ShopBack, a Singapore-based startup that gives cashback and shopper rewards in Asia Pacific, has closed a $45 million spherical led by new traders Rakuten Capital and EV Growth.
Founded in 2014, the startup had been comparatively under-the-radar till late 2017 when it introduced a $25 million funding that funded enlargement into Australia amongst different issues. Now, it’s doubling down with this deal which sees participation from one other new backer, EDBI, the company funding arm of Singapore’s Economic Development Board. Shopback has now raised near $85 million from traders, which additionally embody Credit Saison Blue Sky, AppWorks, SoftBank Ventures Korea, Singtel Innov8 and Qualgro.
The funding will see Amit Patel, who leads Rakuten-owned cashback service Ebates, and EV Growth managing accomplice Willson Cuaca, be part of the board. Cuaca is a well-known face since his East Ventures agency, which launched EV Growth alongside Yahoo Japan Capital and SMDV final yr, was an early investor in Shopback, whereas the addition of Patel is doubtlessly very vital for the startup. Indeed, after I beforehand wrote about ShopBack, I in contrast the startup on to Ebates, which was purchased by Rakuten for $1 billion in 2014.
“Ebates brings working expertise within the cashback area,” Henry Chan, ShopBack co-founder and CEO instructed TechCrunch in an interview.
“A lot has changed in the last year and a half, Ebates has a very strong focus on the U.S… given that we’re not competing, it makes sense to partner and to learn,” he added.
The apparent query to ask is whether or not this deal is a precursor to a possible acquisition.
So, is it?
“It is squarely for learning and for growth,” Chan stated in response. “It makes sense for us to partner with someone with the know-how.”
ShopBack operates in seven markets in Asia Pacific — Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, Australia and Indonesia — with a core rewards service that provides shoppers rebates for spending on areas like e-commerce, ride-hailing, meals supply, on-line journey and extra. It has moved offline, too, with a brand new service for locating and paying for meals which initially launched in Singapore.
ShopBack stated it noticed a 250 % development in gross sales and orders final yr which translated to almost $1 billion in gross sales for its service provider companions. The firm beforehand stated it dealt with $400 million in 2017. It added that it usually handles greater than 2.5 million transactions for upwards of seven million customers.
(Left to proper) Henry Chan, co-founder and CEO of ShopBack, welcomes new board member Amit Patel, CEO of Rakuten -owned Ebates [Image via ShopBack]
Chan stated that, for the reason that earlier funding spherical, ShopBack has seen its enterprise in rising markets like Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines take off and eclipse its efforts in additional developed nations like Singapore. Still, he stated, the corporate advantages from the variety of the area.
Markets like Singapore and Taiwan, the place on-line spending is extra established, permit ShopBack to “learn ahead of time how different industries will develop” because the web financial system matures in Southeast Asia, Chan — who began the corporate with fellow co-founder Joel Leong — defined.
Outside of Southeast Asia, Chan stated that ShopBack’s Australia enterprise — launched almost one yr in the past — has been its “most phenomenal market in terms of growth.”
“We’re already superseding incumbents,” he stated.
ShopBack claims some 300,000 registered customers in Australia, the place it stated purchases by means of its platform have grown by 1,300 % between May 2018 and March 2019. Of course, that’s development from a tiny preliminary base and ShopBack didn’t present uncooked figures on gross sales.
For its subsequent enlargement, ShopBack is trying nearer to residence with Vietnam its upcoming goal. The nation is already residence to one in every of its three R&D facilities — the opposite two are positioned in Singapore and Taiwan — and Chan stated the startup is…
