GCash, agrifisheries platform Mayani to offer loans to rural farmers, fisherfolk

They will jointly underwrite and facilitate loans to Mayani’s 144,000-strong network.

Philippine-based payment super app GCash has partnered with agrifisheries platform Mayani to push for financial inclusion amongst small farmers and fishers.

GCash and Mayani will jointly underwrite and jointly facilitate loans for organized farmers and fisherfolk, as well as help them build their credit track record and enhance their capability to meet market demand.

Following this, Mayani intends to integrate its end-to-end proprietary tech stack with GCash.

Established in 2019, Mayani has a grassroots network of over 144,000 organized small farmers and fisherfolks across 7 regions of the Philippines, stretching from the Ilocos region up to the fishing islands and islets of the MIMAROPA region. Their digital agri-fisheries ecosystem, initially funded through grants from ADB and JICA, currently operates three lines: Mayani Farm Direct for market linkage, Mayani Agri-Inputs for seeds, feeds, and fertilizer distribution, and Mayani Fin-Assist for production financing.

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Most recently. Mayani closed a $1.7m seed funding led by agrifoodtech venture capital firm AgFunder, along with other key backers Atlas Ventures, Plug and Play Ventures, Accelerating Asia, and Ocean Impact Organisation.

“By leveraging on modern technology’s financial transformation, agriculture, which is one of the most important industries of our nation, can experience rapid growth and sustainability,” said Tony Isidro, president and CEO of Fuse Lending, the licensed lending arm of Mynt.

Since 2016, Fuse has disbursed over 100 billion pesos ($1.7b) in loans to Filipinos.