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HONG KONG DIGITAL LENDER WELAB EXPANDS TO SOUTHEAST ASIA VIA US$510 MILLION
ACQUISITION OF INDONESIA’S BANK JASA JAKARTA

September 20, 2022 | SCMP | Portfolio
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Hong Kong-based digital financial firm WeLab and partner investors have spent
HK$4 billion (US$509.6 million) to take over an Indonesian commercial bank, with
plans to introduce digital banking services in the Southeast Asian country next
year.

A WeLab-led consortium called WeLab Sky, together with the financial unit of PT
Astra International, an Indonesian conglomerate controlled by Jardine Matheson,
has taken control of PT Bank Jasa Jakarta (BJJ). Each holds 49.56 per cent of
the lender, according to a statement.

BJJ, headquartered in Jakarta and founded more than 40 years ago, operates 11
commercial bank branches in the Indonesian capital, serving individuals and
small and medium-sized enterprises.

WeLab will keep BJJ’s existing operations, but will add digital banking services
to tap Indonesia’s burgeoning population of tech-savvy young individuals and
small companies, said Simon Loong, founder and group CEO of WeLab, in a media
interview.

“Expanding WeLab’s digital banking presence across Asia, first in Hong Kong and
now in Indonesia, has been one of our key strategic moves,” Loong said.

 

Hongkonger Loong co-founded WeLab in 2013. The company has expanded rapidly in
Hong Kong and mainland China. Providing online lending with mainland partners
and virtual banking services in Hong Kong, it serves a total of 50 million
individual customers and 700 corporate customers.

The company launched its virtual bank in Hong Kong in 2020, as one of the first
batch of eight online lenders licensed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. In
Hong Kong, virtual banks cannot have physical branches.

 

“In Indonesia, there is no restriction to ban virtual banks from having branch
networks,” Loong said. “We will explore how to best use the online and branch
network to service customers.”

He said the company’s experience running its Hong Kong virtual bank, including
deposit, loan and wealth-management services, will help its development in
Indonesia.

 

Indonesia’s regulator, the Financial Services Authority, has granted approval
for the acquisition, which WeLab claimed is the largest digital banking merger
in Southeast Asia this year.

WeLab had already acquired 24 per cent of BJJ in December, and the current
expansion of control marks the completion of the deal. “The investment in BJJ is
in line with Astra’s aspirations in financial-services pillars, to become a
leading retail financial provider in Indonesia and support the growth of the
financial-services industry, as well as the economy of Indonesia,” said Djony
Bunarto Tjondro, president director of Astra, in a statement.

 

The WeLab-led consortium comprises existing and new investors, including Allianz
X, Boyu Capital, Horizons Ventures, SCBX Group and TFB (Taipei Fubon Bank)
Capital, the company said.

Loong believes digital banking will be popular in Indonesia, as one study showed
77 per cent of the nation’s 270 million people are underserved by
banks. “Indonesia has a young population, while some youngsters are sole
proprietors who sell products online, or offer driving or delivery services to
customers,” Loong said. “They need digital banking and payment services to
support their businesses.”

 

The digital economy in Indonesia is on the rise. The gross merchandise value of
online shopping is expected to triple to US$124 billion by 2025, compared with
US$44 billion in 2020 and US$8 billion in 2015, according to a November report
by Temasek, Google and Bain & Co.

For its next step, Loong said his company plans to explore opportunities in
other Southeast Asia countries such as Thailand and Vietnam.

Know
more: https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3193016/hong-kong-digital-lender-welab-expands-southeast-asia-us510-million



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