Conglomerate Ayala Corp. said Wednesday it completed the sale of its 50-percent stake in AC Ventures Holding Corp. (ACV) to Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp. for at least P18.4 billion.
The deal gave Mitsubishi a 6.5-percent stake in Gcash as AC Ventures owns about 13 percent of Globe Fintech Innovations Inc. (Mynt), which operates two fintech companies: G-Xchange Inc., the operator of GCash and Fuse Lending, a micro-lender.
It follows Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.’s move in August when it secured an 8-percent stake in GCash for $393 million.
Ayala said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it signed the definitive agreement for the transaction. Under the agreement, Mitsubishi subscribed to 18.033 billion common and redeemable preferred shares of AC Ventures for P18.4 billion.
ACV said it would use the subscription proceeds to redeem Ayala’s redeemable preferred shares in ACV and cover related costs.
It said the deal is aligned with Ayala’s strategic priority to support the growth of clear business winners within its portfolio.
Ayala said Mitsubishi, Japan’s largest trading company, could help Mynt expand both internationally and within Japan. This includes opportunities in cloud-based payments and new credit solutions.
“We believe Mitsubishi can add meaningful value to Mynt, which will allow Mynt to deliver significant value to its over 94 million registered users. It’s all about serving better the many Filipinos that depend on GCash and Fuse, and for making a wider variety of financial and other products available to as many Filipinos as possible,” said Cezar Consing, president and chief executive of Ayala when the deal was announced in October.
Analysts said the Philippines is an attractive market with significant room for growth in digital financial services as most Filipinos have mobile phones and access to the Internet.
Both companies are also committed to boosting Mynt’s corporate value and leveraging other joint initiatives to create new businesses in the Philippines and contribute to its economic development.
Ayala and Mitsubishi have a long-standing partnership dating back to 1974. The partnership has included projects in various sectors such as renewable energy and auto dealerships.
Ayala, through ACV said in August it is increasing its ownership in Mynt by acquiring an additional 8 percent, raising its overall share to 13 percent for P22.4 billion.