Fave acquired by Pine Labs for USD 45 million

Singapore-incorporated merchant commerce platform Pine Labs has acquired e-commerce and fintech firm Fave in a cash and equity deal valued at over US$45 million (RM 185,782,500), for joint global expansion, the companies said announced yesterday.

According to a statement released by the companies, Fave’s investors will receive an all-cash payout, while founders and key Fave employees will receive both cash and shares of Pine Labs. The acquisition will help both companies accelerate their growth in the Asia region and unlock massive consumer opportunities across retail, F&B, fashion, and FMCG markets.

“Consumers have tremendous choices in their payment types; they want to be sure that they save on every transaction,” said CEO of Pine Labs, B. Amrish Rau. “Fave helps consumers apply their best rewards, coupons, gift cards and cashbacks on all transactions in a seamless manner. Joel and the Fave team have built a loyal consumer base with their smooth checkout experience and we are excited to partner with them in this journey in South East Asia and India.”

Fave’s founders will have their roles expanded to lead the overall consumer platform for the group across Asia and the company will be hiring over 100 new employees in Southeast Asia and India to accelerate cashless payments and smart savings across the region. 

“Really excited to work with Amrish and the Pine Labs team to continue expanding the Fave platform across the Asia region. Pine Labs has been a great partner and investor for us, and it only made sense for us to join our synergies together and work towards our shared vision of building a truly global consumer and merchant platform,” said Co-Founder and CEO of Fave,  Joel Neoh. “India has the digital advantage with young demography, growing aspirational middle class with rising disposable income and increasing digital savviness and we are confident that the APAC e-payments landscape will continue to achieve exponential growth in the coming decade.”

Fave operates in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, after acquiring Groupon’s businesses in those markets in 2016 and 2017 and will be launching in India this year.