Tyme Group Banks $250 Million in Series D Funding Round
Tyme Group, the parent company of local digital bank GoTyme, has secured a total investment of $250 million (about P14.7 billion) in a Series D funding round. In a news announcement on Tuesday (December 17), the company said the investment was led by Nubank, a leading digital services platform, which plunked down a total of $150 million (about P8.8 billion). The investment effectively grants Nubank minority shareholder status in the Tyme Group.
Also participating in the round were M&G Catalyst Fun, which subscribed for $50 million (about P3 billion) and existing shareholders with a further $50 million.
The latest funding round has pushed Tyme Group, which is also backed by China's Tencent, into unicorn status, with a total valuation of $1.5 billion, the company said in a statement. Unicorns are startups valued at more than $1 billion.
Tyme Group operates digital banks in the Philippines and South Africa and currently boasts a total customer count of over 15 million. The company’s global headquarters is located in Singapore and it also has a development hub in Vietnam, where it will roll out its next operation.
GoTyme, its operation in the Philippines launched in 2022, is a partnership with the Gokongwei Group.
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“The strategic investment of Nubank in Tyme will drive GoTyme Bank's next phase of growth and bring us closer to profitability,” Albert Tinio, GoTyme co-CEO, told Esquire Philippines. “We will leverage Nubank's experience in scaling its business and expertise in lending solutions and other impact products in developing customer-centric products and services. Further, we can expand geographically by opening new kiosk locations."
Tyme Group’s hybrid model combines a customer-centric digital platform with physical experiences, delivered in partnership with nationwide retailers through digital kiosks and bank ambassadors. The company’s objective is to offer an affordable banking solution and maintain a lower cost structure than traditional banks.
Digital banks have contributed immensely to financial inclusion in the Philippines. According to data, only 23 percent of Filipinos had a bank account in 2021, but that number increased to 56 percent in 2024. Much of that is thanks to the presence of digital banks, of which there are currently six, including GoTyme, that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has granted a license to operate in the country.
"Since the beginning of Nubank, we have believed that the future of financial services globally is of digitally native companies,” says David Vélez, founder and CEO of Nubank. “We have met dozens of teams across different geographies, and we think that Tyme Group is extremely well-positioned to be one of the digital bank leaders in Africa and South East Asia. We are excited to work with Tyme to share many of our learnings of scaling this model to hundreds of millions of customers."
"Nubank revolutionized financial services and having them as a shareholder will help build rapport to our model, execution and expansion plans, both financially and through business counsel,” said Coen Jonker, Chairman and co-Founder of Tyme. “We are focused on improving the financial lives of millions of people in our region, and we are energized by this round of investments to keep pushing forward.”
Esquire Philippines is published by Summit Media, a company also under the Gokongwei Group.
