GCash Secures Record IPO Backing from Global Giants

MANILA, Philippines – More than 20 global and local institutions have already lined up to buy into GCash even before its record-setting initial public offering (IPO) opens to ordinary investors. Mynt, the parent company of GCash, said its cornerstone investors include some of the biggest names in global asset management. Among the most notable global investors are: BlackRock Capital Research and Management Company T. Rowe Price International Finance Corporation (IFC) Schroders Lazard Asset Management FIL Investment Management HSBC Global Asset Management Together, the cornerstone investors have committed around P36.5 billion, according to Mynt’s preliminary prospectus. Mynt said the commitments would cover approximately the entire institutional tranche, subject to any reallocation. Cornerstone investors are large institutions that agree in advance to buy shares in an IPO, giving an issuer a ready pool of demand before the public offer begins. The biggest name on the list by sheer scale is BlackRock. The New York-listed investment giant had $15.3 trillion (P959.85 trillion) in assets under management as of end-June 2026, making it the world’s largest asset manager. Note though that the expected buyers are certain funds and separately managed accounts run by BlackRock subsidiaries, rather than BlackRock itself. GCash is also not BlackRock’s first time coming into a company at the IPO stage. BlackRock-managed funds and accounts were named as a cornerstone investor in trading platform eToro’s 2025 listing, indicating interest in buying up to $100 million (P6.27 billion) of shares at the IPO price. Another heavyweight is Capital Research and Management Company, part of Capital Group, which manages more than $3.6 trillion (P225.85 trillion). A Capital Group investment division was also among the cornerstone investors in US electric vehicle maker Rivian’s blockbuster 2021 IPO. Rivian’s cornerstone group, which also included Amazon and T. Rowe Price, indicated interest in buying as much as $5 billion (P313.68 billion) of stock at the IPO price. Rivian ultimately raised nearly $12 billion and its shares jumped about 29% on their first trading day. T. Rowe Price, which managed around $1.9 trillion (P119.20 trillion) as of end-August, has played the same role in an even more recognizable listing. It committed up to €750 million (P53.48 billion) as a cornerstone investor in German luxury sports car manufacturer Porsche’s 2022 IPO. Porsche later described the listing as the largest IPO ever carried out in Europe, with a market capitalization of around €78 billion (P5.56 trillion) at its opening price. Perhaps the most interesting incoming investor from a Philippine fintech perspective is the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. GCash is not IFC’s first exposure to the local digital finance race. In 2022, IFC and two IFC-managed funds invested up to $18.5 million (P1.16 billion) in Voyager Innovations, the company behind rival Maya, as part of a funding round meant to support its expansion into digital banking. That means IFC is entering GCash as a cornerstone investor after already backing one of its closest competitors in the Philippine fintech market. On the domestic side, Mynt named ATRAM Trust, BPI Asset Management and Trust, China Bank Capital, Metrobank’s Trust Banking Group, Philequity Management, and RCBC Capital. The new investors are arriving just as several of GCash’s early private equity backers prepare to sell down their stakes through the IPO. Bow Wave Capital, Warburg Pincus, Insight Partners, and LGVP are among the existing shareholders using the listing as a partial exit. Mynt is expected to set the final offer price on October 1, ahead of the October 6 to 12 offer period and its targeted October 20 debut on the Philippine Stock Exchange under the ticker GCASH. – Rappler.com $1 = P62.6190, €1 = P71.3043 based on the September 24, 2026 reference exchange rates of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas