As household savings were depleted during the pandemic, more Filipinos relied on credit to manage their daily expenses.

Now, with the rising cost of living due to inflation and higher interest rates for borrowing money, consumers are struggling to repay their debts.

This reality is reflected in Collectius’ own internal data, which shows a slowdown in debt repayment rates in the first half of this year compared to 2022, Marie Alexise Charisse Arboleda, head of operations at Collectius, tells BusinessWorld reporter Keisha B. Ta-asan.