Mynt, the digital financial solutions provider behind the GCash payment services app, has raised over $300 million in funding, valuing the company at over $2 billion.
This solidifies its status as the Philippines’ only unicorn, and as one of the leading fintech companies in Southeast Asia. The investment round was led by global investment giant Warburg Pincus, New York-based global private equity and venture capital firm Insight Partners and Bow Wave Capital, one of Mynt’s existing investors. The round also includes participation from Itai Tsiddon and Amplo Ventures as well as capital from Globe and Ayala.
Since the onset of community quarantines as response to COVID19, Mynt has been at the forefront of digital transformation of Filipinos as the “go-to” payment and financial services solution to over 48 million users, nearly half of the national population.
With the continued relevance of the app among its users, Mynt is on track to reach P3 trillion of gross transaction value, three times more than last year’s record number. The company also recorded peak daily app log-ins and daily active transactions of 19 million and 12 million, respectively.
With the entry of Mynt’s new international investors, the company is joining an eminent league of world-class companies that are redefining the global technology and innovation landscape.
“This is further proof that our growth and achievements have not gone unnoticed. We have been able to continuously expand by introducing game-changing innovations while improving our profitability profile,” said Martha Sazon, president and CEO of Mynt.
“We are excited about our new partnership with Warburg, Insight, Itai Tsiddon and Amplo, as they each bring strategic value to our team in the pursuit of our vision towards finance for all,” she said.
As Mynt continues to scale, the company witnessed an unprecedented increase in its number of merchants and social sellers, now at 3 million. Additionally, it has achieved scale while improving its unit economics, delivering positive EBITDA and net income in mid-2021. With the addition of highly experienced global investors in Warburg Pincus and Insight Partners, Mynt is well-positioned to further expand its digital financial services offerings and support the Philippine’s financial inclusion agenda.
“We welcome Warburg Pincus, Insight Partners, and the other investors into Mynt. Their investment in Mynt and GCash further validates the strides the Company has made in providing access to innovative financial services to more Filipinos and highlighting the Philippines to the global investor audience. Together with the continued support of Mynt’s existing shareholders, we are confident of furthering Mynt’s market leadership and creating positive and transformative disruption in the Philippine financial services sector,” said Ernest Cu, chairman of the board of Mynt and president and CEO of Globe Telecom.
Saurabh Agarwal, managing director of Warburg Pincus, said: “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. Mynt has a dominant market position in the Philippines and is well-positioned with its best-in-class management team, innovative technology, and superior product offerings. We are excited about the partnership with the company and look forward to leveraging our deep expertise in the fintech sector to support their long-term growth.”
“We believe that GCash has created the most compelling product to reach the massively underserved market in the Philippines,” said Deven Parekh, managing director at Insight Partners. “Our investment in Mynt fits within our global thesis of increasing financial inclusion using digital tools. We look forward to partnering with Mynt as they continue to grow on their scale up journey.”
Mynt offers a full array of financial services, spanning credit, savings, insurance, loans, and investments. Assets Under Management (AUM) for its GSave product has grown to over P9 billion, from P5 billion in 2020, while its GInvest product has already captured 70 percent of the domestic market of total UITF accounts. GInsure, GCash’s microinsurance offering launched in 2020, accounts for 1/3 of all new insurance policies issued in the Philippines.
Through wholly-owned subsidiary Fuse and other banking partners, Mynt also offers credit to users, on the back of its proprietary trust and scoring platform. GCredit disburses over P1 billion worth of loans each month, with P15 billion worth having been disbursed as of June 2021, and boasts of the best repayment rates locally with the lowest past-due and non-performing loans.
Mynt also piloted GLoan, a cash loan product that allows qualified users to borrow as much as P25,000, with repayment spread over 12 months. The Company is looking to launch “Buy Now, Pay Later” products within the year.
GCash was also the first financial app to launch a trailblazing sustainability initiative in the country via its GForest feature, a gamified environmental stewardship program where users can convert their green points acquired from using GCash into a virtual tree, which in turn would be planted as an actual tree in critical locations within the Philippines. To date, there are over 8.7 million users of the GForest feature within the app.