He prefers to raise their stake but also entertains the idea of a full exit—only if the price is right.
An opportunity to load up on a significant block of Maya shares is looming, as global fund KKR hires banks ahead of a potential sale of its more than 20 percent stake.
“[KKR] advised us they will be scanning the market, principally I assume in the US—because they’ve engaged US banks to take a look at the US market—to get an idea of the value of Maya at the moment,” Pangilinan told reporters after their financial briefing on Thursday.
“We would be buyers, depending on how much it costs,” he said.
So, is MVP keen on selling?
InsiderPH, citing sources, reported in January that Pangilinan was also weighing a sale option if he can’t raise their stake in Maya, which posted a net income in December and is on track for its first-ever profitable year in 2025.
“Well, if it’s a humongous price, why not,” Pangilinan said on Thursday.
For example, Pangilinan said “we’re sellers” at a valuation of $10 billion. Of course, he said this knowing the amount is far-fetched at the moment, given that it’s seven times Maya’s previous $1.4 billion valuation and double GCash’s $5 billion.
“If we sell, we get $4 billion (P230 billion) that will reduce our debts significantly,” Pangilinan continued.
PLDT listed net debt of P273 billion at the end of 2024.
“Come to think of it, maybe we should sell. No more debts,” he added playfully.
A more realistic target was suggested by Abacus Securities’ research head Nicky Franco, who said last month that Maya could be worth around $3-3.5 billion.
Big picture
KKR was one of the first major overseas backers of Maya in 2018, when it was still known as PayMaya.
It entered the business alongside Chinese tech giant Tencent, about a year after another Chinese fintech giant, Alibaba Group’s Ant Financial, invested in GCash.
Boardroom whispers
An industry insider separately hinted at the souring relationship between KKR and the PLDT Group, citing differences in business direction among the major shareholder groups.
Adding to this puzzle, Anastacio “Boy” Martirez, Smart’s chief operations officer, is pushing for a bigger role for Smart Money, potentially putting the business in competition with Maya on the payments side.
Martirez said on Thursday that Smart Money was mainly being used within the PLDT Group, and they were testing its functions for a potential broader launch to the public.
Next steps not clear
“In the end, we will figure out what we will do with Smart Money or Maya,” said Pangilinan, explaining that KKR is currently in the driver’s seat at Maya.
“If [KKR] sells out, we will have two wallets. We’re waiting for developments on that,” he added.
Maya Bank is profitable, outstanding loan book surges over 450%
Maya Bank turned profitable in September last year as loans grew while credit losses remained under control.
It ended 2024 with P39 billion in deposits, up 59 percent, while outstanding loans surged 457 percent to P16.7 billion.
At the same time, non-performing loans dropped to 3.5 percent from 4.3 percent, well below the Philippine banking sector’s 7.1 percent average.
Since 2022, Maya Bank has disbursed P92.2 billion in loans.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
