ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Stock Market devider 'Far behind': Pangilinan on PLDT's telco standing against Globe

'Far behind': Pangilinan on PLDT's telco standing against Globe

But MVP admits GCash light years ahead in fintech

Published May 16, 2025 11:04 am  |  Updated May 16, 2025 03:42 pm

Ready to go toe-to-toe, tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan said rival Globe Telecom Inc. is still “far behind” PLDT Inc. in the broader telecommunications sector, as the Ayala-led firm’s new leadership charts an ambitious course to become the most profitable telco in the Philippines.

Last month, Globe welcomed its new chief executive officer (CEO), Carl Cruz, who outlined its strategic direction toward driving growth in the company’s broadband and enterprise units.

“Our ambition is to be the largest, most profitable, most admired, and highly engaged telecom company in the country,” said Cruz.

Globe, the industry leader in mobile services, aims to achieve this goal within five years, driven by growth across business units long dominated by PLDT.

During PLDT’s first-quarter results press briefing on Thursday, May 15, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pangilinan said Globe is “far behind us” when comparing telco-to-telco numbers.

During the first three months of the year, PLDT’s core income—which excludes the impact of asset sales and attributable profit from its digital finance unit Maya—stood at ₱8.78 billion. This is six-percent lower than ₱9.32 billion during the same period last year.

Excluding contributions from Mynt and one-time gains such as its dilution of stake in the GCash operator, Globe said its net income reached ₱4.54 billion in the quarter, a 22-percent drop-off from ₱5.79 billion.

However, including Mynt, Globe saw profits rise to ₱6.96 billion by the end of March. 

Mynt recorded ₱1.8 billion in equity earnings, a substantial 86-percent jump from the previous year.

Pangilinan said the substantial gains driven by Mynt show that Globe has seized the top spot in the financial technology (fintech) space.

“Certainly, they're light years ahead when it comes to fintech,” he said.

Pangilinan noted that Maya was one of the “bright spots” of PLDT in a quarter weakened by a global market slump, with the all-in-one digital wallet contributing ₱127 million to the company’s top line.

The tycoon said that matching GCash’s substantial figures is not yet on track, adding, “I think early days, right?”

Maya is expected to profit more than ₱1 billion this year, fueled by the upward trend in lending and payment segments.

Pangilinan expressed his desire to expand PLDT’s stake in Maya as a means to strengthen its position in market share against the dominant GCash.

Currently, PLDT holds an about 40-percent stake in Maya.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said Maya is well-positioned for growth, as consumers tend to have at least two service providers—in this case, e-wallets—for better financial coverage.
“The public usually hedges their exposures and do not put all their eggs in one basket, and that would benefit the major market players,” he told Manila Bulletin.
Ricafort, meanwhile, said Globe should tailor its services to the preferences of the new working-age generation to capture a even bigger share of the market
In addition to a refreshed approach to pricing, service quality, and overall value proposition, he said Globe may also consider introducing new investment and financial market products through GCash.

Related Tags

Manuel V. Pangilinan PLDT Inc. Globe Telecom Inc. Maya GCash
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.