Grab agrees $1.49 billion deal for majority stake in Atome Financial

Grab has agreed to acquire a 60% stake in Atome Financial for $1.49 billion in cash. The transaction would give the Singapore-based technology group control of one of the larger buy now, pay later platforms operating across Southeast Asia.

Atome Financial is active in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand. The company has served 25 million cumulative transacted users across its markets.

Grab expands its financial services business

The transaction would combine Atome's AI-powered financial services business with Grab's existing financial products. Atome's offering includes BNPL loans, consumer cash loans, BNPL cards and digital lending.

Grab already operates across payments, digital banking, partner lending, insurance and consumer lending. The acquisition would deepen the group's lending capabilities while expanding its access to Atome's merchant and customer base.

Atome has attracted major financial sector investors

Atome has previously received significant backing from financial institutions. In 2021, Standard Chartered invested $500 million in the platform as part of its expansion into the Asian BNPL market.

The company has since developed a broader consumer finance offering beyond traditional instalment payments. Its product portfolio now covers several forms of digital credit and lending.

Grab plans to acquire the remaining stake later

The acquisition of the initial 60% stake is expected to close by the third quarter of 2027. Grab has also agreed a structure that would allow it to acquire the remaining 40% two years later.

The second stage will be based on a performance-linked framework. Under that arrangement, Atome would be valued at between $2 billion and $4.5 billion.

Deal targets growth in lending and merchant services

Grab expects the transaction to accelerate the growth and profitability of its financial services segment. The group also sees opportunities to use Atome's merchant network as part of its wider financial services strategy.

Alex Hungate, president and COO, Grab, says: "The proposed transaction accelerates the growth and profitability of our financial services segment by deepening our consumer lending capabilities and unlocking opportunities for us to serve Atome’s large merchant network."