Financial Platform for Seafarers Facilitates New Vehicle Sales for Filipino Seafarers.
Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC), a Philippine manufacturing and sales subsidiary of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC), and MarCoPay Inc., a Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) group company that operates the MarCoPay financial platform for seafarers, have signed a business alliance agreement. The two companies will launch an initiative to promote new vehicle sales to Filipino seafarers on MarCoPay’s mobile app from July 31.
■Background
The Philippines is one of the world’s leading suppliers of seafarers, with approximately 200,000 seafarers on oceangoing cargo ships being Filipino. In Japan’s merchant fleet, about 40,000, or 70% of all seafarers on board, are Filipino. It is no exaggeration to say that Filipino seafarers support the shipping industry in Japan and worldwide.
Typically, seafarers on oceangoing cargo vessels disembark after several months to six months or more on board, take a leave of absence for a certain period, and then return for another multi-month duration on board, continually repeating the cycle. While Filipino seafarers have a solid need to purchase vehicles, they need help getting approved by banks for vehicle loans, even though they earn well above the average income in their home countries. This is because seafarers are considered term employees on a per-ship basis or are classified as expatriates and subject to complicated paperwork.
■Companies’ Efforts
MMPC is the Philippine manufacturing and sales subsidiary of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and has business relationships with 70 suppliers and 26 dealer groups in the country. Under the philosophy of “Life Made Better,” MMPC has been developing its manufacturing and sales business, intending to enrich the lives of its customers through vehicles.
MarCoPay Inc. was established in 2019 to solve the challenges seafarers, their families, and related parties face and to support and enrich their lives. MarCoPay Inc. mainly targets Filipino seafarers with payroll payment in electronic currency, remittance and exchange functions, and preferential conditions. MarCoPay is a financial platform that introduces various types of loans and insurance.
In 2022, MarCoPay Inc. partnered with banks in the Philippines to offer MarCoPay-affiliated loans to improve the approval rate of auto loans for seafarers. MarCoPay’s affiliated loan program offers many benefits to seafarers, such as MarCoPay acting as an intermediary between seafarers and banks to negotiate for auto loan approvals and offering auto loans and auto insurance products with some of the lowest interest rates in the Philippines.
■Details of Partnerships
In this business alliance, MMPC and MarCoPay Inc. will match their services to strongly encourage loan approvals and vehicle purchases for Filipino seafarers to improve their living standard.
1. Special MMPC page
MMPC and MarCoPay Inc. will help seafarers to research the purchase of new Mitsubishi Motors vehicles and apply for a MarCoPay-affiliated loan through a special MMPC page in the MarCoPay app.
2. Exclusive benefits
MMPC and MarCoPay Inc. will allow seafarers to enjoy unique advantages when they purchase a Mitsubishi vehicle through the MarCoPay-affiliated loan. Aiming to provide convenience and to enrich the lives of seafarers, the two companies will collaborate to continuously offer exclusive promotions and services which can only be experienced through this type of loan.
3. Advertisement placement
MMPC and MarCoPay Inc. will place advertisements for seafarers in the MarCoPay app and external advertising media used by MarCoPay Inc. In addition, the two companies will participate in seafarers’ meetings in the Philippines to publicize their services and partnership.
■Future Developments
MMPC, through its business alliance with MarCoPay Inc., will deepen its understanding of the current situation and needs of Filipino seafarers and their families concerning their vehicles and overall lifestyles. MMPC is committed to expanding and improving its services to enrich the vehicle-related lifestyles of its customers.
MarCoPay Inc. will further strengthen cooperation with its partner banks and strive to establish benefits, such as a pre-approval system* that will enable seafarers considering the purchase of a vehicle to obtain a loan more smoothly and with a higher probability.
MMPC, NYK, and MarCoPay Inc. will continue to support Filipino seafarers’ vehicle purchases through this initiative and contribute to improving their standard of living. The three companies will also work to understand the actual needs of Filipino seafarers and their families through questionnaires and individual interviews to expand and improve the service content.
* A pre-approval system is one whereby the bank makes a simplified decision on approving an auto loan based on initial information before a full-scale review is conducted and communicated to the ship’s crew.
