Financial technology startup Zed released its Android mobile application on Wednesday, providing access to the majority of its 200,000-person waitlist and expanding its credit card services for young professionals in the Philippines.
The Silicon Valley-founded company, which holds a license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, seeks to modernize the local credit market by removing foreign transaction fees and hidden charges. The Android launch follows Zed’s inclusion in the first group of Philippine card issuers to integrate with Google Pay in November.
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Zed co-founder Danielle Cojuangco Abraham said Android unlocks scale for the company and allows them to bring features like unlimited virtual cards and peer-to-peer payments to more Filipinos who have been waiting for a better credit experience.
The platform focuses on security to combat payment fraud in the Philippines by allowing users to create unlimited virtual cards. The digital cards can be assigned to specific merchants or set to expire after a use or 24 hours. The virtual cards integrate with Google Pay for both in-store and online transactions to prevent exposing primary card details.
For international travelers and online shoppers, Zed offers zero foreign transaction fees and no markup on currency conversion. The company claims this allows users to spend at the real exchange rate without additional costs on their billing statements.
The app also introduces a peer-to-peer payment feature that allows users to split expenses, such as restaurant bills, by charging the amount directly to their credit line. Users can settle these balances at the end of their billing cycle, while non-Zed users can repay cardholders through InstaPay QR payments.
Zed also launched a digital installment feature that lets cardholders convert large purchases into monthly payments at a flat 1-percent rate. The company said the service is managed entirely within the app without merchant-specific partnerships or early repayment penalties.
Abraham said the startup aims to build transparent and secure financial products for a generation that has been underserved by traditional institutions.
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