GCash highlighted the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in advancing financial inclusion in the Philippines at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos, Switzerland.
Speaking at the panel “Unlocking the Potential of AI in Financial Services,” GCash Chief Strategy Officer Rowena Zamora emphasized how technology is bridging financial gaps in the country.
“We are driven by a vision that is very simple but very difficult to achieve, which is ‘Finance for All,’” Zamora said.
She noted that systemic challenges, including a lack of identity documents and credit history, prevent many Filipinos from accessing financial services.
With high mobile penetration and internet usage, GCash leveraged AI-powered solutions like GScore, a credit scoring model based on users’ digital transactions.
“This has enabled us to unlock over $2 billion in micro-loans for seven million Filipinos in the past several years,” Zamora said. “Before the pandemic, only one percent of Filipinos had access to credit.”
GCash, used by 94 million people, now provides loans, investments, insurance, and other financial services.
Panelists, including Deloitte’s Neal Baumann and Banco Santander’s Christiana Riley, underscored AI’s role in financial resilience and cybersecurity.
Zamora stressed the importance of high-quality data in AI-driven financial solutions.
“Be very clear about what challenge you’re trying to solve and how technology and AI can help not just address it but leapfrog to scale the solution,” she said.
GCash plans to refine its AI models and collaborate with private and public sectors to expand financial access across the Philippines.
