PLDT Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan
Telecommunications titan PLDT Inc. is awaiting the next move of Maya stakeholder KKR & Co. over the digital bank’s planned initial public offering (IPO), as the telecom giant aims to increase its stake to unlock further value and support revenue growth.
PLDT Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said the company remains in talks with KKR regarding the IPO for Maya, a move PLDT fully supports.
“We are endorsing [and] supporting the IPO, but there are certain issues that we have to work out with them. It's not us, it's them,” he told reporters.
Pangilinan said that only once these issues are addressed would the path be cleared for a Maya IPO, although he noted that KKR may opt for a trade sale instead.
“Either way, trade sale or IPO, we will support,” he said. [It] gives us a chance to increase our stake.”
Earlier, Pangilinan said Maya is targeting a dual listing for its IPO, beginning in the United States (US) and then in the Philippines in the second half of the year. Such plans, however, remain uncertain amid external and domestic shocks.
PLDT, which holds a 38 percent stake in Maya, has been looking to increase its stake to secure a controlling share and strengthen the digital bank’s position in the financial technology (fintech) space.
At present, the domestic fintech sector is heavily dominated by the popular e-wallet GCash, which is affiliated with PLDT’s rival in the telecommunications space, Globe Telecom Inc.
With the help of an IPO or trade sale, PLDT will also be able to generate more substantial contributions from Maya to its bottom line.
PLDT earlier reported that Maya contributed ₱285 million to the telco in the first quarter, or nearly 40 percent of its total equity earnings of ₱716 million in 2025.
Pangilinan said the monetary value of KKR’s stake in Maya, which is around 30 percent, has not yet been discussed during the ongoing talks.
While PLDT is committed to acquiring such shares, he said it would still depend on the valuation and the percentage of shares being offered.
Based on its financial report, PLDT’s net income in the first quarter declined by two percent to ₱8.87 billion from ₱9.03 billion in the same period last year, driven largely by the surge in expenses.
Maya’s contributions to PLDT are expected to remain a bright spot for the company this year, especially since these are projected to increase by “double digits” from last year’s level.