Image credit: Recharge.com
Recharge.com, an Amsterdam-based fintech startup, announced that it has launched its services in Australia. The announcement comes four months after the company opened a new office in Lisbon, Portugal.
The Dutch company is rolling out its services amidst regulatory changes in the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) and the gift card sectors.
SMBs prioritise customer and employee engagement as they tackle pandemic.
BNPL in Australia
Recharge.com says around 55M non-cash payment transactions worth $650B (approx €589M) happens every day in Australia.
The nation is also home to AfterPay, a BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) firm, which holds nearly 70 per cent of the market share of BNPL transactions with 16.2M international customers, including 3.3M in Australia.
As per a Reserve Bank of Australia report, BNPL transactions have more than tripled over the past five years.
As a result, Australia’s central bank announced stricter regulation in October, 2021, meaning that firms like AfterPay would no longer be able to stop merchants from passing on surcharges for their services.
Further, the adoption of gift cards skyrocketed during the pandemic, with major employers incentivising staff through providing such cards that employees could use for shopping, entertainment and call credit.
This trend was accelerated by the Australian government’s announcement that gift cards bought after November, 2019, must expire three years after the date of purchase instead of having a one-year validity.
This increased momentum for the gift card sector is set to increase by 12.2 per cent annually, says a report.
The latest development in Australia has cleared the route for Recharge.com, a one-stop-shop for all branded payment needs, including call credit, data bundles, shopping, entertainment, gaming, and prepaid money.
Günther Vogelpoel, CEO of Recharge.com, says, “We are thrilled to be expanding into Australia and to offer consumers safe and smart ways to access a wide variety of services and experiences. The pandemic has increased the human need for connection, often through entertainment and gaming, and we are proud to be helping consumers to access the things that matter to them while remaining secure online and within household budgets.”
Recharge.com: What you need to know
Founded in 2010 by Dirk Ueberbach and Robin Weesie, Recharge.com is currently led by CEO Gunther Vogelpoel, who joined the company in 2017.
The Dutch company makes digital top-up fast, safe and simple for consumers via its partnerships with brands through its online platform, including Apple iTunes, Spotify, Netflix, and many more.
The company aims to improve customer outcomes through the digital platform and disrupt traditional players across the globe. Currently, the company operates in over 150 countries with 120 employees and plans to expand even further this year to include gaming, entertainment, shopping, and prepaid money card products.
To date, the company has raised $70M (approx €63.4M) from investors such as SmartFin, Prime Ventures, Kreos Capital, and Rabobank. Over 3M people use Recharge.com to process over $500M (approx €453M) of payments every year.
Fintech Files Powered by AWS
In the new section Fintech Files, in collaboration with AWS, we are keeping tabs (pun intended) on the thriving fintech industry in the Benelux. Want to learn more about the benefits of the cloud, or talk to one of their experts? Visit AWS Startup Loft to register for the latest events, get free 1:1 support from AWS experts and discover more resources. Build and scale your (fintech) startup with $1,000 in AWS Activate credits, free tools, technical support and training to quickly get started with AWS. Learn more about AWS Startup Loft
How partnering up with Salesforce helped him succeed!
