GCash says IPO not yet a priority

February 22, 2024 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines —E-wallet pioneer GCash is in no hurry to go public anytime soon, as it wants to prioritize the growth of its portfolio with the app expanding abroad.

GCash head of new businesses, corporate affairs and sustainability Winsley Bangit told reporters that the e-wallet has no timeline for its planned initial public offering (IPO).

Bangit added that it remains uncertain where GCash will file its IPO, admitting that executives are studying every available option, including listing overseas.

“For the IPO, there are a lot of things to consider. We could not really say when or where, but it is just that we want to make sure that we are ready. We want to make sure that we are investing in growth. That is the focus of the organization right now,” Bangit said.

“There are so many things to consider. Given that, it’s really now the focus on areas of growth of GCash and, therefore, an IPO is really not the main focus for our current operations,” he added.

Similar to previous interviews with GCash executives, Bangit said the e-wallet is still evaluating market conditions and examining its own readiness.

Earlier, G-Xchange Inc. president and CEO Oscar Reyes Jr. said the target is to go public by the second half of the year, expecting that the market would be stable by then.

If the IPO is filed in the Philippines, GCash will become the maiden e-wallet to be listed with the Philippine Stock Exchange, marking the growing role of finance technology to the economy.

GCash, owned by Mynt (Globe Fintech Innovations Inc. and operated by G-Xchange), serves as the leading finance app in the Philippines.

GCash offers a portfolio of financial services ranging from cash transfer to instant loans to its subscriber base of 94 million as of 2023.

It recently secured approval to introduce its financial products to the Middle East and Europe. In particular, the e-wallet is infiltrating Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East, as well as Germany and Spain in Europe.

On top of this, GCash is entering Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, widening its presence around Asia.

GCash currently runs a beta version in Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the US as part of efforts to make the app available abroad to serve overseas Filipino workers.