Telecommunications giant PLDT Inc. is banking on the contributions of its fast-growing fintech arm Maya to spur growth in earnings at a time when overall demand for telco services is flat and its first half performance posted a slim growth.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, PLDT reported that its net income in the first half of the year stood at ₱17.6 billion, slightly better than the ₱17.3 billion in the same period in 2024.

The company’s telco core income, which excludes gains from Maya and asset sales, reached ₱17.2 billion, four percent lower than last year’s ₱18 billion.

PLDT’s share in Maya’s core income stood at ₱406 million, a ₱1.1 billion reversal from a net loss in the previous year.

As of end-June, Maya’s bank customer base reached 8.2 million, with deposits rising to ₱50.4 billion. An additional ₱32 billion was loaned out in the second quarter, bringing total disbursals to ₱152 billion.

PLDT Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Manuel V. Pangilinan is confident that Maya can rake in profits of more than ₱2 billion this year, driven by its growing popularity and innovations such as the recently launched Maya Black credit card.

PLDT holds about a 40 percent stake in Maya, with other investors owning the remaining shares, such as American private equity firm KKR, which owns approximately 30 percent.

Pangilinan earlier floated that the company is interested in increasing its stake to have more power to assert Maya’s position in the fintech space against GCash, which is affiliated with its rival Globe Telecom Inc.

Now, in the mid-year, Pangilinan said there’s still no concrete decision on this plan. However, he said the target is still focused on matching the success of GCash.

“I wish we did not fall so far behind GCash in that business, but this is where we are,” said Pangilinan in a media briefing.

“And I do hope [Maya] can catch up in due course, sooner rather than later,” he added.

Globe earlier reported that its share in equity earnings from GCash operator Mynt surged to ₱3.8 billion in the first half.

Maya Bank President Angelo Madrid said he expects strong performance in the second half of the year backed by robust lending, growth in deposits, and strong payments volume.

“We expect continued momentum that we've seen from quarter-to-quarter,” said Madrid.

Overall, Pangilinan is expecting this year’s net income to at least match the ₱32.31 billion recorded in 2024, given slightly weaker demand.

Case in point, PLDT’s wireless segment fell one percent to ₱42.3 billion in the first six months of 2025, with data revenues holding steady at ₱37.4 billion.

The enterprise segment was flat at ₱23.5 billion, driven by stable demand for connectivity and across corporations, public sector entities, and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Its home segment, on the other hand, continues to be a bright spot for the telco with a seven percent growth to ₱30.4 billion.

PLDT saw a three-percent hike in revenue to ₱106.3 billion, but a higher depreciation of ₱26.2 billion due to sustained network investment.

In the first half, the company’s capital expenditure (capex) slumped to ₱27.4 billion from last year’s ₱35.1 billion due to more favorable pricing and successfully negotiated terms with vendors.

The full-year capex guidance is now expected to be around ₱63 billion, compared to the initial projection of ₱68 billion to ₱70 billion.