Weekly Brief

1. 1

   Salmon secures ₱8.8 billion in financing for Philippine lending

   Salmon Group has secured ₱8.8 billion (US$140 million) in additional financing for its Philippine business. The money will scale the Salmon Credit Line and in-store lending, and fund a nationwide rollout of motorcycle and MSME loans.

   The financing comes six months after a US$100 million round, a sign of continued investor appetite for Philippine consumer and small-business lending.

   3 sources: Fintech News Philippines, Fintech Global, Entrepreneur APAC

2. 2

   GCash weighs digital banking move after parent Mynt's record IPO

   GCash is exploring a move into digital banking after its parent Mynt raised ₱60.9 billion (US$965 million) in the largest IPO in the Philippines. A GCash executive pointed to its payments network and growing lending business as strengths.

   The platform has about 41.5 million monthly active users, so a banking move would build on a very large customer base.

   2 sources: Fintech News Philippines, Philstar

3. 3

   GoTyme Bank raises 2026 customer target to 12.5 million

   GoTyme Bank has lifted its year-end customer target to 12.5 million from 12 million. CEO Nathaniel Clarke said it now has about 11.5 million customers, with monthly account openings of 450,000 to 500,000, up from 250,000 to 300,000.

   Faster growth and expanding lending keep the digital bank on track to turn profitable in 2027.

   4 sources: Philstar, Inquirer Business, Fintech News Philippines, Manila Times

4. 4

   UnionBank nine-month profit rises 53% to ₱9.9 billion

   UnionBank's nine-month net income rose 53% to ₱9.9 billion. Its board also approved folding digital bank UnionDigital Bank and fintech unit UBX into the parent bank, subject to approval from the BSP and other regulators.

   The integration aims to streamline operations and strengthen the bank's digital banking business.

   3 sources: Inquirer Business, Daily Tribune, Manila Bulletin

5. 5

   PSE pushes Maya to list following GCash's IPO

   The Philippine Stock Exchange is trying to persuade Maya to go public now that GCash has listed. PSE president Ramon Monzon said Maya's parent PLDT wants a local IPO, though foreign shareholders may prefer an overseas listing for a higher valuation.

   The outcome will decide where the next major Philippine fintech listing happens.

   2 sources: Philstar, Inquirer Business

Summaries are written by AI from the linked sources.