Markets · Philippines (PH)

Embedded tap-to-pay for the Philippines.

One SDK to accept contactless cards, local rails, and wallets across the Philippines — with certified EMV kernels, BSP sponsorship, and PHP settlement already handled. Integrate once; we own the filings.

Live in production

Tap-to-pay in the Philippines, without the infrastructure project

The Philippines is Tapped's first live production market. Since Q4 2025, sub-merchants onboarded through partner platforms have been processing tap-to-pay transactions on commodity Android phones via PIN-on-Glass — no separate terminal hardware, no per-device certification overhead for the platform.

For a vertical SaaS platform serving Philippine merchants — food delivery, retail, services — Tapped removes the two hardest parts of going live: certifying EMV kernels with the schemes, and standing up a BSP-compliant acquiring and settlement chain. Both are already done. You integrate one SDK and onboard merchants as sub-merchants under our sponsorship.

A leading food-delivery platform is live in production, processing tap-to-pay via PIN-on-Glass on rider and merchant devices.

Local payment rails we support in the Philippines

Cards alone do not win a market in Asia. Tapped exposes the domestic rails Philippines merchants actually expect, through the same SDK as card acceptance:

RailWhat it covers
InstaPayReal-time, low-value account-to-account transfers — the backbone of instant peso payouts and QR Ph person-to-merchant flows.
PESONetBatch ACH-style clearing for higher-value settlement and merchant payouts across all BSP-supervised institutions.
QR PhThe national QR standard (P2M and P2P). One interoperable code accepted across banks and e-wallets.

Card schemes certified for the Philippines

Every kernel we ship for the Philippines is production-certified at the scheme layer before the market goes live — Visa VCPS / L3 EMV Contactless, Mastercard M/Chip and PayPass, JCB J/Speedy, and UnionPay UPI QuickPass as applicable. Certified schemes here:

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • JCB
  • UnionPay

Kernel renewals and updates ship as a platform release — you inherit them without re-certifying.

Regulation & licensing in the Philippines

Tapped operates in the Philippines under Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) supervision, with a published licensing posture of EMI · Category D. Your merchants onboard as sub-merchants beneath that arrangement, so you do not need to hold your own payment licence to go live.

We are PCI-DSS Level 1 attested annually, SOC 2 Type II, and ISO 27001 certified, with regional data controls applied where the regulator or sponsor bank requires it.

Settlement & payouts

Standard settlement in the Philippines is T+1, paid out in Philippine peso (PHP). The blended processing rate is 2.85% — full per-market rates are on the pricing page, with nothing to negotiate.

Who builds on Tapped in the Philippines

Tapped is built for vertical SaaS platforms that want to embed payment acceptance into their own product — not for individual merchants. Common deployments in the Philippines:

  • Restaurant & F&B platforms — tap at the table or counter on the staff's own phone.
  • Salon, wellness & booking platforms — collect payment inside the booking flow.
  • Field-services & delivery platforms — accept payment at the customer's door on a rider device.
  • Healthcare & clinic platforms — copay and consultation collections.
  • Hospitality & PMS platforms — folio checkout at the front desk.

Frequently asked questions — payments in the Philippines

Can my platform accept tap-to-pay in the Philippines without buying terminals?+
Yes. Tapped's Tap Core SDK turns a standard NFC-equipped Android phone into a contactless acceptance device using PIN-on-Glass (Tap to Pay on a commodity device). Your merchants accept Visa, Mastercard, JCB, and UnionPay contactless cards and wallets with no dedicated terminal hardware.
Do I need my own BSP licence to process payments in the Philippines?+
No. Tapped operates under a BSP EMI (Category D) sponsorship, and your merchants onboard as sub-merchants beneath it. You do not need to hold your own Electronic Money Issuer or acquiring licence to go live — the regulatory posture is inherited from the platform.
What payment rails are supported in the Philippines?+
Card schemes (Visa, Mastercard, JCB, UnionPay) plus the domestic rails InstaPay, PESONet, and QR Ph. That covers contactless cards, mobile wallets, and the national interoperable QR standard from a single integration.
How fast is settlement, and in what currency?+
Standard settlement is T+1 in Philippine pesos (PHP) to your platform or merchant operating accounts. The blended processing rate in the Philippines is 2.85%.
How long does it take to go live?+
Once the Philippines is enabled on your account, the average time to first live transaction is about 12 days, most of which is your own integration and merchant KYC — the scheme certification and acquiring chain are already in place.
Launching in the Philippines?

Pick the Philippines. We'll handle the filings.

Spin up a sandbox, enable Philippines, and we'll walk you through the sub-merchant onboarding flow that works there. One SDK, one contract, PHP settlement.