Japan’s Mitsubishi seals P18.4-B deal for stake in GCash via Ayala tech unit

The Zobel family-led Ayala Corp. and Japanese industrial giant Mitsubishi Corp. have officially signed a definitive agreement for Mitsubishi’s P18.4 billion investment in AC Ventures Holding, formalizing the Japanese conglomerate’s indirect entry into GCash.

The deal, signed on March 31, 2025, gives Mitsubishi a 50 percent stake in AC Ventures, which holds Ayala’s tech assets, including a 6.5 percent stake in GCash, the country’s largest mobile payments platform.

The agreement was first unveiled last October and initially reported by InsiderPH.

The transaction marks Mitsubishi’s second major bet on the fintech leader, following the P23 billion investment by affiliate Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) last year.

Ayala now retains the remaining 6.5 percent of its GCash stake, whose major shareholders include Ayala-backed Globe Telecom and China’s Ant Group. It will also continue to co-own AC Ventures alongside Mitsubishi.

The partnership deepens a 50-year relationship between the two conglomerates and is seen as a strategic move to scale GCash’s presence both in the Philippines and overseas. Ayala said the deal will support GCash’s growth in digital lending, payments innovation, and expansion into Mitsubishi’s Japan-based ecosystem.