{"id":69998,"date":"2025-06-11T07:16:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T23:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/?p=69998"},"modified":"2025-06-08T09:18:20","modified_gmt":"2025-06-08T01:18:20","slug":"maya-ultra-mega-goodapps-empower-sari-sari-stores-with-credit-and-connectivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/2025\/06\/11\/maya-ultra-mega-goodapps-empower-sari-sari-stores-with-credit-and-connectivity\/","title":{"rendered":"Maya, Ultra Mega, GoodApps empower sari-sari stores with credit and connectivity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Maya, the Philippines\u2019 #1 digital bank and fintech ecosystem, has partnered with retail chain\u00a0Ultra Mega\u00a0and connectivity provider GoodApps to advance digital financial inclusion for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs)\u2014with a strong focus on\u00a0<em>sari-sari\u00a0<\/em>stores.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The tripartite collaboration aims to empower over 100,000 retailers in&nbsp;Ultra Mega\u2019s distribution network by providing access to financing, digital tools, and connectivity solutions that help businesses grow and thrive in today\u2019s evolving economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>Sari-sari<\/em>\u00a0stores are more than just neighborhood shops\u2014they\u2019re vital to our economy and daily life. By combining financial services, digital tools, and on-the-ground support, we\u2019re helping these micro-entrepreneurs become more resilient and future-ready,\u201d said\u00a0Khurram Malik, Group Chief Commercial Officer, Maya.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis collaboration is about rethinking how credit reaches the underserved. We\u2019re using technology and real business activity\u2014not just paperwork\u2014to unlock access to responsible financing for the country\u2019s smallest but most essential businesses,\u201d said\u00a0Angelo Madrid, Maya Bank President.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maya will offer credit to eligible MSMEs through Maya Advance, its financing product powered by Maya Bank, available via the Maya Business App.&nbsp; By leveraging Maya\u2019s AI-driven credit and risk models, sari-sari store owners and micro-retailers can access working capital based on their business activity\u2014without collateral or lengthy paperwork,&nbsp;following a standard merchant account screening process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe believe in creating real, practical support for our partner retailers,\u201d\u00a0said\u00a0Julie Lim, VP for Operations at\u00a0Ultra Mega.\u00a0\u201cBy working with Maya and GoodApps, we\u2019re delivering more than just products\u2014we\u2019re opening doors to financing, digital adoption, and new revenue streams for our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">GoodApps, through its LokalWifi&nbsp;initiative, will offer community Wi-Fi packages to participating MSMEs, creating new revenue-generating opportunities for&nbsp;<em>sari-sari<\/em>&nbsp;stores, while helping to bridge the digital divide at the grassroots level. These Wi-Fi solutions are also presented as a practical use-case for the loans accessed through Maya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cConnectivity is no longer a luxury, it\u2019s a lifeline,\u201d\u00a0said\u00a0Brezhnev Tero, Chief Operating Officer of GoodApps.\u00a0\u201cWith LokalWifi, we\u2019re helping small store owners transform into community hubs by offering affordable Wi-Fi access while building sustainable income.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By combining Maya\u2019s financial technology,&nbsp;Ultra Mega\u2019s retail reach, and GoodApps\u2019 connectivity solutions, the partnership delivers an integrated model for grassroots economic empowerment. It supports the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas\u2019 push for greater financial inclusion, while also accelerating the digitalization of the country\u2019s MSME sector.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The tripartite collaboration aims to empower over 100,000 retailers in\u00a0Ultra Mega\u2019s distribution network by providing access to financing, digital tools, and connectivity solutions that help businesses grow and thrive in today\u2019s evolving economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":69999,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[413,2096,5332,7376],"class_list":["post-69998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-headlines","tag-banking","tag-finance-and-banking","tag-finance-industry","tag-maya"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69998"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69998\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70000,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69998\/revisions\/70000"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}