underserved communities at the MWC CEO Panel in Barcelona alongside (L-R) Brian Gorman (GSMA),
Melike Kara Tanrikulu (e& Money), and Erwan Gelebart (Axian Group).
Two Filipina tech leaders from Mynt, the holding company of GCash, namely President & CEO Martha Sazon and Chief Technology and Operations Officer Pebbles Sy represented the country’s transformative adoption of connectivity, mobile tech, and the digital economy during the prestigious Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain.
Ms. Sazon was part of the MWC CEO Panel, “Fintech and Mobile Commerce Summit: Powering Mobile First Commerce,” which explored how companies like GCash can enhance the leapfrog effect of tech and artificial intelligence to address barriers to financial inclusion.
Ms. Sazon discussed how GCash first set out to meet an increased demand for seamless, mobile-first solutions among Filipinos as a money transfer app—but then went on to elevate its services by establishing a diverse and wide-ranging financial ecosystem that actively caters to unbanked and traditionally underserved sectors.
Transforming mobile moments into financial freedom. At MWC CEO Panel, GCash President & CEO Martha Sazon showcased how the Philippines’ #1 finance super app evolved from basic transfers to a comprehensive ecosystem.
“Our money transfer services were the gateway to a broader digital economy. Across the years, and in response to our users’ needs, GCash has broadened its functionalities into a comprehensive selection of financial services, including savings, investments, insurance, and banking,” explained Ms. Sazon. “Our work has empowered individuals to take control of their financial well-being and pursue economic opportunities previously out of reach, all from the convenience of their mobile phones.”
In addition to opening doors for the underbanked and underserved, GCash invests in innovations, such as APIs (application programming interfaces), which allowed it to connect and collaborate with service partners to deliver personalized solutions. These, in turn, have boosted the super app’s capabilities in catering to a multitude of diverse and personalized needs of its users.
During the “Platform Economy” MWC panel, which focused on increasing access to financial services through everyday apps and fintech ecosystems, Ms. Sy shared how GCash’s API integration has been a key factor in expanding reach and improving user experience.
She also noted how this approach has necessitated the continuous adoption and development of modular and reusable features that must work well with other app components: “Today, we’re connecting thousands of microservices on our platform through APIs. We also use APIs to connect with external partners like merchants and other service providers.”
Democratizing finance through seamless connections. At the MWC Platform Economy panel, GCash Chief Technology and Operations Officer Pebbles Sy (center) joined global fintech leaders including Brian Gorman of GSMA (left) and Bolttech’s Melissa Wong (right) to showcase how digital integration drives financial inclusion.
According to Ms. Sy, when financial services are seamlessly integrated, they become second nature for its users. Thanks to APIs, GCash connects users with 1,200 billers and 17 insurers within the app, as well as with four partner banks for savings accounts and to a platform that enables Filipinos to invest with the Philippine Stock Exchange.
“This is where embedded finance goes beyond just inclusion,” Ms. Sy added. “It’s not just about providing access to financial services; it’s about making them work for people [as they] build better financial habits, protect what they earn, and plan for the future.”
Ms. Sy also emphasized the importance of aligning the future of fintech with strategies for ensuring the security and sustainability of innovations.
“At the end of the day, the goal is clear: We must make financial services accessible, safe, and empowering,” she said. “We want to go beyond inclusion and see financial progress in Filipinos, which hopefully can [translate into] financial health and freedom.”
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