PH-Owned Fintech Firm BCRemit Marks 10 Years, Surpasses US$1B in Cross-Border Transfers

Manila, Philippines — BCRemit, a Filipino-led global digital remittance company, has crossed US$1 billion in total processed transactions as it celebrates its 10th anniversary. The milestone solidifies its position as a major cross-border payment platform for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) as the company expands into enterprise payments and new regional corridors.

Founded in 2016 by former overseas worker Oliver “Bong” Calma and his son Jose Angelo “Gio” Calma, BCRemit was built directly out of the founders' personal experience with the high costs and delays of sending money home. Rooted in the belief that OFWs deserve to 'send money back home faster,' the platform has now processed over one million transactions across its network.

“Our mission has always been to show that Filipino-led innovation can offer transformative solutions to the world,” said Oliver Calma, Founder and CEO of BCRemit.

By leveraging blockchain technology and USD stablecoins, BCRemit has disrupted traditional remittance channels, reducing average transaction costs to approximately 1% with zero hidden fees, cheaper than the global average remittance cost of 6.4%. This next-gen fintech remittance infrastructure enables near-instant transfers, bypassing the 3-5 day delays typical of legacy banking networks and ensuring recipient families have access to fast and secure digital services and receive maximum financial value from their loved ones abroad without friction.

Today, BCRemit operates across 24 countries worldwide. Its international footprint expanded following strategic market entries into Spain in June 2021, backed by licensed entity BC Remittance S.L. to establish a regulatory passporting foundation across the European Union, followed by rollouts in Canada in January 2022 and the United States in August 2022.

Beyond standard transfers to Philippine banks such as BDO and BPI, cash pickup locations, and e-wallets like GCash and Maya, the platform offers direct bill payments through BCRemit Pay. Overseas workers can directly settle government obligations, including SSS, Pag-IBIG regular/MP2 savings, and loan repayments, alongside property bills and mobile top-ups. To complement its digital channels, BCRemit provides 24/7 human customer support to maintain personal trust for critical family transactions.

Looking ahead, BCRemit is extending its cross-border settlement capabilities beyond retail transfers. The firm is scaling its payment rails to serve small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), business process outsourcing (BPO) firms, and freelancers, while offering white-label payout integrations for third-party financial institutions.

Additionally, BCRemit is preparing to launch in high-volume corridors across the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, with priority target markets including Saudi Arabia, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.

Operating under the regulatory oversight of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Banco de España, FINTRAC, and the Bank of Canada, BCRemit remains committed to strict compliance while serving over 10.8 million overseas Filipinos worldwide.

For more information, you may visit https://www.bcremit.com/ or follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

Roblox Unveils Major Updates to Expand Gaming, Creation, and Creator Earnings

Roblox is entering a new chapter as the platform celebrates 20 years of innovation and looks to give creators more ways to build, reach, and monetize their games. At its 12th annual Roblox Developers Conference (RDC) in San Mateo, California, Roblox Corporation announced a broad set of updates covering three key areas: Play, Build, and Grow.

Under Play, creators will soon be able to make their Roblox games available as standalone applications across mobile devices, PCs, and consoles. Roblox is also expanding browser-based gaming, with Chrome support expected by the end of the year, allowing players to launch games directly from an Experience Details Page without installing the Roblox app.

The platform is also introducing offline and single-player capabilities that can be combined with online gameplay. Developers will gain additional tools for creating 2D and puzzle experiences, including orthographic camera support and sprite-sheet imports. New social features, such as a Friends chat tab that follows players across experiences and voice typing, are also being introduced.

For creators, Build represents another major development. Roblox's prompt-to-game tool is expanding into public alpha testing in Singapore and Serbia after its initial New Zealand rollout. Creators have already published approximately 9,000 games using Build, with 71% reportedly coming from people who were new to Roblox Studio. Roblox also plans to introduce prompt-to-scene generation and expanded NPC capabilities, including NPCs that can participate in playtesting.

The Grow initiative focuses on creator monetization and game discovery. Roblox Wallet will provide eligible U.S. creators aged 18 and above with a financial account designed to support real-currency earnings, daily payments, and fund transfers. Global expansion is planned for next year, while the Roblox Card, connected to the Wallet, is expected to roll out next year.

Roblox is also enhancing discovery through its Moments tab, where players can watch gameplay videos and transition into games, alongside updates to its discovery ranking system.

Additional announcements surrounding RDC include the launch of Dream Racers, an AI-built racing game showcasing Roblox's 4D “Cube” technology, the Roblox Fall Games Preview, the return of classic branding for the platform's 20th anniversary, and the 2026 Roblox Innovation Awards.

With these developments, Roblox is continuing to expand beyond its traditional gaming model, giving creators more tools to develop experiences, connect with audiences, and access new monetization opportunities.

Vivo Club Brings Dance, Technology, and Youth Creativity Together at NUDC Campus Tour

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Vivo Club launched its campus tour with the National University Dance Company (NUDC): The Dawgpound, celebrating NUDC’s fourth anniversary on September 13 at NU Nazareth School’s St. Candida Hall.

Supported by Vivo Philippines, the event brought together young dancers, choreographers, student creatives, and dance communities from different institutions for a day centered on self-expression, collaboration, and performance. It also marked an important milestone for Vivo Club’s Gen V fellows and core team, who took an active role in organizing the event and connecting with fellow students.

The celebration featured three competition categories designed to highlight different approaches to dance. The Yard featured a 1 vs. 1 Open Styles Battle, while The Den challenged participants through Solo, Duo, or Trio Choreography Showcases. The Pack brought together 8–12-member teams for a Mini Crew Competition.

The competitions showcased emerging talent and culminated in a series of performances that highlighted individuality, creativity, teamwork, and stage presence. AJA emerged as the champion of The Yard, with SLHENDERMAN named finalist. In The Den, Ash took first place, followed by Ellin Imperial and Duttyvybazz. Undefined Crew claimed the top spot in The Pack, followed by Full Artist’e Dance Company and Outlaws Alliance Dance Crew.

Undefined Crew also received the Vivo Club Choice Award, recognizing the group for making a strong impression through its performance and presence.

Beyond the dance floor, the event created opportunities for students to interact with Vivo Club and experience its latest technology. Interactive activities allowed Gen V fellows to connect with attendees and introduce them to the Vivo community. The Vivo X300 FE was featured at the Vivo Club booth, while the Vivo X300 Ultra powered the event photobooth, helping attendees capture memorable moments.

For the Gen V fellows, the NUDC anniversary celebration served as their first major opportunity to represent Vivo Club. Their participation demonstrated how young people can use their creativity, skills, and interests to help shape communities.

As Vivo Club continues its campus tour, the NU stop sets the stage for more experiences that connect technology, creativity, and youth culture. By bringing communities together through shared passions, Vivo Club aims to create experiences that go beyond the screen and into student life.

Students can follow Vivo Club on social media for updates on upcoming campus tours and register as members through the Vivo website.

LG Philippines and Addessa Bring Laundry Love to Flood-Affected Families in Pampanga

In an effort to support communities recovering from the impact of flooding, LG Electronics Philippines partnered with Addessa Corporation to bring its Laundry Love free laundry service program to families in Brgy. Magliman, San Fernando, Pampanga.

Brgy. Magliman was among the communities in San Fernando severely affected by flooding, leaving many families facing challenges in restoring their homes and meeting their everyday needs. Recognizing that access to clean clothing and essential services can provide meaningful support during recovery, LG and Addessa joined forces to bring assistance directly to the affected community.

The initiative was conducted as part of Addessa Corporation’s Project Care on Wheels, a corporate social responsibility program designed to provide assistance to victims of calamities. Through the partnership, LG contributed its laundry expertise and resources by offering residents access to free laundry services, helping participating families clean their clothes without having to shoulder additional expenses during a difficult period.

Addessa Corporation complemented the effort by providing free service check-ups, allowing families to have their appliances and equipment assessed. This additional service helped extend the initiative beyond immediate relief by addressing practical household concerns that can become more challenging following a calamity.

The partnership also included the distribution of relief goods and laundry essentials to participating families. These supplies provided additional support to residents as they continued their recovery and worked toward rebuilding their daily routines after the flooding.

The community-focused activity made a significant impact, serving 211 families and handling approximately 1.6 tonnes of laundry. Beyond the volume of clothes washed, the initiative demonstrated how businesses can combine their resources and expertise to provide practical, timely assistance to communities affected by natural disasters.

LG’s Laundry Love program and Addessa’s Project Care on Wheels highlight the value of collaboration in corporate social responsibility. By bringing essential services directly to affected residents, the two companies helped ease some of the burdens faced by families in Brgy. Magliman.

The initiative also underscores an important aspect of disaster recovery: support does not always have to come in the form of large-scale infrastructure or financial assistance. Sometimes, providing clean clothes, essential supplies, appliance check-ups, and a helping hand can make an immediate difference in people’s lives.

For LG Philippines and Addessa Corporation, the effort in Pampanga represents a continued commitment to using their capabilities not only to serve customers, but also to support communities when they need help the most.

PLDT-led PROTECTA Pilipinas Bats for Stronger Legal Frameworks to Protect Children vs Online Violence, Exploitation

Representatives from government, law enforcement, telco, education, media, and the private sector came together for a forum led by PROTECTA Pilipinas to strengthen efforts to protect children against online violence and exploitation.

“Protecting the connectivity that Filipinos depend on includes protecting the people, especially the children, who rely on that connectivity every single day. When we talk about infrastructure resilience, we usually think of disasters, cable theft, and cyberattacks. But another kind of resilience we must build is resilience against the exploitation of the children who use these networks to learn, play, and connect with the world,” said Atty Roy D. Ibay, Smart VP and Head of Regulatory Affairs and lead convenor of PROTECTA.

In addition to expanding reporting and coordination mechanisms, calling for the consistent adoption of anti-child online exploitation platforms and tools, and including fintech partners in the conversation, Ibay also emphasized the importance of advocating for stronger legal frameworks to strengthen protections for children in the digital age.

“No single actor can secure our digital ecosystem alone. Protecting Filipino children online will take government, industry, civil society, and communities working as one alliance,” he added.

Also among the speakers were PLDT Chief Operating Officer Menardo G. Jimenez Jr., Usec. Angelo Tapales of the Council for the Welfare of Children, Asec. Alvin Navarro of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, and Lt. Col. Ayn Natuel of the PNP Women and Children Protection Center. Also joining the panel were Frances Kristine Canon of Creative Learning Paths School, Karlos Naidas of Pixel for Creators, and Dr. Joan Mae Rifareal, Immediate Past President of the Philippine Psychiatric Association.

CWC Usec Tapales emphasized that protecting children online should be approached foremost as a child rights issue, and that while children must be protected from harmful content, abuse, and exploitation, they also have the right to meaningful access to technology, information, education, participation, expression, privacy, and development.

“The objective should not be to keep children away from technology, but to ensure that they can access and participate in the digital environment safely, meaningfully, and in an age-appropriate manner,” Tapales said. “Children should not have to choose between being connected and being safe. Our responsibility is to make the digital environment safer for every child.”

The forum, moderated by PLDT and Smart Public Engagement Group Head Roby Alampay, also underscored a shared view among stakeholders that efforts to address online harms must continue to respect rights, due process, and privacy, while enabling government, industry, communities, and families to respond more effectively, more quickly, and more collaboratively to emerging threats facing children online.

Participants also agreed that the Philippines is not starting from scratch, with existing laws, protocols, reporting mechanisms, and multi-stakeholder collaborative efforts already in place to combat online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC) and child sexual abuse and exploitation materials (CSAEM). However, recent cases involving online violence and harmful digital communities have highlighted the need to expand and adapt these frameworks to address new forms of harm affecting children.

Acknowledging PLDT’s role as a telco, Jimenez said that the forum offers the perfect opportunity to seek guidance on how telcos can maximize existing controls to safeguard children.

“Telcos have a moral responsibility to our people, especially the children. This forum is important to us because we need clear guidance to know when and how we’re going to shut down these evil platforms,” Jimenez said. “We’re not talking about numbers here. We don’t need a million kids groomed before we do something. All it takes is one kid, because that can be your kid. Telcos are not here to play god. We’re here to protect kids from being brainwashed and directed to commit hideous acts."

Spearheaded by PLDT, PROTECTA Pilipinas is a multi-stakeholder alliance that brings together government, industry, and communities to strengthen cyber resilience, protect critical infrastructure, and promote a safer digital environment for Filipinos.