Filipino consumers and small businesses will soon experience faster and more transparent cross-border payments, as Visa Inc. has partnered with the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) to introduce Visa Direct. This real-time push-payment service facilitates outbound transfers to bank accounts, cards, and digital wallets across the globe.
Streamlining Overseas Money Transfers
The collaboration aims to simplify international money transfers by enabling BPI clients to send funds directly through the bank’s mobile application. This innovation significantly reduces processing times and streamlines traditionally complex cross-border transactions. The service is designed to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as well as individual users engaged in global payments.
BPI highlighted that this initiative strengthens its digital banking capabilities and aligns with its broader digital transformation strategy. Joel De Vera, head of strategy, products, and support for BPI Institutional Banking, stated: “Through our partnership with Visa, clients will soon be empowered to send money abroad directly through the BPI app, enabling real-time transactions that are faster, more transparent, and more secure.”
Expanding Financial Inclusion
Jeffrey Navarro, Visa Philippines country manager, noted that the partnership will help broaden financial inclusion and connect Filipino consumers and businesses to global opportunities through seamless money movement.
Filipinos are among the top adopters of digital remittances in the Asia Pacific region, according to Visa’s Money Travels: 2025 Digital Remittances Adoption Report. The study reveals that 74 percent of Filipinos send money digitally, while 66 percent prefer receiving remittances through digital channels. Additionally, about 76 percent send remittances at least once a year, with 45 percent citing digital platforms as a safe and secure option.
Visa Direct Capabilities
Visa Direct, launched over a decade ago, enables real-time fund transfers to more than 12 billion endpoints across over 195 countries and territories, supporting transactions in more than 150 currencies.
