GCash executives together with top five teams Chrysalis, G Crew, MYNT4U, Team Sasha, and GCash Jedi together with their mentors. The first-ever ImaGination, the GCash Innovation Challenge is Mynt’s feeder program to cultivate young talents from an early stage and stay ahead of the talent market.
December 14, 2021, Manila, Philippines — The country’s undisputed number one mobile wallet empowers the Filipino youth to become well-rounded, globally competitive, and problem-solving specialists through ImaGination: the GCash Innovation Challenge, a three-day case competition for undergraduates in the fields of Marketing, Business, Information Technology (IT), and Engineering. Launched during the fintech company’s sixth year, hundreds of students applied nationwide for a chance to join GCash’s extensive Management Development Program and be at the forefront of the fintech industry as part of GCash’s upcoming line of new projects, products, and services. First, second, and third place winners also received GCash credits worth 60,000, 40,000, and 20,000 respectively and gadgets from Apple, Samsung, and apparel and technology shop 0917 Lifestyle.
Mynt’s leadership team handled the judging of case presentations.
Standing on the shoulder of giants
In a separate knowledge-sharing panel discussion, GCash executives shared their respective GCash stories and introduction to fintech. Inigo Benavides, Head of Advanced Analytics for GCash, said he understands the sentiments of the young talents joining GCash’s first-ever innovation challenge. Benavides was unsure of his career track until he discovered his passion and interest in numbers applied to programming. Rendering his fifth year with the company, he recalled his first project, G Score, in 2017. The program paved the way for G Credit, an inspired project which helped a mother purchase medicine.
Michelle Santos, Head of Automation for GCash has made it her mission to improve the financial system in the country. Being in the automation department, her team deployed bots that helped shorten and save time in solving system processing. It resulted in millions of pesos saved for GCash.
Chito Maniago, Vice President, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs for GCash, has spent the past two decades in various industries including oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, cement, and construction, before ending in fintech. “Personally, fintech is a perfect opportunity to make a difference in the lives of Filipinos. As someone who believes in building a community of learners and learners, through ImaGination, we are looking at the next batch of society movers in the country today, the next leaders of the fintech industry,” Maniago shared.
Never too young to be talented
Top teams presented groundbreaking solutions for GCash to help offer financial independence and inclusion to Filipinos. Team G Crew, composed of Ateneo de Manila University seniors Ryan C. Fernando, Dickinson B. Go, Jay Philbert C. Lui, and June Pauline C. Lui, beat 19 other teams coming from universities and colleges across the country. Other participating educational institutions include the University of the Philippines – Diliman, University of the Philippines – Visayas, University of the Philippines – Cebu, De La Salle University, University of Santo Tomas, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Silliman University, Far Eastern University, Manila Business College, Enderun Colleges, St. Louis University, and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
The competition included a two-day boot camp that took place in November. The activities include collaborative breakout sessions, motivational talks, and mentorship from GCash leaders from various business groups where they explored concepts related to innovation and fintech.
“At GCash, it’s all about making Filipinos’ everyday lives better with financial and lifestyle-related services that are easy to access, easy to understand, and affordable, ” said Martha Sazon, President and Chief Executive Officer of GCash. “The country needs enlightened and empowered youth, such as yourselves, that will participate in nation-building by providing fresh ideas and solutions aimed at improving lives.”
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