Visa, Garmin usher smartwatch payments in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — Visa has launched Garmin Pay in the Philippines, allowing eligible cardholders to make contactless payments using compatible Garmin smartwatches as the global payments firm moves to expand the use of wearable and mobile payment technologies in the country.

In a statement, Visa said cardholders of eligible Visa debit and credit cards issued by participating banks in the Philippines could now add their cards to Garmin Pay and use their Garmin smartwatches to pay at any contactless-enabled terminal in the country.

The launch makes the Philippines the fifth market in Southeast Asia where Garmin Pay is currently available, after Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.

Garmin Pay expands contactless payment options in the Philippines following Visa and Google’s collaboration in 2025 to launch Google Wallet and Google Pay in the market.

“Contactless payment platforms such as Garmin Pay amplify Visa’s benefit to Filipinos, enabling speed, convenience, and security with every contactless transaction,” Visa Philippines country manager Jeffrey Navarro said.

“With Garmin Pay, Visa provides Filipinos with safer, more convenient ways to pay across shops, public transport and tourist destinations, empowering local merchants to embrace digital payments and supporting the government’s push to become a cash-lite economy,” he said.

Garmin Pay transactions are supported by Visa’s tokenization technology, which replaces actual card numbers with unique digital tokens. This prevents a cardholder’s real account information from being shared with merchants or stored on devices, helping reduce the risk of fraud.

Visa said the expansion of wearable payments is aligned with the growing preference for mobile and smart devices in the region.

Citing its Consumer 360 study, Visa said more than 71 percent of consumers in Asia Pacific prefer using mobile or smart devices when making in-store or payment transactions.

In an ambush interview, Navarro said adoption of mobile wallet payments in the Philippines remains at an early stage, but usage has been improving.

“It’s still in the single digit in terms of adoption,” Navarro said, referring to the share of transactions using mobile payment platforms such as Google Pay.

The broader rollout of digital wallet payments would also depend on more banks adding their cards to the platforms.

Navarro said there has been strong interest from banks, although each institution would have to decide how to prioritize the service in its own product roadmap.

He said adoption would likely gain traction once digital wallets and wearable payments become more useful for everyday transactions, especially in transport and convenience stores.

“You normally see adoption become stickier once consumers start using it for everyday payments. Once that ecosystem is in place, we expect usage to ramp up,” he said.

Navarro said the current pace of adoption is “very encouraging,” noting that the Philippine market appears to be following the same path as other countries where similar payment platforms were launched.

The launch of Garmin Pay is also expected to support tourism by giving both Filipinos traveling overseas and foreign visitors in the Philippines more seamless payment options.

Visa said 97 percent of travelers in Asia Pacific want to use credit, debit or prepaid cards during their trips, while only 17 percent intend to bring foreign currency.

In the Philippines, Visa said 44 percent of tourists reported encountering payment problems, including non-acceptance by merchants.

Visa said the launch of Garmin Pay would help the Philippines keep pace with regional and global payment digitalization trends while expanding cashless options for daily transactions.