Fintech Krip acquired by Singapore’s HeyMax to accelerate regional expansion

In an effort to speed up regional expansion, HeyMax, a Singapore-based loyalty and travel rewards platform, announced that it has acquired krip, a fintech company with integrated credit card benefits based in Hong Kong.

As part of its regional expansion, the pair said in a statement that the move expedites HeyMax’s entry into Hong Kong’s loyalty and rewards market.

The purchase also prepares the way for HeyMax’s formal debut in Hong Kong in the upcoming months, where local users and visitors will have access to the platform’s expanding rewards network.

“This is a strategic step forward in our mission to make travel more accessible through everyday spending. The krip team brings deep domain expertise in Hong Kong’s loyalty and rewards space, along with strong local relationships and business to business (B2B) insights that are critical as we expand across the region,

“With Hong Kong and Singapore as core markets, this acquisition accelerates our presence in a key financial and travel hub, and sets the foundation for new global partnerships that bring even more value to consumers across Asia,” said Joe Lu, Chief Executive Officer and Cofounder of HeyMax.

When Krip was introduced in 2022, its goal was to make it easier for customers to find and use credit card rewards and benefits in order to help them spend less.

Over 6,000 credit card offers from over 3,000 retail merchants have been compiled by the platform thus far, giving users a customized experience to manage all of their cards in one location.

Krip supports an estimated $7.4 billion in additional card spending annually by helping financial institutions increase customer loyalty.

Its clients including livi Bank, Grantit, and other financial institutions and retail partners.

“At krip, our mission has always been to empower consumers to spend smarter. By helping consumers realize more value from their everyday spend, we have unlocked new ways of how
financial institutions, retail merchants and consumers can better interact with each other to maximize engagement and loyalty in the digital age,

“Joining forces with HeyMax opens up exciting opportunities for us to deliver on our mission and to realize our mutual vision to bring greater value to consumers at scale,” said David B. Wang, former Chief Executive Officer and Founder of krip.

Wang will join HeyMax as the Global Head of Loyalty Partnerships and General Manager of Hong Kong as part of the acquisition. In this role, he will oversee local market strategy and assist in the expansion of global partnerships.

Additionally, Benjamin Quinlan was named Senior Advisor of Financial Services Partnerships.

Quinlan, who previously served as Chairman of krip, joins HeyMax as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner of Quinlan & Associates. Quinlan brings to HeyMax a wealth of experience in the financial services and fintech industries throughout Asia.

After the acquisition, the Krip brand will be retired, and important team members will be incorporated into the larger company.

According to the statement, the acquisition also shows how strong Hong Kong’s fintech innovation pipeline is.