Nium, the global platform for modern money movement, today announced a definitive agreement to acquire Socash, a Singapore-based alternative payments network platform. Socash brings together financial institutions and digital commerce merchants into a thriving network that allows consumers to deposit, withdraw, and make payments with cash from more than 30,000 local shops, cafes, and grocery stores.
The acquisition provides Nium with the team and technology to enable multiple forms of local payment acceptance for digital commerce, especially in emerging markets. Cash is still a preferred method of payment across the Asia Pacific and Latin American markets, and the acquisition of Socash allows Nium to accept cash for transactions online – bridging the physical and digital worlds. Together, Nium and Socash become the full-stack, platform-of-choice for global merchants with capabilities for local acceptance, multicurrency accounts, foreign exchange, and global payouts.
The acquisition is expected to close in Q3 2022, subject to customary regulatory closing conditions.
“The Socash team has built an impressive platform that bridges payments in the digital space with payouts in the physical world,” said Pratik Gandhi, Co-founder and COO of Nium. “When compared to current in-app payment costs, we estimate Socash saves up to 30 percent in commissions paid. With this acquisition, Nium can offer a lower-cost payment processing alternative for digital merchants, spanning local payment acceptance through to global payouts.”
Alternative payment methods (APMs), including e-wallets, real-time bank transfers, and electronic cash have seen a surge in growth globally as an easier way to transact online. According to the World Bank, 45 percent of global consumers already use a mobile wallet, versus 18 percent of consumers who rely on credit cards for payments – online and offline. Cash acceptance for online transactions, from bill payment to in-app purchases, is still a popular use case, especially for 1.7 billion people who the World Bank estimates remain unbanked. This acquisition makes for a more inclusive financial system, where global consumers are given the power to pay as they choose.
