Lower InstaPay fees significantly increased digital payment activity among customers of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC), according to a study by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), RCBC and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) Philippines.

RCBC’s DiskarTech users doubled their transactions when InstaPay fees were reduced to zero, while Pulz users increased their transactions by about 30 percent. Lower fees also encouraged previously inactive users to begin transacting, particularly among DiskarTech customers.

The study involved about 15,000 RCBC customers using the Pulz and DiskarTech mobile banking platforms. Participants were randomly assigned different InstaPay fee levels, including zero and low fees. Researchers analyzed actual transaction data alongside survey responses.

The study found price sensitivity across demographic groups, with some evidence that younger Pulz users were more responsive to lower fees. The clearest differences were among customers based on their previous use of InstaPay, particularly on DiskarTech.

Last 4 July, RCBC became one of the first Filipino financial institutions to offer free InstaPay person-to-person fund transfers through its digital banking platforms, RCBC Pulz and RCBC DiskarTech, allowing customers to send money to other banks, e-wallets and financial institutions without transfer charges.

RCBC Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation and Inclusion Officer Lito Villanueva said the results indicate that payment pricing can affect transaction activity and financial inclusion.

“The study shows that when we reduce friction, people transact more. That makes pricing not just a revenue decision, but also an inclusion decision,” Villanueva said at the BSP’s Digital Payments Forum held last month.

The findings come after the BSP issued Circular No. 1238, which provides guidance on the pricing of retail payment services. The study provides evidence for discussions on how payment fees affect digital payment adoption.

BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan said the findings were consistent with the central bank’s Consumer Expectation Survey.

“In the BSP Consumer Expectation Survey, one in three Filipinos consider high fees as a barrier to more frequent use of digital payments. Hence, pricing affects not only adoption but also sustained engagement,” he said.

The study also found that zero transfer fees affected customers who had not been actively using InstaPay before the research. IPA Principal Investigator Russell Toth said the effect was measurable, although not large.

Villanueva said lower fees alone would not be enough to bring harder-to-reach users into digital payments.

“Lower prices alone will not fully activate harder-to-reach users. Trust, usability, merchant acceptance, consumer protection, and the accessibility of digital payment infrastructure to more financial institutions also matter,” he said.