Tonik, Southeast Asia’s first digital-only bank, is now in the Philippines as the country’s first neobank, to disrupt the way financial management industry is done in the country today using digital technology. Its vision to the Filipino market is to drive financial inclusion of over 70% of the population who are underbanked or unbanked, and look for better and more technology-driven banking services.
“Basically, by being more technology-driven and with better services, we make financial management simpler and less intimidating. We are purely digital. No fuss, no hassles, no need to go to a branch, and can do it in the comfort of your home or office. Filipinos can always secure their hard-earned money and maximize and broaden their growth in a short period of time,: said Greg Krasnov, founder and chief executive officer at Tonik.
Ed Joson, Tonik’s chief product officer, also said that “at Tonik, customers can bank anytime, anywhere because people need to have access to their money 24/7. We shouldn’t be limited to the 9AM to 5PM (banking hours), and all those additional fees, we don’t charge it.”
Tonik offers time deposit which earns as much as 6% per annum, and savings account. The neobank offers focused saving through the Solo Stash product, a feature that allows money allocated to a particular savings goal to be separated into a different compartment, which can earn as much as 4% interest per annum, and Group Stash, inspired by a homegrown Filipino saving scheme, the paluwagan system, which earns as much as 4.5% interest per annum.
Supervised by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Tonik brings a completely branchless way of banking on a highly secure mobile platform. Its deposits are insured by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) and its cloud-based solution is powered by Mastercard, Finastra, and Amazon Web Services.
Customers can download Tonik app from the App Store or Google Playstore. They can open their Tonik app and start login in by using their fingerprint to open up the app. Anyone who registered with Tonik actually gets a virtual card which can be used online and in e-commerce. More than this, it will allow customers to control how they use their card online. It has a simple lock mechanism that a user can tap on the app and it locks the card to prevent anyone from using it online. Users can also set their card limit if they are more comfortable with that.
Cashing in the Tonik way is so easy. Just tap on the flashboard and from there, users can select from various ways of tapping up. One of the more popular ways of doing it is by using a debit card to move money from that debit card into the Tonik account. Users can use their online account for some other banks and e-wallet services. Users can also do over-the-counter transactions. They can go to the nearest 7-eleven and add money to their Tonik account through them.
Sending money is easy as well. Just tap on Send on the dashboard and users can actually select other Tonik users using their mobile number to send them money or they can use their phone Tonik account. Then add them to their quick list for the next time they want to send money, it’s just one tap away.
Tonik takes seriously the security of its clients’ funds and transactions on its systems. Tonik is the first bank in the Philippines certified as compliant with PCIDSS, the global “gold standard” in payment card security. Tonik systems are also certified by CISA, the top authority in global IT security audits. Client’s access is protected by the highest level of safety through server-based biometrics, while all passwords and OTPs are subject to military-grade encryption.
