Go-Jek acquires three Indonesian fintech startups

• The acquisition brings Kartuku, Midtrans, and Mapan together
• Aims to cement its payment system, Go-Pay

GO-JEK, Indonesia’s leading mobile on-demand services and payment platform, has entered into definitive agreements for the acquisition of three leading fintech businesses to reinforce its leadership in payments.

The acquisitions enable the company to provide an inclusive payment ecosystem for financial institutions, enterprise and SME merchants as well as banked and unbanked consumers.

The acquisitions bring together Kartuku, Indonesia’s leading offline payments processing company; Midtrans, the country’s top online payment gateway; and Mapan, the leading local community group-based saving and lending network.

Through these acquisitions, the company will expand the usage of Go-Pay, cementing its leadership in the digital wallet and independent payment processing space in Indonesia.
Collectively, the businesses currently process close to US$5 billion of debit card, credit card and digital wallet transactions for its users, services providers and merchants.

These acquisitions mark a significant leap forward in Go-Jek’s journey from ride-hailing app to multi-platform technology group that leads in payment services in Indonesia.

Go-Jek chief executive officer and founder Nadiem Makarim says, “Our technology is changing lives throughout Indonesia – it supports the sharing economy and connects buyers, sellers, consumers and savers across the country. From the beginning, we have aimed to make life better for users, which is why we’ve grown to become an important part of the daily lives of millions of Indonesians.

“We are now taking Go-Jek to the next stage. Through the acquisitions announced today, we will be working hand in hand with three likeminded companies who share our vision and ethos. This marks a significant development in our position at the heart of Indonesia’s vibrant fintech industry.”

The chief executives of each of the three acquired businesses will take senior management positions at the Go-Jek Group, with Aldi Haryopratomo of Mapan leading Go-Pay, Ryu Suliawan of Midtrans leading the Group’s merchant platform and Thomas Husted of Kartuku taking on the role of Go-Jek Group chief financial officer.

“We are very excited to welcome Kartuku, Midtrans, and Mapan into the Go-Jek family. We have collaborated with them and followed their progress for a number of years and are looking forward to working together on a shared mission to stimulate economic growth and improve lives through increased financial inclusion in Indonesia.

“This is in line with the Indonesian government’s aspiration for the country to become the largest digital economy in Southeast Asia by 2020,” adds Nadiem.

Today, Go-Jek serves as mobile-based consumer transactional platform in the country with 15 million weekly active users.

It is also Indonesia’s largest ride-hailing, food delivery and instant logistics business and leading digital wallet provider, with 900,000 drivers, more than 125,000 merchants and over 100 million transactions processed through its platform per month.

Go-Jek Group president Andre Soelistyo shares that 2018 will be the year that Go-Pay moves beyond the Go-Jek ecosystem, providing convenient, secure and reliable payments both offline and online.

“The acquisitions will immediately accelerate the acceptance and market leadership of Go-Pay in the offline space through Kartuku as well as the online space through Midtrans, while also increasing financial inclusion for the unbanked through Mapan.

“This approach to finance, implemented by leading home-grown Indonesian technology businesses within Go-Jek Group, will accelerate financial inclusion for millions of Indonesians and stimulate economic productivity throughout the country.”

“When the acquisitions are finalised, the management teams and employees will continue to operate as before, but will benefit from synergies as part of the Group.”

Creating new dimensions

Each of the three acquired businesses will add a new dimension to Go-Jek’s ability to serve Indonesia.

As Indonesia’s largest offline payments company, Kartuku currently serves almost all the top 100 enterprise retailers in the country, operates 150,000 point-of-sales payment devices and has partnerships with nine acquiring banks. It also integrates with issuing banks, e-Money providers and offers value added services such as promotions and vouchers.
The company, founded by Niki Luhur, launched its payment processing business in 2011. It has rapidly expanded its customer base and merchant network since then.

Thomas Husted joined Kartuku in 2015 as CFO and assumed the CEO position one year later.

“Kartuku will focus on the Go-Pay offline use case by integrating acceptance of the mobile wallet into our existing enterprise merchant network.

“Concurrently, Kartuku will work closely with Go-Jek’s services such as Go-Food and Go-Mart to provide offline payment infrastructure to their 125,000 merchants. The goal is to create a ubiquitous offline network for Go-Pay while honoring Kartuku’s long-held mission of furthering cashless society in Indonesia,” said Husted in a statement.

Midtrans was founded by Ryu Suliawan in 2012. Today, Midtrans is the largest online payment processor in Indonesia through partnerships with Indonesia’s banks, airlines, e-commerce retailers and fintech companies.

Midtrans currently works with over 3,000 online merchants processing 18 different local payment methods.

“Midtrans hopes to significantly increase Go-Jek Group’s reach in online payments. Midtrans not only processes transactions, we also have invested significantly in making online shopping safer.

“Our fraud risk engine is utilised by all of partners on our platform and it plays an important role in protecting online consumers and merchants from fraud. We will use our platform and technology to further strengthen Go-Pay’s payment ecosystem,” comments Ryu.

Mapan is a community-based financial network that harnesses the power of Indonesian communities, allowing people to work together to save for quality goods. Over one million families in 100 cities in Indonesia have become members of Mapan.

Aldi Haryopratomo founded the company in 2009, growing it from scratch to the organisation of close to 2,000 employees that it is today.

“By becoming part of the Go-Jek Group, we will accelerate financial inclusion for the unbanked, particularly in rural areas where many of Go-Jek’s existing services might not be widely available.

“Through our community groups, we will also be able to help our members develop more responsible financial habits, which gives them opportunities for a better life,” concludes Aldi.
 

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