(UPDATE) PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday lauded Mynt Inc.'s listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), saying more Filipinos can now invest in the stock market using their phones.
Mynt, the parent company of the e-wallet app GCash, which has 41.5 million active users monthly, made history on Tuesday with a P60.9-billion initial public offering (IPO), the largest in PSE history, as it began trading under the ticker symbol GCASH.
During the listing ceremony in Taguig City, Marcos rang the ceremonial bell and highlighted how the company’s landmark IPO could help democratize investment opportunities for ordinary citizens.
“What makes this occasion even more meaningful is that ordinary Filipinos now have an opportunity to participate in these markets,” said Marcos. “In fact, the same phone that Filipinos are using to pay bills, to buy groceries, or send money to their families can now be used also to participate in Mynt’s public offering." Marcos highlighted the breakthrough, noting how the platform has evolved from a basic digital payment tool into a full-fledged financial ecosystem.
For as low as P660, GCash users — most of them low- to middle-income earners — can invest directly through the app and buy 100 shares of the company from their smartphones, bypassing traditional, complex brokerage setups.
The chief executive expressed optimism that Mynt's stock market debut will revitalize the local exchange, amid hurdles.
“We recognize that investors have become more cautious and that attracting fresh capital remains a challenge. But Mynt’s initial public offering gives us reason for optimism,” he said.
The strong demand generated from both domestic and foreign investors serves as a strong vote of confidence in Filipino enterprises, he said.
Milestone for the Philippines
The shares closed at P6.60 apiece on their first trading day, unchanged from the offer price, after reaching an intraday high of P6.76. A total of 650.33 million shares worth P4.33 billion changed hands, with the stock ending the session at its opening price.
“This is the largest initial public offering in the history of the Philippine Stock Exchange,” PSE President and CEO Ramon Monzon said during the listing ceremony, describing the milestone as the culmination of a three-year process.
The offering comprised about 8.03 billion shares priced at P6.60 each, with the total deal size potentially reaching P60.9 billion if the over-allotment option is fully exercised.
J.P. Morgan acted as joint global coordinator and joint bookrunner for the IPO, which it described as the largest in Philippine history, the largest in Southeast Asia since 2021 and the region’s largest technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) IPO over the same period.
“This is a significant milestone for the Philippines. It demonstrates that a high-quality Philippine digital business can attract strong global and domestic investor support while expanding investment opportunities in the country,” said Carlos Ma. G. Mendoza, senior country officer of J.P. Morgan Philippines.
“As the largest IPO in Philippine history, this deal also marks an important step in the continued development of Philippine capital markets. We are proud to have led this landmark IPO and to continue supporting Mynt, Inc. across our banking franchise,” he added.
Mynt’s market capitalization was about P442 billion at its debut, placing it among the country’s largest listed companies.
The IPO drew substantial retail participation, with 140,725 GCash subscribers investing about P1.1 billion through GStocks PH, the stock trading platform operated by AB Capital Securities within the GCash app.
Mynt said the institutional tranche was multiple times oversubscribed, reflecting demand from local and international investors. J.P. Morgan said nearly 200 institutional investors across Asia, Europe and the United States were engaged during the marketing process.
The transaction also secured 20 cornerstone investors, the largest number for a Philippine IPO, including four investors participating as cornerstone investors in the local market for the first time. The order book attracted global long-only investors, sovereign wealth funds, domestic institutions and multi-strategy funds despite challenging market conditions and subdued market liquidity.
The domestic offer period ran from Oct. 6 to 12, following the pricing of the shares on Oct. 1.
Mynt President and CEO Martha Sazon said the listing marked the beginning of the company’s next phase as a publicly listed firm.
“Becoming a public company is not the finish line. The opportunity ahead is about how much more we can make possible for every Filipino,” she said.
The company said it would use the net proceeds primarily to expand its digital financial services business, particularly its CreditTech and WealthTech offerings.
The listing ceremony was attended by President Marcos., Ayala Corp. Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Mynt Chairman Ernest Cu, Sazon, Monzon and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Francis Lim.
Investor demand
The firm's debut demonstrated investor demand for Mynt's payments business even as a broader selloff in AI-related shares made investors more selective about new tech listings.
Mynt's listing came as South Korean AI firm Elice fell sharply in its market debut on Tuesday, highlighting a more cautious mood toward companies tied to the AI boom.
Sazon said the listing marked a new stage in the company's effort to widen access to financial services for Filipinos who have long been outside the formal banking system. Nearly 90 percent of GCash customers come from low- to middle-income households, she said.
Mynt, backed by Globe Telecom GLO.PS, Ant Group and Ayala Corp AC.PS, owns GCash, the Philippines' largest finance app, according to its prospectus. The platform offers payments, money transfers, lending, savings, investments and insurance products.
The company had 41.5 million monthly active users in the three-month period that ended on June 30, or nearly 56 percent of the Philippines' adult population, according to its prospectus. GCash users completed payment transactions worth 9.84 trillion pesos in the first half of 2026.
Mynt's IPO surpassed Monde Nissin's Monde's P52.2-billion IPO in 2021 to become the largest-ever IPO in the Philippines.
Mynt said that for the six-month period that ended on June 30, its net income rose 7.3 percent from a year earlier to P10.82 billion. Revenue rose 10.4 percent to P43.27 billion. NAZYLEN JOY MABANGLO, ALLEN LIMOS, REUTERS
