GoTyme Bank: Making Financial Inclusion More Inclusive for Filipinos

As a developing country with an undeniably significant poverty index, the Philippines has struggled with financial inclusion. In fact, around 7 in 10 adult Filipinos have been financially excluded. This glaring problem strikingly highlights how banking, insurance, loans, and investments are not accessible to the average Filipino. This is where GoTyme Bank comes in.

GoTyme Bank is a joint venture between Tyme Group and the Gokongwei Group of Companies.  It is a digital bank that has recently entered the Philippine market and will offer more convenient access to financial services with the ultimate goal of providing financial solutions and empowerment to the Filipino people. With this, why don’t you join me in learning more about GoTyme Bank with its CEO, Nate Clarke.

As someone who has had extensive experience in the field of banking and finance, why do you think it is important to transition to digital banking?

I think it’s important to frame it even broader than ‘digital banking’. Its actually financial services in general. When we describe why we exist here at GoTyme Bank, we like to speak of it in terms of the unmet financial potential in the current population in the Philippines. If you happen to be lucky and were born into a wealthy family, you have privileges others don’t enjoy. For example, if you need to buy a fridge for your apartment, you may happen to have access to a credit card. If you have access to one, you’ll be paying a 2% interest per month interest rate. However it’s not always like this. 98% of Filipinos don’t have access to a credit card. These Filipinos resort to borrowing via ‘5-6’ at 20% interest per month or a digital lender that has an interest rate above 5% per month to pay for that same fridge. Over time, they own more stuff and their lifestyle reaches the next level. All these things should be insured for loss. On one end, only a few have access to insurance, on the other, most don’t — they have to live with this risk.

Overall, I think we often talk about financial inclusion in terms of payments and bank account ownership. But, what we’re really trying to solve here is that less than 2% of people in the Philippines are investing in stocks, less than 2% have access to insurance, and less than 2% have access to affordable credit. With this in mind, the move to digital is to widen the access to these high-quality banking products.

How is GoTyme and TymeBank unique from other digital banks?

The first differentiator will be customer service. We are going to “over-invest” to provide the best customer service. In the Philippines, the customer service reputation in the banking industry is quite poor. With GoTyme Bank, we are going to be focusing on fixing that customer service pain point: for example, we will be picking up your phone calls in under two minutes.

At GoTyme we don’t deliver a ‘digital-only’ customer experience, but also a physical one. This is delivered through a combination of kiosks and brand ambassadors. This is the biggest thing that makes us different from other traditional digital banks. We have a hybrid model of high-tech and high-touch. Once we’ve launched next month, when you walk into a Robinsons supermarket, you’re going to see the GoTyme Bank branding along with our kiosk and brand ambassador. You’re going to be able to sign up for a bank account and get issued a debit card in under 5 minutes. That account will be fully operational right away, for free. You’ll be able to earn multiple loyalty spends like go-rewards, points-to-cash among other things. Why is this physical experience important? The convenience aspect of it. You’re already in a supermarket, department store, or appliance store, so why not open a bank account while you’re at it? More importantly, we are making world class banking accessible to those who are uncomfortable with a ‘purely digital’ experience such as the older or less educated population. 

What do you think are your greatest accomplishments and contributions to the field of banking?

I’m hopeful that my greatest accomplishments have yet to come, specifically with GoTyme Bank.  Over 70% of the population does not have access to high quality banking.  As we’ve talked about earlier, the traditional branch based banks do not have the cost structure to scale to the entire population; and the ‘purely digital’ banks are also limited by demographics and digital literacy. We are confident our hybrid model is part of the solution to deliver world class banking to the Philippines. In five years from now I hope I can answer with your question with, “My biggest accomplishment to date is being part of a team that built the largest bank by customer numbers in the Philippines.”  If we don’t collectively dream big we aren’t going to put a dent in the country’s problem of unmet financial potential. 

GoTyme has recently been given the green light to start operations in the Philippines. With this in mind, what are the next steps for GOtyme to thrive and flourish in the Philippines? 

We were given the green light on August 1st. On the 3rd, we onboarded our first customers for beta testing: our employees and their families. In around five weeks from now, we are going to be releasing early access. By the end of October, we are opening to the public market for everyone to join. By December, we will have over 220 stores with our kiosks that open accounts and issue a Visa/Bancnet debit card in real-time.  

Lastly, what would you like to say to all the aspiring entrepreneurs out there?

Try to enjoy the tough times. It has been a five year journey for those of us on the founding team of Tyme. We spent 5 years being a fin-tech service provider helping other brands build digital banks. Afterwards, we ended up getting our own license and building in South Africa.

We always had this vision of building a multi-country bank. However, it has taken us 10 years to get to a second market. You need to have the grit to persevere. You often look back at your journey and laugh and smile when you think about them. You’re bound to hit tough times, so try to enjoy it during the tough times because I promise you, you’ll be laughing about them later.

Nate Clarke is the CEO of GoTyme Bank and an Endeavor Entrepreneur with an extensive background in the field of banking and technology. This has allowed Nate to conceptualize and subsequently realize how to make high quality banking more accessible in the Philippines through GoTyme Bank — unlocking the financial potential of all Filipinos!. 

Visit https://www.gotyme.com.ph or follow GoTyme Bank @gotymebank on instagram or Facebook If you would like to know and connect more with GoTyme Bank. 

Visit https://www.endeavor.org.ph to learn more about the Endeavor Entrepreneur network. 

Visit www.techshake.asia if you would like to know and connect more with GoTyme Bank.