Maya has recently partnered with M Pioneer Insurance Inc. to launch “SafeTrip,” a fully digital travel insurance product now available inside the Maya app — expanding access to protection as more Filipinos travel overseas for work and leisure.
The in-app offering allows users to purchase travel insurance at preferential rates directly through Maya, covering a wide range of risks including emergency medical treatment, evacuation and repatriation, flight delays, baggage loss, trip cancellations, and select hazardous activities.
The move reflects the growing convergence of fintech and insurtech as digital platforms look to embed protection into everyday financial services.
Outbound travel among Filipinos has been rebounding steadily, but insurance uptake has lagged. Maya said SafeTrip is designed to address this gap by making coverage easier to access at the moment travelers need it — without the paperwork and friction typically associated with traditional insurance channels.
Shailesh Baidwan, Maya Group President and co-founder of Maya Bank
“As we broaden financial health offerings beyond savings, credit, and investments, insurance becomes an important pillar,” said Shailesh Baidwan, Maya Group President and co-founder of Maya Bank. “Travel continues to grow, and SafeTrip brings critical protection directly into the app, making it simpler for Filipinos to guard against unexpected costs wherever they go.”
Digital distribution meets insurtech infrastructure
The partnership combines the bank’s digital-first ecosystem with M Pioneer’s API-enabled insurance infrastructure, enabling real-time policy issuance and a fully integrated user journey.
Built on Maya’s mini-app architecture, SafeTrip was rolled out quickly, underscoring how embedded insurance can be deployed at scale through fintech platforms.
For M Pioneer, the collaboration offers a new distribution channel that reaches consumers where they already manage their finances.
“Partnering with Maya allows us to bring insurance closer to Filipinos in a way that fits how they live today — digital, on-demand, and accessible,” said James Quin, president of M Pioneer Insurance. “The digital bank’s ecosystem lets us distribute protection products more efficiently and at a much wider scale than traditional channels.”
Chris Manguerra, head of new business at Maya, said the launch demonstrates how insurance can be simplified through technology. “Our goal is to make insurance effortless,” he said. “By working with M Pioneer, we were able to go live quickly and deliver a fully digital experience that is both accessible and scalable.”
Tackling a persistent insurance gap
Industry data underscore why digital distribution matters. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ 2021 Financial Inclusion Survey shows that only 17 percent of Filipino adults hold private insurance, down from 23 percent in 2019.
Even when PhilHealth enrollees are included, overall coverage reaches just 48 percent. Insurance Commission data further show total insurance penetration at 1.79 percent of GDP as of the second quarter of 2025 — pointing to a significant protection gap.
Studies such as the PLIA PULSE survey suggest the issue is not awareness but accessibility: while most Filipinos recognize the importance of insurance, many delay purchasing due to cost concerns and the complexity of traditional channels. Fintech platforms like Maya are increasingly seen as a practical way to lower these barriers by integrating protection into everyday financial behavior.
With SafeTrip and additional insurance products in the pipeline, Maya is positioning insurance as a core component of its broader financial health ecosystem — embedding protection alongside payments, savings, credit, and investments, and bringing insurtech closer to the daily lives of Filipino consumers.
