Philippines’ GCash builds up business beyond payments before IPO

(Bloomberg) -- The Philippines’ top fintech platform GCash is building up its suite of financial products beyond payments as it prepares for an initial public offering, its chief executive said on Monday.

“We’re looking to expand further our lending business and investing platforms that will support our AI work,” GCash President and CEO Martha Sazon said in an interview with Bloomberg Television’s Haslinda Amin on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

GCash is also working with the Philippine government to offer bonds via its app, she said. The company already allows users to buy insurance, stocks, crypto assets and offers savings products.

GCash is in discussions with banks for the potential public offering that will depend on market conditions, she said.

“There’s been a lot of buzz about IPO and of course we’d love for that to happen. But for now there’s really no definite plans. We’re looking at options and timing as well. We are talking to our banks,” Sazon said.

The IPO could potentially raise $1 billion to $1.5 billion, while the company has picked banks to work on the share sale that could take place this year, Bloomberg News has reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The biggest IPO in the Philippines to date is food and beverage firm Monde Nissin Corp.’s in 2021, when it raised just over $1 billion.

GCash, which has around 94 million users, saw its valuation climb to $5 billion during its last funding round when Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. took an 8 per cent stake. Jack Ma-backed Ant Group is another shareholder.

Globe Fintech Innovations Inc., or Mynt, is the holding company of GCash and the entity that’s expected to undertake the public offer. GCash secured a $2 billion valuation and booked profits for the first time in 2021, owing to a surge in customers and usage during the Covid-19 pandemic when Filipinos shifted to cashless payments.

“Regardless of IPO or not, our focus is to grow GCash to the next level and look at new revenue pools that will propel the growth of GCash even further,” Sazon said.