Indonesian Unicorn Go-Jek Acquires Majority Stake in Filipino Crypto Wallet

Indonesian unicorn Go-Jek has announced a partnership between the company’s payments platform, Go-Pay, and Filipino cryptocurrency wallet Coins.ph. Local media has reported that the deal will see Coins.ph continue to run as usual, despite Go-Jek now owning a majority stake in the company.

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Go-Jek Announces Partnership With Coins.ph

Go-Pay, the payments platform of Indonesia’s largest on-demand service platform, Go-Jek, has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Filipino wallet provider Coins.ph.

While specific details regarding the deal have not been officially disclosed, Manila Standard reported that the deal will include a “substantial acquisition” of shares by Go-Jek, giving the country a majority stake in Coins.ph. Citing two undisclosed industry sources, Techcrunch has reported that the deal saw Go-Jek pay $72 million for the shares.

Launched in Jakarta in 2011, Go-Jek now comprises Indonesia’s largest on-demand multi-service platform, with Krasia estimating the company’s most recent funding round to have boosted Go-Jek’s valuation to between $8 billion and $10 billion. More than half of all transactions processed by Go-Jek are conducted through Go-Pay.

Coins.ph has grown to support a customer base of over 5 million in less than five years of operating, with the company claiming to have processed 6 million cryptocurrency transactions during the month of December 2018.

Many Filipinos Lack Access to Basic Financial Services

The two companies have their eyes set on the Filipino market, where 77 percent of adult citizens do not have bank accounts. While few citizens have access to financial services, nearly 70 percent of Filipino citizens use mobile phones – a confluence of demographics that many analysts believe makes the Filipino market ripe for widespread cryptocurrency adoption.

Ron Hose, the founder and chief executive officer of Coins.ph, stated: “In just a few years, our team has been able to build a scalable service extending financial services to millions of Filipinos … Together we have a tremendous opportunity and by leveraging Go-Jek’s resources and expertize, we can give Filipinos even more convenience, choice, and access to the services they want.”

Aldi Haryopratomo, the chief executive officer of Go-Pay, stated: “We are excited to work with Coins.ph, a company that shares our ethos of empowering communities by bringing more people into the digital economy. Consumer transaction behavior in Indonesia and Philippine share many similarities, and together with Coins.ph, we hope to have similar success in accelerating cashless payments in the Philippines.”

What is your response to Go-Jek’s acquisition of a majority stake in Coins.ph? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

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