How this Philippine fintech startup firm hit $2 billion valuation

INNOVATOR: GCash, a mobile wallet platform in the Philippines, has reached fintech stardom in Asia. Mynt (Globe Fintech Innovations Inc.), a Philippines-based payments app, owns GCash. With its drive towards digital cash, the company has become the country’s first “double unicorn” — valued at over $2 billion.

DOUBLE UNICORN: As the fintech arm of Globe Telecom, one of the country’s major telcos, GCash achieved unprecedented growth, especially in the last two years of lockdowns. A unicorn is a startup that reaches $1 billion in market valuation. Photo shows a Philippine pharmacy prominently displaying its GCash QR code. More retailers in the Asian country are jumping into the digital cash ecosystem.

UNPRECEDENTED GROWTH: Mynt recently raised $300 million during an international funding round, bringing its total valuation to over $2 billion. The new funding expands its war chest to further invest in innovation and set the bar higher for digital cash use in the archipelago.

DIGITAL MIGRATION: “We’re in a good place as a business because we’re in demand, and we are able to help other businesses as well,” Mynt CEO Martha Sazon Martha Sazon told megabites.com.ph. “We have successfully gone through a major platform migration without having to be physically together.”

EXPONENTIAL: The company saw an exponential increase in its user numbers from 20 million in January 2020 to 46 million as of June 2021. The November 2021 funding round was co-anchored by investment giant Warburg Pincus and private equity and venture capital investor Insight Partners.

INVESTORS: Mynt’s existing investors — Globe Telecom, Manila-based Ayala Corp., and US investment firm Bow Wave Capital, as well as angel investor Itai Tsiddon and venture capital firm Amplo Ventures — also participated in the latest funding round.

STAR APP: In the Asian country, the GCash app has become part of Filipinos’ daily financial experience — from paying for groceries, medicines, fuel and insurance to donating for calamity victims. The app also had over 13 million log-ins per day, peaking at almost 15 million in the second quarter of 2021, the company reported.

FOUNDERS: Mynt, founded in 2004, counts Alibaba-owned Ant Group and Globe Telecom as its major founders and shareholders (45% each), while Ayala Corp. held the remaining 10% prior to the latest funding round.

FINANCIAL SERVICES: Mynt offers a full array of financial services — credit, savings, insurance, loans and investments. The assets under management of its GSave product have grown to over Php9 billion ($178 billion) from Php5 billion in 2020. Gcash, meanwhile, posted over Php 1 trillion ($20 billion) in transactions in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns hit the country — propelled by services like retail as well as online payments, back cash-in and remittances. A petrol pump attendant in the Philippines promotes their "contactless" payment option.

$58 BILLION TRANSACTION VALUE: This year, GCash processed an average of Php 300-billion ($5.8 billion) in monthly transactions. It is reportedly on track in breaching its Php3 trillion ($58.8 billion) “gross transaction value” target.

SIMPLE BUSINESS MODEL: GCash is based on a very simple business model: provide reliable way to transact in Philippine pesos with anyone across the 7,500 or so islands. If, for example, you want to load up your mobile phone with Php200 ($4) credit, just walk up to a 7-11, use their machine and Gcash takes part of the Php1 fee. You get a Php198 credit to pay for goods or internet data.

NETWORK: The company boasts of its wide network of more than 2.5 million merchant partners and social sellers via its QR and P2P features, enabling the app to cater to a diverse set of stakeholders in the country.

1 IN 3 FILIPINOS USES GCASH: It is estimated that one out of every three Filipinos is currently using the app. GCash has set its eyes on roping in more, with fresh innovations to reach out further afield to build an even stronger and more robust Philippine economy. A key enabler: faster internet services and greater infrastructure resilience in the midst of super-typhoons that regularly hit the Asian country.

FINANCIAL INCLUSION: With its clear vision of promoting financial inclusion for all, GCash has quickly adapted to the needs of its users people by being a digital payment essential for individuals and entrepreneurs, especially during the pandemic. The company has launched digital products to cover more sectors, including underserved and vulnerable groups like overseas workers, the youth, small businesses and even market vendors and cab/tricycle drivers.

DONATIONS, GOVERNMENT CASH DISBURSEMENT PLATFORM: The company worked with the Philippine government last year and became its financial aid tool for communities affected by COVID 19, disbursing over P16 billion to more than 2 million Filipinos. It also raised over P40 million in donations via digital Bayanihan, helping at least 3 million Filipinos impacted by typhoons and other calamities.

INCLUSION: As part of its inclusivity agenda, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the country’s central bank, aims to give 70% of the country’s adult population (total: population 110 million) access to digital payments by 2023. It seeks to have 50% of retail payments be made digitally. Internet speed in the country has jumped 523% since 2016, thanks to the massive rollout of fibre-to-the-home infrastructure. This has dropped to zero in a huge swathe of typhoon-hit areas, though this is expected to be temporary.

GCASH SCAMMERS? Users who believe an unauthorised transaction has occurred in their account can immediately reach out for its security team by submitting a ticket — or call GCash Support at 2882. GCash support agents guide customers in filing disputes.