Shop Back added buy now, pay later payment option to its portfolio by acquiring Hoolah

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In November 2021, Singapore-based shopping and rewards platform ShopBack announced that the company has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Hoolah. Singapore-based Hoolah operates primarily in the Southeast Asian markets and offers flexible deferred payment options. The acquisition is a part of ShopBack’s business expansion strategy, and with the rising market attractiveness of BNPL in this region, it can turn up to a revenue generation stream for the company in the short to medium term.

The acquisition of Hoolah is expected to support ShopBack to transform the shopping experience of its consumers and its retail partners across the region. Notably, Hoolah has more than 2,000 online and offline retail partners in Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.  

With several synergies between the two innovative platforms, PayNXT360 expects the firms to unlock more value by offering an even enhanced platform with a new set of tools and services for both merchants and consumers. Notably, ShopBack processes more than US$3.5 billion in annual sales for its extensive retail network of 8,000 online and offline retailers. The acquisition also means that more features will be available on the ShopBack platform, thereby evolving it from just a loyalty app for online platforms to enabling transactions with BNPL options.

Some of the other acquisitions made by ShopBack to build its business include Seedly and Ebates Korea. Notably, ShopBack has raised US$126 million to date from investors such as Rakuten, Temasek Holdings, EV Growth, EDBI, and East Ventures.

With the growing adoption of BNPL among consumers globally, PayNXT360 expects more such mergers and acquisitions and strategic partnerships between rewards and BNPL platforms over the next four to six quarters.