Mynt becomes first unicorn born in the Philippines after US$300 million funding round by global investors

The new funding, which underlies the rapid growth of financial services and digital banking in the country, has boosted Mynt’s valuation to US$2 billion
The number of fintech companies in the Philippines increased to around 200 last year from just 30 in 2016

Fintech

Peggy Sito

Published: 4:30pm, 2 Nov 2021

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Mynt, the Philippine fintech company backed by China’s Ant Group and Globe Telecom of the Philippines, has become the first unicorn in the country after raising US$300 million from global investors such as US-based Warburg Pincus and Insight Partners.

The new round of funding, which underlies the rapid growth of the financial services and digital banking market in the country, has boosted Mynt’s valuation to US$2 billion.

“This solidifies its status as the Philippines’ only unicorn, and as one of the leading fintech companies in Southeast Asia,” said Warburg Pincus, which has more than US$67 billion in private equity assets under management, in a statement on Tuesday.

Mynt, a six-year old start-up backed by Ant, Globe and Ayala Corporation, providing financial services spanning credit, savings, insurance, loans and investments, is the company behind Philippine mobile wallet GCash with 48 million users and a projected 3 trillion pesos (US$59 billion) in gross transaction value this year.

Other investors taking part in this funding round include Itai Tsiddon and Amplo Ventures, as well as capital from existing investors Globe, Ayala and Bow Wave.

Biotech firm Insilico raises US$255 million in Warburg Pincus-led funding round

Ant, an affiliate of Post owner Alibaba Group Holding, did not participate in the round but “has remained a committed partner and shareholder [with a 34 per cent stake], bringing technological expertise and their experience in China and other markets to aid its strategy and execution”, according to Mynt.

“The investment into Mynt marks our continued commitment and strong belief in the long-term prospects of the Philippines as one of the fastest growing digital economies in the region,” said Warburg Pincus managing director Saurabh Agarwal.

The number of fintech companies in the country increased to around 200 last year from just 30 in 2016. The range of financial services has expanded from digital payments and wallets, and lending and remittances, to other fintech verticals such as credit scoring, alternative financing, crowd funding, investment, insurtech and cryptocurrencies, according to the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO).

Mynt is the company behind Philippine mobile wallet GCash. Photo: Handout

As in other regions, Covid-19 has accelerated the financial digitalisation trend in the Philippines. Such changes are likely to continue and even speed up when the pandemic is over, according to Singapore-based AMRO, which was established in 2011 to promote macroeconomic and financial stability in the Asian region.

Today, 70 per cent of the adult population in the Philippines is either unbanked or under-banked, with very low penetration of financial products. Only about 15 per cent of people have formal loans, less than five per cent have credit cards and even fewer have access to insurance, according to Warburg.

“The country is growing its economy at two to three times the rate of developed markets,” said Agarwal. “As we have seen in markets such as China and India, when incomes rise people spend more, and when they spend more, they tend to borrow more. And over time they invest their hard-earned money for wealth generation and to protect their livelihood through insurance.”

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