Malaysian fintech firm ATX to be acquired by ASX-listed Novatti for up to US $7.4 M

Novatti Group, an ASX-listed Australian fintech startup, has announced the acquisition of ATX Fintech Holding, a Malaysian digital payments provider.

Novatti will pay a minimum of A$8.4 million (US $6.2-7.4 million) for all of ATX’s issued share capital.

Due diligence and regulatory clearances are still pending on the transaction. By the end of next month, the two firms hope to have completed the transaction.

Since 2015, Novatti has been a partner of ATX, providing solutions for issuing, acquiring, processing, and invoicing.

According to a release, Novatti will be able to leverage its network and resources to scale the existing ATX company in Malaysia, add new services like as billing, and extend across Southeast Asia.

In addition, ATX’s client base might benefit from the inclusion of other value-added goods.

Novatti will gain access to ATX’s leadership team and existing innovative solutions and technology, including its e-wallets, as well as access to an established network of 30,000+ payments touchpoints across Malaysia, providing an on-the-ground presence in Southeast Asia for further expansion (including leveraging Novatti’s partnerships with other fintech leaders, such as Ripple).

Novatti made the news after closing a Series A financing of A $10.5 million (US $7.8 million).

ATX was founded in 2011 by Sashie Kumar and Kelly Koh to provide digital payment services to traditional retail shops and kiosks, such as third-party bill and product payments.

PayHub (B2B payments aggregator), GoPay (B2C digital wallet), MyPOSPay (B2B2C platform for conventional shops), and RuncitHero are among ATX’s B2B and B2C brands (B2B2C online marketplace for grocers).

ATX claims to have made A$3 (US $2.2) million in normalised yearly revenue in FY21.

Novatti MD Peter Cook said, “The acquisition will not only provide Novatti with a strong business in Malaysia but also provides a platform to continue our expansion in Southeast Asia, where we see increasing growth in digital payments. This growing demand has already supported some of Novatti’s other recent activities in the region, including the expansion of our partnership with Ripple into Thailand, after launching in the Philippines earlier this year.”