GCash Lending Arm Fuse Marks 10 Years of Safe, Accessible Borrowing for Filipinos

As predatory lending persists in the Philippines, Fuse Financing, Inc., the lending arm of GCash, continues to provide Filipinos with safe, transparent, and accessible borrowing options with fair terms.

Barriers to formal credit, including a lack of valid IDs, formal documentation, and collateral, continue to restrict millions of Filipinos from securing fair and vital financial support. According to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), traditional financial institutions rely heavily on these requirements to evaluate creditworthiness, leaving only 16% of Filipino adults able to secure formal loans from banks and other regulated lenders. Rising financial pressure drives vulnerable Filipinos toward informal, predatory lenders to make ends meet, trapping them in cycles of extreme interest rates and abusive collection practices. Addressing these remains critical to driving broader financial inclusion across the country.

Celebrating a decade of helping Filipinos build financial security, Fuse Financing has transformed the country's lending landscape by giving millions of underserved borrowers access to dignified lending. By leveraging technology and innovation, Fuse continues to bridge the credit gap through accessible loan products such as GLoan, GCredit, and GGives that offer transparent and fair terms, without the need for collateral. 

Over the past 10 years, Fuse has helped everyday Filipinos to navigate emergencies and fuel personal growth. 

Supplementing daily budget 

Personal loans are the most common lifeline for Filipino borrowers, who turn to them mainly to manage everyday living costs, medical expenses, and schooling fees, according to the BSP.. Such is the case for 54-year-old Marissa of Tondo, Manila and 48-year-old Irene of Alaminos, Pangasinan.

Marissa, a former house help, is grateful that borrowing money can now be done in a few taps on her phone. "Salamat sa GCash at may GLoan dahil kapag kailangan namin ng dagdag na pera, may mahihiraman kami agad. Malaking tulong ito sa pang-araw-araw, lalo na sa pambili ng pagkain, pambayad ng bills, at iba pang kailangan ng pamilya." she said. (“I’m thankful for GCash because GLoan is a great help to us whenever we need extra money. I’ve also used it before for our everyday needs, such as buying food and paying bills. It’s truly a big help in our lives.”)

Marissa from Pangasinan shares how quick access to GLoan on GCash helps her family cover daily essentials whenever extra support is needed.

The Tondo resident previously obtained a loan amounting to P20,000 via GLoan, the flagship cash loan product of Fuse, which helped her in paying for medications and dialysis treatment. She also secured credit to buy groceries and settle monthly dues. 

For Irene, a barangay health worker, GLoan and GGives enable her to pay for her child's tuition and pay bills on time, as well as cover their family's grocery expenses.

Irene shares how GLoan helps her easily manage life's essentials

"Mas pinipili ko po ang manghiram sa GCash kaysa sa tradisyonal na lending dahil mas mabilis, mas magaan, at mas maayos ang proseso," she said. (I prefer borrowing through GCash rather than traditional lenders because the process is faster, easier, and more convenient.)

GLoan enables eligible users to borrow cash through the GCash app to help pay for expenses such as emergencies, bills, school fees, or business needs. GGives, meanwhile, allows eligible users to buy now and pay in installments, making it easier to afford bigger purchases such as gadgets, appliances, travel, and other everyday needs.

Humane approach to borrowing: zero-tolerance policy against harassment and abusive practices

While online lending has expanded access to credit, regulators warn that dishonest and unregulated operators continue to exploit vulnerable borrowers. Some illegal platforms charge monthly interest rates as high as 40 percent and resort to severe harassment, including contacting borrowers' family and friends to publicly shame them and coerce payments .

Bernadette Romariate, a 25-year-old borrower in Pangasinan, said that GLoan provides the necessary terms and conditions for the benefit of the borrowers.

Bernadette participates in the recently concluded Wais Tindera caravan in Pangasinan. 

"Meron kasi yung terms and conditions doon sa [GLoan]. Kung babasahin, may nakalagay doon na due date. So, it's your responsibility kung kailan mo siya babayaran," she explained. (The terms and conditions are clearly stated in GLoan. If you read them, you'll see the due date indicated there. So it's your responsibility to make sure you pay the loan on time.)

For Fuse, it ensures that it adopts a fair, humane, and respectful approach to collections, treating it as a form of customer support rather than punishment. 

“We enforce a zero-tolerance policy against harassment and abusive practices, while ensuring that all collection activities comply with Securities and Exchange Commission regulations and ethical standards,” Fuse Financing President and CEO Tony Isidro said.  

Through this approach, Fuse aims to help borrowers manage financial difficulties while building trust in the formal lending system.

Borrowing with dignity

All these efforts are in line with the mission of empowering Filipinos to borrow with dignity.

Sheila Gomez, the face of the latest GCash Stories, reflects on her experience with GLoan. 

Sheila Gomez of Iloilo City lamented the social stigma often associated with borrowing, particularly the discomfort of having to ask family or friends for financial help. GLoan provided her with a private and dignified way to access credit without relying on others.

And it paid off. She used the funds to support her journey through law school, easing the financial burden and allowing her to focus on her studies. Now a lawyer, Sheila said she continues to use GCash to manage her finances.

"Loans don't have to be a bad thing. When you borrow with a clear purpose — like investing in your education — it can actually be one of the smartest decisions you make," she concluded.

For more information on loan products, visit gcash.com.

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