GoTyme Bank to launch in the Philippines in Q3 2022

GoTyme Bank has revealed when it will launch in the Philippines and highlighted its security measures to ensure a safe banking experience for its customers.

GoTyme is a partnership between the Gokongwei Group and the Singapore-headquartered digital banking group Tyme. The Philippines is Tyme’s first expansion into Asia. In August 2021, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has approved GoTyme’s application to operate a digital bank. It is one of the six BSP-licensed digital banks along with Tonik, OFBank, UnionDigital, UNO, and Maya.

GoTyme said that it is optimizing its tech and security measures ahead of its launch in Q3 2022. It said that it heavily invested in the best cyber security controls to strengthen its defenses, amid incidences of phishing, malware, ransomware, fraud, identity theft, and social engineering in the banking industry.

“Without good cybersecurity, you can’t have trust,” explains Chris Bennett, Chief Technology Officer at GoTyme Bank. “We make use of the best security controls throughout the lifecycle.”

According to Bennet, GoTyme Bank, as a cloud-first and cloud-only company, can react to threats much faster than any organization. Built on Tyme Bank’s experience and success in South Africa, GoTyme Bank is also working with the world’s leading providers to prevent and combat potential threats.

“Being cloud only, we can make changes fast,” Bennett remarks. “We bring experiences of tackling threats from South Africa and we’ve been able to integrate some of the latest security tools.”

The bank makes use of SonarQube, an open-source platform that continuously inspects and reviews codes to detect bugs. During the building process, internal and external security teams test the code for any vulnerabilities, and upon going live, a cyber operations center monitors and then alerts and act upon threats.

“Our infrastructure is managed by Amazon Web Services (AWS) and we’re able to benefit from the range of secure certifications that they offer, such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),” Bennett says. AWS control towers allow GoTyme Bank to automate reporting and identification of issues.

AWS is the world’s most comprehensive and widely used cloud platform that offers on-demand cloud computing web services to millions of customers, while PCI DSS is a global information security standard for protecting data. NIST, meanwhile, is a cybersecurity framework used by governments and industries worldwide. GOTyme also credits its experience working with NICE Actimize, the leading global provider of financial crime, risk, and compliance solutions, to guard against fraud and money laundering

When it comes to high-value items, GoTyme will use biometrics to verify the identity of individuals making a transaction.

Once live, GoTyme Bank clients will be able to open an account and receive a free personalized debit card in under five minutes via digital kiosks located in Robinsons Malls and Robinsons Supermarkets. GoTyme Bank promises to deliver high-quality banking products and services such as better savings interest rewards, fund transfers, trading, and investing, as well as 24/7 customer support via call, chat, or e-mail.

Those interested to register their interest for early access and to subscribe to the digital bank’s newsletter may visit https://www.gotyme.com.ph/.