Smart partners with UnionBank to bring more exclusive rewards to subscribers with their new UnionBank Credit Card

 

Smart subscribers have one more reason to celebrate the new year as mobile services provider Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) has teamed up with Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) to bring more exclusive rewards to subscribers with their new UnionBank Credit Card.

 

Under this exciting partnership, qualified Smart Prepaid subscribers will receive a P2,000 Welcome Gift with their new UnionBank Rewards Credit Card, while qualified Smart Postpaid and Smart Infinity subscribers will receive a P5,000 Welcome Gift with their new UnionBank Rewards, UnionBank Miles+, or UnionBank Reserve Credit Card.

Eligible subscribers can make the most of this exclusive Welcome Gift as they shop at their favorite stores or their go-to online shopping apps and e-commerce platforms. Smart subscribers can learn more about the perfect UnionBank Credit Card that suits their lifestyle at https://smart.com.ph/Pages/ubwelcomegift/.

 

How to redeem your exclusive Welcome Gift from Smart and UnionBank

 

Smart Prepaid subscribers with a new UnionBank Rewards Credit Card may receive their P2,000 Welcome Gift by linking their UnionBank Rewards Credit Card to GigaPay on the Smart App, and then purchasing PowerAll 99 on the Smart App.

 

On the other hand, Smart Postpaid subscribers with a new UnionBank Rewards Credit Card may receive their P5,000 Welcome Gift by simply enrolling their Smart Postpaid account to the Auto Bills Payment on UnionBank’s website.

 

Aside from this exclusive Welcome Gift, UnionBank Rewards cardholders may also enjoy No Annual Fees Forever with an accumulated spend worth P20,000 within 60 days of card approval.

 

UnionBank Miles+ and UnionBank Reserve for Smart Infinity members

 

Meanwhile, Smart Infinity members on Plan 3500 may get their P5,000 Welcome Gift with their new UnionBank Miles+ Credit Card by simply enrolling their Smart Infinity account to the Auto Bills Payment on UnionBank’s website. UnionBank Miles+ Credit Card also gives users a chance to redeem a Welcome Gift of 30,000 never-expiring miles with an accumulated spend of P40,000 within 60 days of card approval.

 

In addition, Smart Infinity members on Plan 5000 and Plan 8000 may also receive their P5,000 Welcome Gift with their new UnionBank Reserve Credit Card by simply enrolling their Smart Infinity account to the Auto Bills Payment on UnionBank’s website. Application to UnionBank Reserve Credit Card is by invite only and Plan 5000 and Plan 8000 members are automatically eligible to apply.

 

On top of this Welcome Gift, UnionBank Reserve cardholders may also redeem as much as P18,000 worth of eGift from Giftaway merchants with an accumulated spend of P40,000 within 60 days of card approval.

 

This exclusive promo will run until February 29, 2024.

 

Smart’s collaboration with UnionBank is part of its thrust to bring exclusive rewards and epic lifestyle treats to the fingertips of subscribers on top of empowering them with the best mobile network experience possible. Learn more about the latest treat from Smart and UnionBank at https://smart.com.ph/Pages/ubwelcomegift .

Make Shopping Even More Rewarding with Go Rewards!

Experience the convenience of seamless shopping and unlock accelerated rewards like never before. Every purchase effortlessly earns you 1 point for every 200 pesos spent, magnifying your Go Rewards points and enabling you to accumulate even more with ease.

Go Rewards and UnionBank partner to give Filipino shoppers the only credit card they’ll ever need at Robinsons establishments. The two brands recently launched the UnionBank Go Rewards Visa Credit Card, an all-in-one credit card and loyalty rewards card on June 27, 2023 at the Robinsons Magnolia G/F Atrium. The new card not only boosts a shopper’s purchasing power, but it also makes the shopping experience more rewarding by offering a wealth of additional benefits that only the UnionBank Go Rewards Visa Credit Card can provide.

Get ready to simplify your wallet with this all-in-one credit and rewards card that offers seamless shopping and accelerated rewards.  Earn more with every purchase as you effortlessly accumulate 1 point for every 200 pesos spent, multiplying the earning of your Go Rewards points.  For our esteemed Go Rewards Platinum cardholders, enjoy even faster reward accumulation at an incredible rate of 1 point for every 100 pesos spent.  Plus, rest easy knowing that your valuable points will never expire as long as your Go Rewards account remains active. 

These points can be used to redeem exciting freebies, such as flight tickets and other exclusive promos and offers from Go Rewards partners. They can also be used to pay for purchases at Robinsons Retail stores, with each point equivalent to one peso. And for a minimum spend, Go Rewards Gold and Platinum card holders can get a welcome gift of 3,000 and 5,000 points, respectively.

Go Rewards Gold and Platinum credit card holders will also get an automatic upgrade to Go Rewards Black membership status. This not only entitles them to an exclusive Black Member lane in Shopwise and The Marketplace for a smoother shopping experience, but also free parking at select Shopwise and The Marketplace branches. 

“The bar for exceptional customer experience has been raised more than ever before, and businesses must stay innovative and go beyond expectations to stay competitive.” says Go Rewards CEO Cindy Deng. “Through this powerful collaboration with UnionBank, we have developed a unique all-in-one credit card and loyalty program that enhances and elevates your shopping experience.”

In addition to earning rewards points, UnionBank Go Rewards Visa Credit Card holders also get priority access to sales at Robinsons Retail brands such as Toys R’ Us, True Value, No Brand, and Pet Lovers Centre.

To apply for the UnionBank Go Rewards Visa Credit Card, all you have to do is click “Apply Now” at this link for the Go Rewards Gold card, and at this link for the Go Rewards Platinum card. 

Once you get your Go Rewards Credit Card, you can instantly earn points wherever you shop and multiply the earn rate by shopping at any of more than 2,000 Robinsons and Robinsons Retail stores, such as Robinsons Supermarket, Robinsons Appliances, South Star Drug, and many more nationwide. 

The Go Rewards Gold and Platinum Visa Credit Cards can be used anywhere Visa is accepted, allowing you to earn rewards points wherever you choose to go shopping. Points are credited automatically to your Go Rewards account every month based on your billing cycle, with no caps on the amount of points you can earn.

“We are grateful for Unionbank’s shared commitment to delivering exceptional value and unparalleled benefits to consumers.” Lisa Gokongwei Cheng, Chairman of Data Analytics Ventures, Inc. shares. “We’re also excited on behalf of all our shoppers, who will no doubt be enjoying the rewards from their loyalty.”

With the Go Rewards Credit Card now available to Pinoy shoppers everywhere, shopping at Robinsons just became a lot more rewarding.

Don't miss out on maximizing your rewards potential. Learn more about the Go Rewards Credit Card here. Apply for your card today by clicking “Apply Now” at this link for the Go Rewards Gold card, and at this link for the Go Rewards Platinum card. 

UnionBank discusses how Open Banking will drive the digital economy

 

Open banking and open finance are two models that are now slowly taking over the financial sector, with the promise of revolutionizing banking and financial services like never before and acting as "a catalyst for the new wave in financial innovation."

This was the main point of discussion during the 14th edition of Union Bank of the Philippines' (UnionBank) virtual roundtable series E-TalkTales, which took place last June 28 via Zoom. The event was led by UnionBank's Fintech Business Group Head Erika Dizon as its main speaker. 

In her presentation, Dizon explained that while open banking and open finance may differ slightly from each other—the former promotes data sharing on banking services, while the latter promotes data and capability sharing across the financial sector—the goal is the same, which is the creation of an open ecosystem.

An open ecosystem, she said, provides numerous benefits, including seamless data access and sharing, more opportunities for cooperation and collaboration, and most importantly, unprecedented customer-centricity. All of these point to the potential of the movement to completely change the way people see banking and finance.

Dizon listed down a few examples of how the open finance movement can positively impact different sectors of society. For service providers, it can inspire innovation and create new revenue streams. For businesses, it can promote increased transparency and operational efficiency. For customers, it can help enable better personalization, and in turn more meaningful experiences. 

Dizon also named several pillars supporting open banking, namely, (1) regulatory push for frameworks built on principles of consent, interoperability, and collaboration; (2) heightened expectations coming from the digital and modern social experiences that are redefining banking and finance; (3) competition especially with the emergence of non-traditional players; and (4) infrastructure, which is increasingly becoming more reliant on application programming interfaces.

"All of these factors are coming in to play and have triggered the open banking and open finance movement and the beginning of the unbundling of the traditional banking models," Dizon said.

After her presentation, Dizon participated in a fireside chat with the event’s moderator, veteran journalist Rico Hizon. One of the questions that she answered was on data privacy, which is currently one of the biggest concerns related to open banking and open finance. She reiterated that, at the core of open banking, there should be customer consent, where end users can have the choice to share their data or not, and limit how much of their data is used.

Another topic discussed during the chat was balancing competition with collaboration, especially since open ecosystems require the latter for them to truly serve their purpose. She said that for UnionBank, rather than competing, the focus is more on “coopetition,” adding that there is a place for different industry players to benefit from a win-win-win model.

“We understand that some financial institutions, some fintechs, some third parties have specific products and services that we don’t, and we believe that for us to be able to better serve our customers, we should be able to integrate those specific products and services into our own,” Dizon said.

“Open banking and open finance are only as good as the number of players that cooperate within that ecosystem, and that’s, I think, one of the biggest things that we have to consider.”

On the topic of how open banking and open finance can create more value for UnionBank, she said that these allow the Bank to identify new potential business models, and with these, generate more income streams and revenue models.

“More importantly, it adds value to our customers and how they do their financial transactions, and that is what’s really important to us,” Dizon said. “Of course, as a bank, there is a bottom line that we need to think of, but we believe that there is a space for both to co-exist, for the customers to be served appropriately and for the Bank to be able to have new business models.”

 

UnionBank clients can now do their online shopping direct through Shopee and Lazada

UnionBank clients can now do their online shopping more conveniently through the country’s major e-commerce giants Shopee and Lazada -- by directly cashing-in their e-wallets. This new option opens another channel for Bank customers to do their online transactions seamlessly.

Surely, buying essentials online has never been this easy! Shopee and Lazada buyers can now easily cash-in, in real time from their UnionBank accounts. Customers also enjoy discounts and added benefits with their online purchases, for every top-up transaction.

This was made possible with the collaboration of tech savvy ShopeePay, Lazada Wallet and UnionBank, combining the power of three digital leaders. 

“These partnerships are timely especially now at a time when e-commerce and cashless transactions are exponentially rising. This ensures Filipinos can participate in the headwinds of innovation and a better, more seamless customer experience as a result.” shared by Erika Denise Dizon, UnionBank FVP and Head of Fintech Business Group. 

Here’s how it works. To cash-in your ShopeePay using UnionBank Online Banking, go to ShopeePay Wallet, select Cash-in, enter the amount, select online banking as the payment method, and choose UnionBank. You will then be directed to the Bank’s online banking to confirm the transaction.

 

For Lazada Wallet, click the wallet icon on the upper right portion of the homepage. Select the cash-in button, enter the amount, and select “Add UnionBank account” in the Cash-in Methods page. You will then be directed to the Bank’s online banking site for confirmation of the transaction. Then enjoy shopping!

 

Unionbank's Digital Journey continues to blaze the trail

In celebration of its numerous accomplishments and milestones this past year, and to give a smallpreview of what its customers can expect in 2022, Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) heldanother iteration of its long-running virtual media roundtable series E-TalkTales last December 15.

During the virtual event, UnionBank Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Technology and Operations Officer, and Chief Transformation Officer Henry Aguda talked about some of the Bank's achievements for the year, while the Co-Founder and CEO of UnionBank's digital-native banking arm UnionDigital, Arvie de Vera, talked about the role that the newly formed digital bank will play in UnionBank's digital transformation journey going forward.

Aguda began the discussion by recounting how UnionBank's digital transformation journey has enabled it to brave 2020 and the equally challenging 2021. "The pandemic created this shift to digital, which we now refer to as the “new digital normal”. We changed the way we live, the way we travel, the way we interact with one another, and basically we've changed forever in terms of how we transact in the financial sector." 

"But even before the pandemic, UnionBank already had this forward-looking view that digital is the way for us to move forward, and when the pandemic hit, not only did we survive, but I'm happy to say that the Bank actually thrived," according to Aguda.

He then highlighted the top 10 most notable achievements of UnionBank in 2021. These include being the only publicly listed Philippine bank to be granted a license to operate a digital-native bank; the successful groundbreaking of the UnionBank Innovation Campus, the country's first-ever learning institution focused on digital innovation; and having 21 patents for its innovative offers already approved and 18 more on the way. 

Other notable achievements include the integration of Instapay 2.0 into its digital banking platform; the successful launch of the UnionBank SME Banking App; the launch of wealth management educational campaigns including the NextGen Academy; significant user growths for UBX’s platforms SeekCap, Bux, and Sentro; and the significant increase in its customer base to almost 10 million to date, from just nearly 7 million as of end-2020.

Meanwhile, de Vera provided a quick introduction to UnionDigital. UnionDigital is one of only six financial institutions in the Philippines that have officially been granted digital banking licenses by the Bangko Central ng Pilipinas to date. As UnionBank's digital banking arm, UnionDigital will focus on delivering banking and financial services to underserved sectors which the parent bank is not able to optimally cater to. 

"While UnionDigital aims to empower the country's digital economy, we also aim to elevate it by bringing trust and governance into the space. We embrace innovation like a fintech, but offer all the powers, experience, and track record of a fully regulated bank,” de Vera said. 

“At the heart of our work will always be the desire to provide our customers with what they want and what they need, while ensuring that they have what they need in terms of security, compliance with regulation, and proper governance," de Vera added.

In terms of what customers can expect from the Bank and its subsidiaries in 2022, some of the things that Aguda and de Vera gave a sneak preview of were the Bank's possible foray into non-fungible tokens (NFTs), several new solutions aimed at helping workers in the thriving gig economy through EON, and participating in the growing interest and opportunities relating to the metaverse, just to name a few. 

UnionBank Chief Marketing Officer Albert Cuadrante capped off the event with a promise that the Bank will continue to do even better in 2022 in terms of delivering great customer experience across channels and platforms. He also reiterated that "UnionBank’s goal is not just to help people survive, but to actually enable them to thrive in this new environment through the latest financial technologies; staying true to our commitment to “Tech-up Pilipinas!”

"I hope you are as eager as I am to welcome 2022. What I can promise you is that what you heard today is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s a lot more exciting news you can look forward to from UnionBank," Cuadrante concluded.

UnionBank talked about the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) bank solutions to curb financial crimes

In the recently concluded “Next Generation of AI Transformation for Financial Crime Management in Asia” webinar, Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) Head of Data Science Solutions II Josh Bosiños talked about the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) bank solutions to curb financial crimes.

 

Mr. Bosiños highlighted that data is key in creating an AI solution to solve problems. “Focus first on the areas where you think you need to put more attention to, then once you have a clearer objective, we can now ask ourselves, so what data is available for us for this particular problem or challenge that we want to solve? Because in the absence of the data that we need, we can't come up with any AI solution…,” he explained.

UnionBank has been developing AI solutions strategies in two main areas. First is detection of suspicious transactions alongside management of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) operations. Leveraging on the power of AI, the Bank’s investigators are assisted to look for patterns of suspicious transactions. This is on top of what UnionBank has already generated from its own alert system, thus, AI helps to avoid overwhelming the bank’s monitors.

 

Another strategy is using AI for resource management, using the data generated from the bank’s alert system. With warnings that are likely to be real, a true suspicious transaction will be initially investigated by the AI to ensure the reported alert. 

 

The bank can also decide on a cut-off on the notices that will eventually lower the false positive alerts, a common challenge for a number of financial institutions. This specific AI program enables operational efficiency by reducing alerts to be manually investigated, thereby minimizing manpower resources dedicated to AML operations. 

 

Mr. Bosiños likewise discussed UnionBank’s AI solution implementation for financial crime management on real time detection of credit card fraud and phishing. 

 

Data Science experts designed the card frauds model through months of development. “The main challenge was how to link our available data with our full transactions database since this was an important part of the modeling process,” Bosiños shared.

 

Now, we have another reliable card fraud system capable of doing real time scoring. Given the volatility of the behavior of customers, the performance of this model is being continuously monitored and evaluated.

 

UnionBank has also established a similar model for detecting phishing incidents, which is also capable of scoring transactions in real time. 

UnionBank The Portal: Provides superior transaction banking experiences to users

Last October 20, Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) held the fifth installment of its E-TalkTales series wherein Head of Transaction Banking Mon Duarte discussed the Bank’s various transaction banking solutions, particularly The Portal, its all-digital banking platform for corporate clients.

Duarte began the discussion by differentiating UnionBank’s Transaction Banking solutions, which he defined as simply offering customized solutions to help digitize our corporate clients.  Traditional transaction banking helps manage flow of funds by facilitating collections and payments, over-the-counter check deposits, to the provision of armored car services for high cash transaction situations, among others.

The main focus of Duarte's discussion was UnionBank's The Portal, its digital banking platform specially designed for corporate clients. Offering a host of solutions that include bills payments, payroll, fund transfers, check writing services, merchant payment gateway systems, and credit facilities, The Portal provides corporations with all their essential banking needs in a single platform.

Knowing that each corporate entity has needs and priorities that are uniquely theirs, UnionBank designed The Portal in a way that allows it to provide utmost flexibility to clients, making it the preferred platform for those who don't want the one-size-fits-all approach of most competitors when it comes to the corporate banking solutions they offer.

Part of the flexibility offered by The Portal comes by way of various customization options available to clients. Depending on the current needs of their organization, clients can choose only the solutions that they want to avail of at the moment, and then adjust later on. To make it easier, the Bank created a number of packaged solutions based on what it thinks would make sense for clients, which they can avail of anytime via The Portal website.

Another key feature of The Portal in terms of flexibility is the possible configurations for transaction approvals. With this feature, corporates will be able to establish a specific maker-checker process for each transaction made by their team members. This will give them free control over who can make which transaction, as well as the maximum amount for each transaction depending on who makes it, among others.

With The Portal, UnionBank aims to make transaction banking as seamless for users as possible, and the Bank wants to make this very clear right from the moment a client starts using the platform—the onboarding process.

Onboarding is typically one of the most stressful phases of using a new platform for many corporates, since it involves learning a new set of interfaces and processes. This phase can take a few days or weeks or even a few months to finish. With The Portal, however, UnionBank also digitized the onboarding processes so that clients can get into the platform in less than a day, usually within a few minutes, with no further training needed.

These are only a few innovative features of The Portal. As the Bank continues its digital transformation journey, more services will become available in the coming months.

The Portal is not based on any third-party digital framework. Instead, it was built from the ground up. In creating The Portal, UnionBank was guided by the principle of having a simple integrated platform in order to ensure the best user experience for customers. For the Bank, providing superior transaction banking experiences to users is a top priority, and The Portal is the perfect representation of what it believes transaction banking should be.

No tellers, no lines-- Enter the Ark by UnionBank

                

Consistent with its role as the technology-leader among banks in the country, UnionBank launched The ARK, the first fully digital bank branch in the Philippines.

Using digital technology to augment an actual banking experience, The ARK by UnionBank delivers on its promise of a new digital platform experience in banking.

“The ARK was established by UnionBank to address the common pain points in banking. Falling in line, getting a number before being attended to, spending a lot of time in the bank which could have been used in, otherwise, more productive endeavors. It is also meant to satisfy the diverse and changing needs of our customers,” explained UnionBank President and Chief Operations Officer (COO) Edwin R. Bautista.

Bautista explained that The Ark provides an interactional experience rather than a transactional space.  It could also be used as a 3^rd space for different communities to get together.

The ARK, as a concept branch/ “lab,”also serves as a platform for the clients to co-create an ideal banking experience by closely looking into what the clients’ needs and wants when it comes to banking.

Digital natives would find The ARK as the perfect bank branch that fits their lifestyle.
For non-digital natives, however, The ARK serves as their bridge that comfortably leads them from traditional to digital banking.

“The ARK provides a service unlike any other.  There are no lines, no numbers, hardly any forms to fill up, just highly-trained bank ambassadors ready and happy to give personalized service to each and every client. Every client here receives the proverbial VIP service,” Bautista adds.

At The ARK, a client is treated like a guest, welcomed by the bank ambassador who hands him a tablet to select his transaction.  The bank ambassador may usher the guest to the coffee area where he could enjoy his espresso while waiting for the bank ambassador to facilitate his transaction. The guest will also be able to maximize his time while at The ARK and do some work as the branch is equipped with high-speed internet.  Customized and comfortable seats are provided for The ARK guests.

UnionBank Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Justo A. Ortiz said that it should not come as a surprise for UnionBank to come up with The ARK, which is seen as the bank of the future.

“UnionBank trailblazed digital banking in the Philippines and we continue with our efforts to use technology and enhancing digital banking capabilities in order to provide the best customer experience for our clients,” Ortiz said.

UnionBank has recently been awarded as the Best Digital Bank at the Asiamoney Banking Awards 2017, held at The Ritz-Carlton in Beijing, China, last September 26, validating its position as the best digital bank in the country.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Deputy Governor Chuchi Fonacier graced the launch of The ARK and hailed UnionBank for its future-ready innovations which are at par with international banking standards.

Fonacier said that BSP believes in financial technology as both an opportunity and a challenge to the banking sector.

BSP records show that 25% of current bank clients use mobile banking technologies in their transactions and this number is predicted to grow exponentially over the years.

“Our banks need to be equipped with sound digital strategies for them to cope up with these digital innovations to better serve their clients. BSP will also be aggressively pursuing reforms to support our banks through an enabling regulatory environment,” Fonacier adds.