Go to a notary public, ask for an affidavit of loss, present a valid ID, then go to a Globe store, file to freeze your GCash account, and get a SIM replacement.

Why no biometric security on the phone and GCash?

If she's Filipina, your wife definitely knows what to do. 😏 Unless she's hiding something from you.

I had 50k in GCash when I lost my phone. The telco wouldn't cooperate on replacing the SIM. After a year of zero customer service, I filed a complaint with Bangko Sentral (the central bank). That worked: within 10 days, I had my money back.

This happened to me about three years ago in Ermita. A teenager snatched my phone from my back pocket, but luckily I had location tracking turned on. I went to the local police station, and one of the officers, James, took me in their police van and drove around the area while tracking the phone. After about two hours, they finally found it hidden in some bushes. James and his partner were absolutely fantastic. They were determined to keep searching, even if it took all night, until they found my phone. I'm from Australia, and honestly, I don't think the police back home would have had the time or resources to help me personally like that. I'll always be grateful to James and his colleague for going above and beyond to help me.