From left to right: the Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) First Senior Vice President and Head of Transaction Banking Group, the Executive Vice President and Chief Innovations and Inclusion Officer, and President and Chief Executive Officer Reginaldo Cariaso. They stand alongside Visa Philippines Country Manager Jeffrey Navarro, Director for Commercial and Money Movement Solutions, and Visa Direct Head of Banks for Asia Pacific Qinwen Xiao.
Manila, Philippines – Visa (NYSE: V), a global leader in digital payments, has partnered with Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC), one of the largest universal banks in the country. Together, they launch Visa Direct. The service enables fast, secure, and convenient real-time payments. It also enables money transfers to billions of accounts across more than 190 countries and territories. This collaboration advances outbound cross-border payments for Filipinos. As a result, consumers and businesses can meet the growing demands of a globalized economy.
Over one billion people, or one in every eight worldwide, send or receive payments or remittances every year. In addition, the World Bank estimates that global cross-border payments and remittances reached $905 billion in 2024, an increase of 4.6% from the previous year. Digital payments are transforming remittances too. In fact, a recent survey found that 67% of respondents prefer to send or receive payments or remittances digitally. Users cite ease of use, safety, and security as key benefits.
The Philippines, along with India, is the top market in Asia Pacific for digital remittances. In both, 74% of respondents prefer to send remittances digitally. This highlights strong digital adoption among Filipinos. With Visa Direct, they now have more options for secure and efficient money transfers. They can send money to anyone, anywhere across the globe.
How Visa Direct Works
Visa Direct is a real-time push payment platform. It delivers funds directly to eligible cards, bank accounts, and wallets worldwide. Launched over a decade ago, it revolutionized fund disbursements and peer-to-peer (P2P) payments. Today, it reaches over 8.5 billion endpoints in more than 190 countries and territories. It also transacts in 160 currencies. Moreover, Visa Direct builds on partnerships with Thunes, TerraPay, and Tencent. These partnerships enhance digital wallet usage and financial inclusion.
“Digital cross-border payments and remittances are crucial in supporting the Philippine economy – and Visa Direct underscores Visa’s commitment to fast, secure, and convenient money movement platforms to connect Filipinos to more opportunities beyond borders. In partnering with RCBC with this innovation, we hope to bridge outbound cross-border payment gaps and help widen financial inclusion. We look to working with other partners as well in helping transform remittances for Filipino consumers and businesses here and across the world,” said Jeffrey Navarro, Visa Country Manager for the Philippines.
What’s Next for the Partnership
Navarro added that Visa and RCBC plan to integrate additional features. For example, they are looking at enhanced fraud detection and multi-currency wallets.
“Visa Direct strengthens our push for inclusive, tech-enabled banking by making global money transfers faster and more accessible. This is a vital step in expanding digital financial services for every Filipino,” said Lito Villanueva, Executive Vice President and Chief Innovations and Inclusion Officer of RCBC.
Likewise, RCBC leadership shared its view. “RCBC continues to lead innovation in banking and digital payments, and this partnership with Visa outlines our steadfast commitment to convenience, speed, security and flexibility for our customers,” added Reginaldo Cariaso, President and CEO of RCBC.
