TECHNOLOGY
Tonik builds on Google Cloud to accelerate financial inclusion, open banking innovation in PH
January 12, 2022 1:11 p.m.
SINGAPORE – Tonik Digital Bank (“Tonik”), the Philippines’ first digital-only neobank, is tapping Google Cloud’s advanced platform to accelerate financial inclusion for all Filipinos.
Leveraging Google Cloud’s expertise in scalable infrastructure, application programming interface (API) management, machine learning (ML) and data analytics, the bank has taken just 10 months to become an established leader in open banking innovation and delivering next-generation financial services.
Tonik, which is part of Singapore-headquartered fintech firm Tonik Financial Pte. Ltd., was launched in March 2021 after obtaining an initial rural bank license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Its digital platform provides core services like deposits with interest rates of up to six percent per annum.
There are also unique features for customers to create separate pockets of savings to meet specific goals over time called “Stashes,” such as affording a vacation, a college education, or accumulating an emergency fund.
“Fewer overheads from being branchless allows us to offer industry-leading interest rates that enhance Filipinos’ financial wellness, but our value proposition cannot be solely driven by lower costs. We have had to first earn the trust of consumers by investing heavily in a superior customer experience,” said Greg Krasnov, Founder and CEO, Tonik. “Google Cloud has enabled us to deliver frictionless and customer-centric services that allow Filipinos to easily embrace the financial system. This collaboration – having played an integral role in Tonik being entrusted with more than US$100 million in consumer deposits to date – will empower us to continue expanding our product portfolio and drive real societal impact across the region.”
Secure APIs Open Up New Possibilities for Consumers and Developers
With the BSP requiring banks to conduct due diligence by verifying each customer’s identity to prevent fraud and money laundering, applying for an account traditionally involves individuals having to first visit a physical branch to present valid government-issued identification (ID) to an officer.
This makes it difficult for millions of Filipinos to open accounts or make deposits. Unlike urban cities that have bank branches or ATMs at every corner, the people in rural Philippines – who account for 52.6 percent of the total population[1] – must travel long distances and arrive before the branch closes.
By using Google Cloud’s Apigee API Management platform to build and scale open banking APIs, Tonik could quickly integrate its mobile application with capabilities from third-party providers to make account opening and cash deposits fast, seamless and convenient.
To help Filipinos set up accounts in under five minutes – instead of hours or days, Tonik interoperates with Daon, its partner for automated customer onboarding and biometric authentication.
The process starts with Tonik asking the customer for a selfie and a scanned copy of their ID. Tonik extracts text from these images through Google Cloud’s optical character recognition (OCR) APIs and shares the information with Daon through another trusted API.
Daon then cross-checks the customer’s identity against official sources that issued the ID. This complex data flow is invisible to the user, who only needs to download the Tonik mobile application, verify their identity for account opening, and start banking.
Using APIs, Tonik also exchanges data securely with authorized ecosystem partners like 7-Eleven convenience stores and pawn shops to capture transactions in real-time. When a user makes a deposit at a 7-Eleven, which are readily available across the Philippines, they would see the completed transaction on their Tonik application and start earning interest immediately.
“Interoperability is core to our business strategy and everything on our digital banking application is therefore API-driven,” said Arivuvel Ramu, Chief Technology Officer, Tonik. “As our architectural foundation, Google Cloud’s industry-leading Apigee API Management platform allows us to unlock new digital channels, expand our business model, and generate new revenue streams. While APIs are not new to conventional banks, they tend to be private APIs tailored for a specific partner, which means third parties cannot reuse that API. In line with our commitment toward supporting broader ecosystem innovation, we have taken the private APIs that we have developed and converted them into public APIs.”
Third-party developers who want to create new features or services for Tonik’s ecosystem of partners and users can now reuse its public APIs to do so expeditiously. Apigee also provides a sandbox environment for developers to test and refine what they have created. Issues that would cause downtime can then be identified and rectified before the feature or service is authorized and rolled out to its intended users.
“Customers trust us with sensitive information like demographic and transaction data. As a custodian of data and a facilitator of open banking innovation, it is imperative that we uphold the highest standards of consent management and API security. By capturing and managing customer consent on what data we are permitted to share with authorized third parties, Apigee ensures that we comply with stringent regulatory requirements like PSD2. Apigee simultaneously secures our APIs to avoid data breaches by malicious users,” said Ramu.
Pooling Insights to Deliver Financial Wellness and Hyper Personalized Customer Experiences
Tonik currently serves more than 190,000 customers. To further advance financial inclusion and achieve its target of growing its active customer base to a million users by December 2022, the bank has built an intelligent data lake using Cloud Storage on Google Cloud and BigQuery to provide hyper personalized customer experiences and help many Filipinos access loans for the first time. With data generated from every event along the customer journey and residing across systems, connecting datasets and analyzing them manually is an uphill task. A cloud-based contact center software, for example, captures customer interactions and feedback across channels, while a core banking system captures deposits and withdrawals.
By unifying data across systems and applying machine learning, Tonik can, for instance, implement quick and accurate alternative credit scoring methods. This enables it to serve individuals who have not formally engaged with financial institutions in the past, have no credit histories, and do not qualify for traditional bank loans as a result. Tonik has recently pioneered a consumer lending product called “Quick Loan” without the need for credit histories or collateral, followed by approvals within 30 minutes and real-time disbursement.
“To drive financial inclusion and transcend physical distance, pivoting to digital-first business models and customer interactions are now a necessity,” said Ruma Balasubramanian, Managing Director, Southeast Asia, Google Cloud. “Tonik, through its mature API- and data-led strategy, is creating an open finance ecosystem that will accrue richer digital user experiences and flexibility for players to securely share and maximize digital assets – with Filipinos the ultimate beneficiaries. Google Cloud is proud to be a part of Tonik’s innovation journey. We look forward to supporting the bank’s continuous commitment toward serving the Philippines’ unbanked and underbanked, while it scales for growth and empowers the region’s fintech developer community.”
TECHNOLOGY
Rest easy with the Index Sleep Monitor smart sleep band from Garmin
11:09 a.m. August 29, 2025
GARMIN has announced the Index™ Sleep Monitor, an ultra-comfortable and lightweight smart sleep band that tracks sleep for a more comprehensive view of overall fitness and recovery.
Featuring up to 7 nights of battery life with continuous Pulse Ox tracking, the Index Sleep Monitor is worn on the upper arm and tracks sleep stages, heart rate variability (HRV) status, breathing variations, skin temperature and more to calculate a sleep score for users and provide valuable insights about their health.
After a night of sleep, the data seamlessly syncs to the Garmin Connect™ smartphone app and can be combined with metrics from a compatible Garmin smartwatch to fill in gaps in data for users who don’t wear their watch at night or are looking to better understand how well they recovered.
“We are thrilled to add the Index Sleep Monitor to our suite of innovative health and wellness products. Wearing this smart sleep band every night can provide in-depth sleep insights and a more complete picture of fitness and recovery so users can wake up ready to seize the day.” — Susan Lyman, Garmin Vice President of Consumer Sales and Marketing
Rest and recover
Throughout the night, the Index Sleep Monitor tracks the following sleep and recovery metrics, which can then be viewed on the Garmin Connect app:
● Sleep score: Every morning, receive a personalized score (0-100) for last night’s sleep based on sleep duration, stress, sleep stages and more.
● Sleep stages: View light, deep and REM sleep stages and when they occur during the night.
● HRV status: See the previous night’s average HRV and status (balanced, unbalanced, low or poor). After several nights of wear, the smart sleep band will establish a personal baseline to help provide a better understanding of recovery and overall wellness.
● Pulse Ox: Track blood oxygen saturation during sleep1.
● Breathing variations: Used in conjunction with Pulse Ox, view and better understand shifts in breathing patterns while sleeping.1
● Respiration: View respiration rates throughout the night.
● Skin temperature: Track skin temperature changes, which can be related to recent activity, sleep environment, potential illness and more.
● Women’s health tracking: Using skin temperature, women can get more insights into their menstrual cycle, including improved period predictions and past ovulation estimates2. Women can also track their menstrual cycle or pregnancy and get exercise and nutrition education in the Garmin Connect app.
● Body BatteryTM energy monitoring: View energy levels to see if the body is charged or needs more rest. Users who wear a compatible smartwatch while awake can get a more complete picture of their energy levels—day and night.
● Stress tracking: See if last night’s sleep was calm, balanced or stressful.
When it’s time to wake up, the smart wake alarm feature looks at lighter sleep stages during a pre-selected window of time to gently wake users with a light vibration so they feel more refreshed.
Available in two sizes (S-M and L-XL), the Index Sleep Monitor is easy to clean; just remove the module and toss the band into the washing machine on the gentle cycle.
It is for P10,290.00 and available via official Garmin Stores online in Kinetic, Shopee, and Lazada and in all Garmin Brand Stores and Garmin Specialty Stores.
For more information, visit https://ph.garmin.com/.
TECHNOLOGY
Time to make your moment: OPPO Reno14 Series 5G now available for pre-order
9:11 p.m. August 10, 2025
OPPO’s latest smartphone series is now available for pre-order in the Philippines—and it’s built for those who want to turn everyday moments into stories worth sharing.
The OPPO Reno14 Series 5G brings together AI-powered photography, vivid 4K video, sleek design, and powerful performance, all in one beautifully crafted device. Whether you’re creating content, diving into your favorite game, or simply making your moment, the OPPO Reno14 Series 5G makes it effortless to discover and explore—without compromise.
Your Studio, In Your Pocket
Capture yourself at your best with AI Portrait capabilities that naturally refine lighting, angles, and facial details—no filters or editing apps needed. Want to adjust after the shot? Features like AI Recompose and AI Perfect Shot help you fix framing, expressions, and more—all within the native camera.
Even in low light, the Ultra-Clear Low-Light Camera System and AI Flash Photography keep your shots vivid and full of life—perfect for nights out, concerts, and candle-lit dinners.
Powered by next-gen chipsets, MediaTek Dimensity 8450 for OPPO Reno14 Pro 5G, Dimensity 8350 for OPPO Reno14 5G, and Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 for OPPO Reno14 F 5G, you can count on a fluid experience whether you’re gaming, streaming, or multitasking.
Smart features like AI HyperBoost 2.0 and AI LinkBoost 3.0 optimize gameplay, prevent lag, and keep your connection smooth wherever you are.
Designed to be seen
The Iridescent Mermaid Design of the OPPO Reno14 Series 5G is more than a color, it’s a statement. Inspired by the shimmer of light underwater, the finish is paired with Velvet Glass and aerospace-grade aluminum for a look and feel that’s luxurious, durable, and uniquely OPPO.
TECHNOLOGY
Concentrix Philippines releases iX Hero
9:21 p.m. July 30, 2025
Concentrix Corporation, a global technology and services leader that’s also the Philippines’ largest private employer, today announced the newest release of iX Hero: the company’s agentic AI-powered application that works together with a human in the loop to supercharge the way customer experience is delivered.
Joining the launch of iX Hero in the Philippines were Concentrix Chief Product Officer Ryan Peterson; Global Vice President, Product Management, Craig Cotton; and Vice President, Product and Domain Leader, Ratna Puri, together with Concentrix Philippines Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer Amit Jagga, as well as Vice President for Transformation and Delivery Shared Services Larah Sta. Maria. The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) represented by Assistant Secretary Migui Planas was also present for the event, which included a demo of the application and other AI-driven products in the Concentrix Intelligent Experience (iX) suite.
iX Hero supercharges advisor performance through multiple AI-driven features: from automatic conversation transcription and knowledge apps that find and surface ready-to-use answers to customer questions, to noise cancellation that cuts out distracting background noise and speech harmonization that helps every word during a conversation shine through, all the way to generating transaction summaries and insights that offer coaching tips for improvement – all in one place, all in real-time. It’s akin to giving the advisors superpowers that lead to faster onboarding, better performance, and smarter conversations, so they can focus on what matters most: the customers.
According to Concentrix Chief Product Officer Ryan Peterson, “iX Hero is the culmination of decades of Concentrix expertise in AI and automation, built on insights and fine-tuned from millions of interactions. As a company that supports over 2,000 of the world’s leading brands, we know what it takes for AI to complement human ingenuity because we’ve developed the products that have achieved concrete outcomes and growth for our people, clients and business.”
Enabling Job Access and Inclusivity
iX Hero’s impact to the workforce journey starts at the very beginning – helping job applicants get hired. One of iX Hero’s features called Harmony, fine-tunes speech patterns for clearer pronunciation, making sure every word lands perfectly while keeping voices natural and authentic, and has been piloted in the language assessment part of Recruiting in Concentrix Philippines. In the integrated business solutions industry where clear communication is essential, language skills tests are the first part of the recruiting process. During its pilot in the country prior to the launch, iX Hero’s Harmony enabled applicants’ speech to be clear and easy to understand while retaining their authentic voice, enabling passing scores for those who would otherwise not be able to move on to the next stages of the recruiting process due to language proficiency challenges on speech. As iX Hero is also deployed in the advisor workspace once they are hired, the real-time support continues, leading to superior performance and resulting in game-changing customer experiences.
According to Concentrix Philippines EVP and Chief Business Officer Amit Jagga, “Having the Harmony feature in iX Hero is a perfect example of how AI helps provide access to employment and greater job inclusivity for many Filipinos, in addition to upskilling. More than just a tech product launch, iX Hero represents our commitment to harnessing AI for good and keeping humans at the heart of digital transformation.”
According to DICT Assistant Secretary Planas, “In the DICT we have a slogan that says ‘Walang Iwanan sa Digital Bayanihan’, meaning “no one left behind,” which underscores the government’s mission for every Filipino to have access to technology, connectivity and with it, future-ready jobs. It is very encouraging to have private sector partners like Concentrix who contribute positively to this mission, in a very tangible way, through AI-powered products like iX Hero that can scale in use throughout the country, not just where the organization operates but also as it extends to Concentrix clients and partners who will use it as a solution and tool for their own workforce.”
Real-world results from iX Hero include 20% efficiency gains from quicker adaptation and skill acquisition in a supportive learning environment for sustained professional growth, 22% reduction in average call handling times, 13.5% increase in customer satisfaction and 30% improved communication from speech clarity, language proficiency and non-verbal skills. iX Hero received the TMC Generative AI Product of the Year Award and Concentrix’s iX Product Suite has already received over 20 industry awards globally.
For more information, meet iX Hero on the company website.
Rest easy with the Index Sleep Monitor smart sleep band from Garmin
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Pay with GCash and turn daily payments into big wins
