GOTYME Bank said the expected entry of new digital banking players would not derail its expansion plans and its top executive said they were still targeting profitability by 2027.
President and CEO Nathaniel Clarke said the bank remained focused on accelerating customer acquisition and expanding its product suite to stay ahead of potential new entrants.
“We’re still prioritizing growth over profitability, but we still think we’ll become profitable in 2027,” Clarke told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Thursday, adding that new players would not alter the bank’s strategy.
“We want to continue the momentum, get further ahead of any new entrants before they come [in] ... definitely a really big focus on growth,” he added.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, which allowed the establishment of digital banks in 2020, initially limited the number of entrants to six. It raised the ceiling to 10 at the start of 2025, and applications were accepted up to the end of November.
One of the regulated digital banks in the Philippines, GoTyme Bank is a joint venture between the Gokongwei group and multi-country digital banking group Tyme.
Five other digital banks currently operate in the country: UNO Digital Bank, Tonik Digital Bank, UnionDigital Bank, Overseas Filipino Bank (OFBank), and Maya Bank.
UNO and Tonik are owned by Singapore-based firms, while OFBank is managed by the state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines. UnionDigital is the digital banking arm of Union Bank of the Philippines, while Maya is owned by the PLDT Group.
GoTyme Bank said it recently reached 9 million customers and expects continued rapid expansion this year.
Clarke projected that if current growth trends were sustained, “I think we’ll hit 10 [million users] by the middle of the year. And then if all goes well, we’ll come close to hitting 12 [million] by the end of the year.”
He claimed that GoTyme remained on track to achieve profitability in 2027, with the latest projections pointing to a break-even point around the middle of that year.
“The business will break even probably next year. The latest forecast is like the middle of the year," Clarke said.
