitality can offer,” said Dita Angara-Mathay, Secretary of Tourism.
Visa, for its part, framed the move around local business participation in tourism growth. “Digital acceptance can help ensure that local businesses benefit as tourism destinations such as Siargao grow. Through the Visa-powered uGrow app, payments innovation is within easier reach of Filipino entrepreneurs, giving them secure and seamless ways to accept payments from both Filipino consumers and tourists traveling to the Philippines. Together with government and industry partners, we are helping connect local businesses to the opportunities created by an increasingly digital tourism economy,” said Jeffrey Navarro, Country Manager for Visa Philippines.
UMSI echoed that view. “At UMSI, we believe technology should make it easier for businesses of every size to participate in the digital economy. Through our collaboration with Visa and the Department of Tourism, we are bringing practical, easy-to-adopt payment solutions to businesses in Siargao, helping merchants serve more customers while supporting the island’s continued growth as one of the Philippines’ premier tourism destinations,” said Jose Xavier Gonzales, UMSI President and Chief Executive Officer.
