Singapore Fintech Tonik is Philippines first private neobank
Tonik, the Philippines’ first digital-only neobank, makes waves in the local fintech and banking industry. It secures a digital bank license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Tonik is the first private and purely digital bank in the country. Philippines first digital bank is the OFBank (Overseas Filipino Bank).
The development comes after the neobank’s highly successful public launch in March 2021. It secured over 1 billion pesos (US$20M) in retail deposits in under one month. This is a historical record for any new bank launching in the Philippines. Tonik has recently bagged its Pre-Series B funding, solidifying its position as one of the highest funded fintech in Southeast Asia.
“Securing a digital banking license is one of this year’s anticipated milestones for us,” shares Greg Krasnov, Tonik CEO and Founder. “This will help us further strengthen our foothold in the neobanking space through accelerating the rollout of our additional lending and payment products.”
In December 2019, Tonik received its initial rural bank license from the BSP. This license allows the neobank to provide retail banking services focused on retail deposits, card payments and consumer loans. A year later, the BSP issued Circular No. 1105 on The Guidelines on the Establishment of Digital Banks. Eventually, this change in regulation cleared the way for Tonik to scale up and apply for a formal digital bank license.
Tonik wants to revolutionise banking with its neobank
“We are truly privileged to be working with a regulator such as the BSP. BSP shares the same vision of bolstering financial inclusion in the country,” shares Long Pineda, Country President at Tonik. “An official digital bank license will enable us to offer more products and services. We will narrow the gap between the banked population and the huge underserved segment in the Philippines.”
Tonik is on a mission to revolutionise how money works with a new all-digital way of banking operating on a highly secure platform. The neobank offers accessible, flexible, and inclusive financial services. These services include, firstly, industry-leading deposit interest rates of up to 6% per annum. Secondly, it offers unique saving features such as its Solo Stash and Group Stash products. Finally, it provides Term Deposits.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) supervises Tonik. Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) insures its deposits. Global financial technology leaders such as Mastercard, Amazon Web Services, and Finastra power its unique cloud-based solution.
Above all, Tonik seems set to change the banking industry in the Philippines.
