Accounting Practice Modifications as a Result of Virtual Wallet Adoption of Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) in Lucena City: Risks and Opp

People live in an evolutionary world. From a commercial standpoint, transactions began with basic barter, progressed to money exchange, and are now transitioning to a cashless economy. These evolutions, however, had to go through a challenging time in which they might either spread rapidly or be completely wiped out. In today's environment, rapid digitization is increasing the usage of cashless payment solutions. Even though these approaches employ cutting-edge technology and make chores more manageable than ever, issues such as security and people's lack of technological awareness, pose risks and downsides to even the most modern technology. The study employed a purposive sampling strategy to select qualified respondents and collect accurate and essential information about the usage of virtual wallets, including but not limited to GCash and Maya, by Micro and Small Enterprises in their business operations and transactions. The researchers established a criterion to facilitate the selection of sixty (60) respondents who answered pre-scripted questions on the risks and opportunities they had or might meet in their business operations while utilizing virtual wallets. Results show that the adoption of virtual wallets in micro and small enterprises has indeed led to some modifications in the accounting practice as to bookkeeping and accounting system organization. As for the risks of using virtual wallets, research results showed that utilizing these payment channels poses potential risks if used without proper knowledge. Nevertheless, survey results for opportunities indicate that using virtual wallets is still significantly advantageous to its users. The researchers have concluded that the use of virtual wallets by MSEs brought positive changes to their businesses. However, they must still weigh the pros and cons and ensure that they are knowledgeable enough to use these applications to mitigate potential risks associated with them. The findings of this research assisted the researchers in developing a risk register that summarized all of the risks, including benefits and opportunities, and provided constructive recommendations that may assist MSEs and other beneficiaries navigate into the cashless era using virtual wallets.