--Liquid Group expands its cross-border QR payment network to the Philippines 
through a strategic collaboration with Asia United Bank (AUB), one of the 
fastest-growing publicly-listed banks in the Philippines that have acquired 
universal banking status. 
--The partnership will accelerate the adoption of cross-border QR payments by 
enabling AUB merchants to accept the QR payment apps of Liquid Group and its 
partners. 
--The initiative will also greatly enhance the payment journey for consumers 
travelling from Singapore to the Philippines, providing them the convenience of 
using their preferred local QR payment apps to make purchases overseas. 


Liquid Group, a regional mobile payment services group headquartered in 
Singapore, has recently partnered with Asia United Bank (AUB), one of the 
country's fastest-growing publicly listed banks, to open up the corridor for QR 
payments between Singapore and the Philippines. This strategic partnership aims 
to enable local merchants to accept QR payment apps of Liquid Group and its 
partners using the AUB PayMate app -- an all-in-one cashiering tool to process 
e-wallet payments via a mobile app, a web portal and an API, allowing AUB to 
service merchants operating in different payment acceptance environment, 
whether self-employed, small and medium businesses or large retail chains.

The roll-out of Liquid Group's cross-border QR payment platform will cover a 
wide range of merchants across retail, food and beverages, entertainment, 
attractions and more in Manila and other tourist destinations in the 
Philippines. This partnership will also expand the international merchant pool 
of Liquid Group and its partners, as well as give AUB and its merchants an 
opportunity to provide financial services to this emerging tourist market.

Manuel A. Gomez, AUB President, said: "After the launching of WeChat Pay, 
Alipay and UnionPay QR payment acceptance from Chinese tourists in the 
Philippines through the AUB PayMate facility, the partnership with Liquid Group 
is an innovative avenue to accept QR payments from Singaporean tourists. This 
collaboration also positions AUB as a strong acquirer of cross-border QR 
payments in the future since the Liquid platform will allow other Asian 
tourists using e-wallets to do QR payments as well."  

Participating merchants will enjoy the convenience of accepting quick and easy 
mobile payments from tourists and generate additional revenue from the 
increased tourist spend. The latter can be attributed not only to the influx of 
visitors to the Philippines but also to the increased purchasing power of 
tourists, which is no longer determined by the amount of cash they carry, but 
by the available balance in their wallet which is linked to their deposit 
and/or credit card accounts. 

Conversely, consumers travelling from Singapore to the Philippines will enjoy a 
seamless cross-border payment journey, utmost convenience and enhanced security 
while using their preferred Singapore QR apps for their cashless payments 
anywhere in the Philippines. Real-time notifications on payment statuses and 
the availability of online transaction history also provide an additional 
security in every QR payment transaction.

Further to Liquid Group's launch of the world's first integrated payments and 
marketing infrastructure at Singapore's Changi Airport in April this year, 
Liquid Group has sustained its lead in spearheading the adoption of 
cross-border QR payments with a series of strategic partnerships for QR 
payments across Singapore -- Hong Kong, Singapore -- Indonesia and most 
recently, Singapore -- Philippines.

On top of accelerating the adoption of overseas QR payment apps in Singapore, 
Liquid Group is also driving the acceptance of local QR payment apps across 
borders. The roll-out of its unified QR payment platform internationally will 
lay the foundation for Liquid Group to subsequently provide additional 
innovative solutions to help its partners deliver value-added services to their 
customers. 

Jeremy Tan, Founder and CEO of Liquid Group, said: "Starting with our launch at 
Singapore's Changi Airport, it's been full steam ahead for us to accelerate the 
adoption of cross-border QR payments driven by intra-regional travel. We are 
delighted to announce our latest strategic partnership with AUB, the QR 
acquiring pioneer amongst the Philippine banks in the country. With AUB's track 
record in on-boarding major QR brands in the local market, we look forward to 
expanding our regional network and giving merchants of all sizes the 
opportunity to access international markets through our platform."


About Asia United Bank

Asia United Bank (AUB) is one of the Philippines' fastest-growing publicly 
listed universal banks that was granted a full-branch commercial banking 
license at the height of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In 2013, AUB became 
publicly listed and acquired a universal banking license, allowing it to expand 
into investment banking activities, including securities underwriting and 
trading, loan syndication, financial advisory, private placement of debt and 
equity securities, project finance and direct equity investment, as well as 
investing in allied and non-allied enterprises.

About Liquid Group

Liquid Group is a leading QR payment services group headquartered in Singapore 
with a presence across the Asia-Pacific. It operates an open API based QR 
payment acceptance network that enables the cross-border acceptance of bank and 
non-bank QR payment apps across multiple markets in the region. By spearheading 
the largest cross-border interoperability framework, Liquid Group is an 
industry leader in the creation of a more connected and robust mobile payment 
ecosystem for all.

SOURCE  Singapore, Liquid Group Pte Ltd