The PR & Events Circuit

GCash, the Philippines’ number one finance app, is expanding its cross-border payments in Qatar thanks to its partnership with Alipay+, a suite of global cross-border digital payment and marketing solutions. “We have been doubling down efforts on making sure GCash is available to Filipinos across the world, in line with our vision of ‘Finance for All’. And it doesn’t come at a better time for us to launch our cross-border payments in Qatar as the country hosts the World Cup,” said Martha Sazon, president and CEO of GCash. Filipinos in Qatar can now use GCash to pay at select merchants who support Alipay+ payments. The FIFA World Cup has kicked off in Qatar with an estimated 1.5 million visitors traveling to the small Middle Easter nation for the tournament. Using GCash in international destinations like Qatar is just like paying in Philippine peso as it allows users to experience real-time foreign exchange without any service fee. For one, Filipino travelers in Qatar can use GCash at e

Globe, the leader in Mobile, welcomes the release of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the SIM Registration Act for standard enforcement of the law. The IRR, crafted by the National Telecommunications Commission in consultation with the telco industry, has also gone through public hearing.  It is expected to lay down the SIM registration procedure and guidelines that all public telecommunications entities (PTEs) must follow in creating their respective registration platforms. The IRR is expected to take effect on December 27, 2022. In compliance with the law, Globe will launch its online SIM registration platform and start selling new SIMs in deactivated mode. All new SIMs must be registered immediately to enjoy Globe services, while existing SIMs should be registered within 180 days or six months from the effectivity of the law. There are an estimated 87.9 million SIM users under the Globe network. “Globe is proud to be part of the technical working group that crafted th

A safer, faster and more seamless payment option is now available for ka-solo, or ka-salo families and barkadas of Kuya J Restaurants nationwide as GCash, the country’s leading mobile wallet, has partnered with the most preferred Filipino restaurant to offer Scan-to-pay options to their diners. Through this partnership, customers and patrons of Kuya J Restaurant now have an easier way to pay for their favorite Filipino comfort food. Kuya J Restaurant is known for their gastronomic Filipino dishes like Crispy Pata, Kare-kare and Beef Caldereta, and it’s all time favorite Kuya J Halo Halo. “Providing convenience to our users has always been our thrust at GCash. The GCash Scan-to-pay not only eliminates the hassle of bringing cash but also allows users to have a safer payment experience when they dine in and order their favorites at Kuya J. We are very glad that they have embraced the future of safer and more convenient digital payment as the country transitions to the new normal,” says

This year marks the first Christmas season where it’s possible to gather around and party face-to-face, which means many of us will likely go all-out on gifts and shopping.  With all the holiday budols on the horizon, though, it’s still possible to earn great savings—and even win some prizes!   Check out these exclusive Holideals offers from PLDT Home that subscribers can enjoy: Maya cashback Who wouldn’t want to win loads of cash that’s great not only for shopping, but also for taking care of bills, sending cashless aguinaldos, topping up mobile and gaming load, and more? Shoppers should have their eyes on the Maya cashback that come with signing up for a new Home Fiber Unli or Fiber Asenso plan.   Home Rewards Crystals New subscribers who apply online for a PLDT Home plan will get free 500 Home Rewards Crystals, which they can exchange for discounts at various outlets such as Zalora and Shop SM. Existing PLDT Home subscribers aren’t left out, too—just avail of an upgrade of your Fibe

Country’s largest cybersecurity conference brought together industry professionals from the Philippines and around the world to tackle online security trends and threat landscapes Global cybersecurity leader Trend Micro recently hosted its annual cybersecurity conference online entitled DECODE 2022: Detect & Respond which drew an audience of over 2,200 participants, its largest yet since its launch in 2017. Held last November 28 to 29, 2022, the free cybersecurity conference featured esteemed speakers who came well-equipped with years of experience in their respective fields, united by the goal of spreading awareness and empowering Filipino cybersecurity professionals. This year’s theme, Detect & Respond, revolved around key processes in identifying and addressing  cyberthreats and attacks across various sectors in the field from law enforcement and mobile payment platforms, to popular games such as Genshin Impact. The conference saw six keynote sessions led by Jay Yaneza, Tren

Entrepreneurs in the Philippines will soon gain a new platform for growth with the launch of GCash Pro, an all-in-one business portal that provides merchants greater value, more choices, and an increased flexibility to manage their business finances.   Providing a platform to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) is crucial for a sustainable economy as they comprise 99.5% of business in the Philippines. Majority of MSMEs (59%) have already adopted digitized processes, but the experience still remains to be fragmented, with several disjointed platforms and providers for various services, making it an overwhelming and confusing experience for business owners.   Aside from offering cashless payment acceptance solutions, GCash Pro will enable MSMEs to oversee their company’s expense management, disbursements, logistics, and even access curated government services.   With GCash Pro, small enterprises will soon be able to access business loans and insurance, as well as avail of

Will defending champion Colegio de San Juan de Letran (CSJL) finally nail a three-peat crown or will this season’s top-seed De La Salle-College of St. Benilde (CSB) bounce back to stay alive? It’s definitely an exciting Sunday afternoon on December 11 as broadcast giant GMA Network airs Game 2 of the much-awaited face-off between the Letran Knights and the Benilde Blazers at the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the Philippines (NCAA) Season 98 Men’s Senior Basketball Finals live from the Araneta Coliseum with simulcast at 3PM on GMA and GTV. Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series not only saw a jampacked Araneta Coliseum but also beat rival TV shows last Sunday, December 4.    Based on Nielsen Philippines’ National Urban TV Audience Measurement (NUTAM) overnight ratings for Dec. 4, the NCAA Season 98 Men’s Senior Basketball Finals Game 1, which aired on both GMA and GTV, posted a combined people rating of 4.0 percent. It dominated rival shows which aired on TV5 (2.2

Manila, Philippines. December 5, 2022 — Finding the perfect holiday gifts for loved ones can be challenging for some people. Well, gift giving doesn’t come with no pressure since we only want to give our loves ones what’s best for them. If you’re still looking for the ideal presents or rather need some inspiration, Filipina singer-songwriter Moira dela Torre shares her holiday gift ideas that are perfect for all ages and for every special person in your life!  Making it a merrier Christmas season, Home Credit recently launched  The Great 0% Interest Festival , so every shopper can check out items from almost 10,000 partner stores nationwide. Customers can choose from more than 50,000 products available through Home Credit that they get at 0% interest until January 31, 2023. Are you ready? Check out what’s in Moira’s shopping list this holiday season! Gifts for learning and entertainment Now is the time to reward hard-working children and inaanaks the gadgets they deserve. Gifting them

Smart home gadgets and up to P5 Million cash up for grabs! Get ready for a merrier and better Christmas season as PLDT Home brings back Holideals! Starting November, PLDT Home subscribers can enjoy exclusive deals on Fiber plans, chance to win smart home devices, and raffle prizes of up to P5 Million in cash. Enjoy the Fastest Internet and Win Smart Home Gadgets  PLDT Home Fiber and Asenso Fiber subscribers are in for a treat as they get to experience the fastest broadband at home while also enjoying special perks and a chance to win exciting prizes.  New subscribers enjoy free installation and modem activation fees and automatically earn raffle entries to win smart home devices such as eufy security cameras, TP link WiFi mesh, Samsung projectors, Marshall speakers, Xiaomi robot vacuums, smart air purifiers and smart watches. Existing subscribers can earn Maya cashback, up to 1,150 Home Rewards Crystals, and up to 230 Raffle entries to the Grand Giveaway Promo where they can win P5 Mil

Get ready to binge on your favorite noodle dishes from Boat Noodle, the largest Thai street food in Malaysia, and pay for your orders safely and seamlessly using the scan-to-pay option from GCash, the country’s no. 1 e-wallet.    The super quick and convenient payment option from GCash is available at the  newly opened Boat Noodle branches in SM Mall of Asia, SM Grand Central, and coming soon at SM North EDSA.  Bring your family and friends for a mouthful of flavorful broth with Boat Noodles’ 4+1 set at P333.00!   Savor your favorite Thai dishes – from the signature sweet-savoury taste of  Pad Thai, to the authentic heat of Ayutthaya Noodle Soup, along with an extensive selection of all-time Thai favorites, Boat Noodles brings the ambiance of Bangkok streets and offers a variety of flavors and choices to satisfy every foodie’s Thai craving. Dine in and choose from an array of small plates and stack the finished bowls when done – as is Thailand’s tradition. Plus, you get to watch how th

GCash is set to roll out a new security feature that aims to prevent unauthorized transactions brought about by phishing and other types of scams. With #GSafeTayo the Philippines’ number one financial app introduced the “double authentication” feature which can ensure that only the account owner has the ability to link his GCash account to a specific device. (L-R) Bea de Ocampo, Head of Enterprise Risk Management, GCash, Atty. Maricor Alvarez-Adriano, Chief Legal Officer, GCash, Winsley Bangit, Chief Customer Officer, GCash, PBGen Joel Doria, Director, PNP-ACG, PCol Bernard Yang, Deputy Director for Operation, PNP-ACG “This feature removes customers’ dependence on SMS OTPs which has been exploited by some fraudsters to scam users. It will provide a unique identifier that can’t be phished by scammers. It also provides an additional layer of security to the current SMS OTP,” said Winsley Bangit, Chief Customer Officer of GCash. “We never stop innovating to make sure our 71 million users

The Iloilo provincial government is holding a pork festival in the entire province of Iloilo as a program on prevention, containment, depopulation and recovery measure against African Swine Fever (ASF). Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. said the 𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐅𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥 𝐊𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚 𝐀𝐒𝐅 will implement activities towards strengthening the resilience of backyard farmers and boosting the swine industry. Under Executive Order No. 545 Series of 2022, the pork festival will have four components: First is the imposition of sustained and intensified border control within the red (infected) and pink (buffer) zones) to prevent the spread of ASF. Second, the province will conduct trainings and seminars on biosecurity measures and animal husbandry practices to strengthen the swine industry at the municipal and barangay level. “That is the way forward. Let us strengthen the backyard farmers so we can fight ASF. That is the basic strategy,” Defensor said.  There will also be seminars with convergence par

Local and international cybersecurity leaders to lead keynote sessions and panel discussions in free annual cybersecurity conference  PHILIPPINES, November 23, 2022  –– Leading cybersecurity company Trend Micro will be holding its annual cybersecurity conference titled DECODE 2022: Detect & Respond this November 28 and 29, 2022. On this year’s two-day virtual event, Trend Micro will bring together the best cybersecurity professionals and experts to discuss industry trends, case studies, and security best practices. DECODE 2022: Detect & Respond will have six keynote presentations and over 40 sessions across four key tracks. Participants will learn about recent and relevant developments in the security industry, including emerging threats and vulnerabilities, deepfakes, fake news, scams and spam, IoT and critical infrastructures, and threat hunting and incident response. One of DECODE 2022: Detect & Respond’s speakers is Jay Yaneza, Trend Micro’s director of global operatio

In its continued commitment to protect Filipinos against scammers and fraudsters, GCash, country’s leading mobile wallet is ramping up security measures by removing clickable links in all emails and text messages to keep users from falling prey to fraudulent activities. The move is being implemented in response to growing incidence of fraud, particularly Account Takeover (ATO) which is a type of phishing scam where fake GCash emails or messages are created by fraudsters to trick users into clicking on a link or fake websites to get information such as their GCash number, OTPs, or MPINs. By removing links in emails and SMS, GCash ensures users are only getting legitimate messages for GCash transactions. It also assures users that GCash will not send clickable links through said channels to keep its user’s personal data and transactions in the app safe and secure. “Removing clickable links in emails and SMS is an added layer of protection for our users. It is our utmost priority to safeg

Grab is the first platform in the Philippines to proactively roll out a robust, multi-agency social protection program for the welfare of driver and delivery-partners in the Philippines. This program piloted in Metro Manila and will be scaled to different Grab cities and communities across the Philippines - laddering up to Grab's robust partner support programs. 22 November 2022, MANILA. Philippines — Grab Philippines together with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), Social Security System (SSS), and Pag-IBIG Fund announced its Social Protection Program which helps create a stronger social safety net for Grab driver and delivery-partners in the Philippines by supporting, educating and connecting Grab partners to various social welfare services of the government. Grab is the first platform in the Philippines to proactively roll out a robust, multi-agency social protection program for driver and delivery-partner welfare. This program is a result of months-lon