Editor’s note: This content is sponsored by Toyota Motor Philippines and was produced by BrandRap, the sales and marketing arm of Rappler. No member of the news and editorial team participated in the production of this piece.

In today’s digitally accelerated world, innovations can be more behavioral than technological. As we move towards a more cash-lite economy, we are seeing the rise of more creative and more flexible payment models that continue to transform our behavior and reshape the way we view personal milestones such as college, car ownership, and starting a business.

In fact, some entrepreneurs made flexible payments their business. Victor Rivera is a 24-year-old college dropout and founder of educational tech platform Avion School, one of the few startups selected for the prestigious Y Combinator Accelerator in 2020. The story is all there – dissatisfied with the current correlation between higher education and career success, Victor democratized software engineering education in order to breed the next generation of tech founders.

“We always believed that there is a huge need to align the incentives between the school and its students,” Victor explains. “To follow on with this mission, we pioneered the concept of an ‘income share agreement’ in the Philippines.” Avion School’s unique arrangement allows graduates to defer tuition until they secure a steady income, after which they pay in installments.

Software engineering certification is not just a means to advance to the biggest tech jobs, it also serves as the technical foundation for aspiring entrepreneurs. Practically living his vision, Victor, the ambitious dropout who was once told he couldn’t lead a company without an MBA, has now raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in international funding to empower the founders of the future.

Entrepreneurs looking to get a head start need more than education and a steady income. In order to raise capital, say through a bank loan, one also must attain a solid credit history. Unfortunately, credit card penetration rate is currently less than 10% in the Philippines, and 2 out of 3 Filipinos remain unbanked, according to the BSP. These are staggering statistics during this time of pandemic when cash is no longer king.

Silicon Valley import and startup guru Earl Valencia emphasizes the direness of the situation with his own personal anecdote: “I have been denied a credit card in the Philippines even though I was already an executive in a telco.”

To balance the scales once and for all, Earl co-founded Plentina, a local “buy now, pay later” startup that seeks to build credit for Filipinos. Through the app, customers can pay credit on goods and services like groceries and prepaid phone load without needing a credit card.

“We started Plentina to democratize access to formal financial services to Filipinos and billions in emerging markets,” says Earl, who recently closed a $2.2 million seed funding round with his co-founder Kevin Gabayan.

As someone who relied on loans to sustain a career in the US, Earl wanted to share the wealth by providing similar opportunities in the motherland. His Plentina app offers loans with convenient terms, flat service fees, and zero interest. “Whether it’s student, home, or car loans, I definitely benefited from flexible payments,” says Earl.

“Big ticket” milestones like starting a business and car ownership could be within closer reach than you think. Toyota Motor Philippines, through Toyota Financial Services Philippines, now has Balloon Payment Plus, a flexible payment plan to put car financing at pace with professional growth.

Covering a wide span of models and variants, Balloon Payment Plus allows customers to save on their monthly payments by charging lump sums at the end of the loan term. This is inclusive of periodic maintenance all throughout.

Perhaps most unique of all, you could even trade in or upgrade your car upon paying your last installment. Trade up your post-graduate Innova for a family-ready Fortuner. The Balloon Payment Plus plan is designed to align with your personal milestones instead of the other way around. 

Explore the various car models and payment plans on the Toyota Motor Philippines website or the Toyota Financial Services Philippines website. Interested customers can apply for Balloon Payment Plus by visiting their nearest Toyota dealership.

From exciting startups like Avion School and Plentina to industry icons like Toyota Motor Philippines, businesses are paying attention and meeting people on their terms. Not only are flexible payments reshaping the way we view personal wealth, but they are also swiftly paving new roads toward personal enterprise.

To know more about Balloon Payment Plus, visit https://toyota.com.ph/balloon-payment-plus or https://www.toyotafinancial.ph/balloon-payment-plus. Toyota Financial Services Philippines Corporation is supervised by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (consumeraffairs@bsp.gov.ph). – Rappler.com