Acquisition of BillDesk will see PayU become one of the leading online payment providers globally, handling a total payment volume (TPV) of US$147 billion. Deal will bring Prosus’s cumulative investment in Indian tech to more than US$10bn.
Prosus N.V. announced today that an agreement has been reached between PayU and the shareholders of the Indian digital payments provider BillDesk to acquire BillDesk for US$4.7 billion.
The proposed acquisition will see PayU, the payments and fintech business of Prosus which operates in more than 20 high-growth markets, become one of the leading online payment providers globally by total payment volume (TPV).
PayU focuses on high-growth markets and operates across three distinct businesses:
. Payments for domestic and cross border transactions . For the financial year ended March 2021, PayU reported a strong performance, increasing TPV 51% year-on-year to US$55bn across India, Latin America and EMEA;
. Credit solutions for consumers and small businesses. Licensed in India and distribution agreements in five other markets;
. Strategic investments in innovative fintech companies.Including Remitly in the US and the building of a full financial services ecosystem in India.
BillDesk, founded in 2000, is an Indian success story and one of the leading payment businesses in the country.
The transaction, which is subject to approval from the Competition Commission of India, builds on previous successful acquisitions by PayU in India, including CitrusPay, Paysense and Wibmo.
Bob van Dijk, Group CEO of Prosus, said: “We have a long and deep relationship with India, having supported and partnered with some of its most dynamic entrepreneurs and new tech businesses since 2005. We’ve invested close to US$6 billion in Indian tech to date, and this deal will see that increase to more than US$10 billion.
“Along with classifieds, food delivery, and education technology, payments and fintech is a core segment for Prosus, and India remains our number one investment destination.”
M N Srinivasu, Co-founder of BillDesk, said: “BillDesk has been a pioneer in driving digital payments in India for well over a decade. This investment by Prosus validates the significant opportunity in India for digital payments that is being propelled by innovation and the progressive regulatory framework put into place by the Reserve Bank of India, India’s central bank.
According to the FY21 annual report of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the number of transactions for digital retail payments has grown by more than 80% from 24 billion in 2018-19 to 44 billion to 2020-21.
Over the next three years, RBI expects more than 200 million new users to adopt digital payments with the average annual transactions per capita rising tenfold from 22 to 220.
PayU India and BillDesk run complementary businesses within India’s digital payment industry. Together, the two expect to create a financial ecosystem handling four billion transactions annually – four times PayU’s current level in India.
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