GLOBE Fintech Innovations Inc., which operates the Philippine e-wallet brand and IPO-hopeful GCash, has more than doubled its valuation to $5 billion following investments from Ayala Corp. and Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), the companies said in separate statements on Friday.Ayala Corp., one of the Philippines' oldest conglomerates, said it had acquired an additional 8-percent stake in Globe Fintech, which does business as Mynt, for P22.9 billion ($393.07 million). This raised Ayala's ownership in Mynt to 13 percent.The Philippines is among the fastest-growing fintech (financial technology) markets in Southeast Asia, with a surge in adoption of digital services during the pandemic.MUFG, Japan's largest banking group, plans to invest $393 million in Mynt for an 8-percent stake.It has previously backed other Asia-Pacific startups and technology companies such as Grab and Akulaku."The Philippines has a high mobile phone and internet penetration, creating a solid foundation for the development of digital financial services," MUFG said in a statement.Mynt is a joint venture between Alibaba's affiliate Ant Group, Ayala and communications firm Globe Telecom.Globe Telecom owns around 35 percent of Mynt, while China's Ant Group holds about 34 percent.Mynt started to break even in the second half of 2021, and investment bank Jefferies expects that it could already account for around 20 percent for Globe Telecom's 2024 earnings.Mynt's "profitability is soaring" while expecting earnings to be close to $200 million in 2024, analysts have said.Globe Telecom Chief Executive Officer Ernest Cu in a May interview said GCash may go public in the Philippines in 2025. Cu also chairs Mynt.Mynt predominantly fights in the startup market with the Philippines' only other unicorn Voyager, a fintech firm, which enjoys a valuation of more than $1 billion.Ayala shares fell by P1.50, or 0.25 percent, to P590 apiece while Globe saw its share price grow by P56, or 2.59 percent, to P2,218 amid a 1.32-percent drop for the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.
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