Philippine fintech receives $215 million in country’s largest-ever startup funding
One of the year’s largest fintech investments in Southeast Asia and the largest-ever in the Philippines has closed after Metro Manila-based Voyager Innovations announced it raised $215 million in fresh funds. The majority comes from Chinese investment holding Tencent, which, alongside US private equity firm KKR, agreed to invest $175 million. Adding to that, Voyager will pull in a further $40 million from International Finance Corporation and its Emerging Asia Fund.
Voyager Innovations is the fintech arm of the Philippines’ largest telecommunications firm PLDT and provides various digital services. These include PayMaya, a prepaid payment wallet service, PayMaya Business, a mobile acquiring service, Smart Padala, a mobile-based remittance network, Lendr, a digital lending platform and Freenet, a sponsored platform that provides free web space and access to mobile data for online shops.
The new funding will mainly be used for the domestic expansion of Voyager’s services to tap and cash in on the country’s rapidly growing digital market.
“Voyager can now step up its efforts to make its innovative financial and Internet platforms more accessible to more Filipinos in more parts of the country,” Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman and CEO of PLDT, said.
KKR and Tencent’s investment gives them a “substantial” (but unspecified) minority stake in Voyager Innovations.
One of the year’s largest fintech investments in Southeast Asia and the largest-ever in the Philippines has closed after Metro Manila-based Voyager Innovations announced it raised $215 million in fresh funds. The majority comes from Chinese investment holding Tencent, which, alongside US private equity firm KKR, agreed to invest $175 million. Adding to that, Voyager will pull in a further $40 million from International Finance Corporation and its Emerging Asia Fund. Voyager Innovations is the fintech arm of the Philippines’ largest telecommunications firm PLDT and provides various digital services. These include PayMaya, a prepaid payment wallet service, PayMaya Business, a...
One of the year’s largest fintech investments in Southeast Asia and the largest-ever in the Philippines has closed after Metro Manila-based Voyager Innovations announced it raised $215 million in fresh funds. The majority comes from Chinese investment holding Tencent, which, alongside US private equity firm KKR, agreed to invest $175 million. Adding to that, Voyager will pull in a further $40 million from International Finance Corporation and its Emerging Asia Fund.
Voyager Innovations is the fintech arm of the Philippines’ largest telecommunications firm PLDT and provides various digital services. These include PayMaya, a prepaid payment wallet service, PayMaya Business, a mobile acquiring service, Smart Padala, a mobile-based remittance network, Lendr, a digital lending platform and Freenet, a sponsored platform that provides free web space and access to mobile data for online shops.
The new funding will mainly be used for the domestic expansion of Voyager’s services to tap and cash in on the country’s rapidly growing digital market.
“Voyager can now step up its efforts to make its innovative financial and Internet platforms more accessible to more Filipinos in more parts of the country,” Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman and CEO of PLDT, said.
KKR and Tencent’s investment gives them a “substantial” (but unspecified) minority stake in Voyager Innovations.
