(Bloomberg) — GCash, the biggest fintech platform in the Philippines, has invited banks to pitch for an initial public offering in Manila to potentially raise $1 billion to $1.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
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The company intends to list in the second half of 2025, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. An IPO of that size would likely make it the biggest ever in the Philippines.
Deliberations are ongoing and details of the offering such as size and timeline could still change, the people said.
A representative for GCash, which is controlled by Globe Fintech Innovations Inc., or Mynt, declined to comment.
Mynt Chairman Ernest Cu said in an interview in May that GCash planned to go public next year. “We want to do it sooner than later. Sometime in 2025 would be the best estimate I can give you,” he told Bloomberg News at the time.
A GCash IPO would be a boon for Southeast Asia’s equity capital markets after volumes dwindled in recent years amid high interest rates. 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.
Last month, Mitsubishi Corp. bought a 50% stake in AC Ventures Holdings Corp., which owns 13% of Globe Fintech. That followed Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. acquiring an 8% stake in GCash in August, in a transaction that lifted the valuation of the company to $5 billion. Jack Ma’s Ant Group is another backer.
GCash’s app can be used for services such as paying bills and sending and receiving money throughout the Philippines, according to the company’s website, which says 94 million Filipinos have used GCash.
–With assistance from Manolo Serapio Jr..
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