Country for PR: Japan
Contributor: Kyodo News JBN
Friday, April 02 2021 - 17:00
AsiaNet
Paidy Raises US$120 Million in Series D Round
TOKYO, Apr. 2, 2021 /Kyodo JBN-AsiaNet/--

Paidy Inc., Japan's leading "Buy Now, Pay Later" (BNPL) service provider, is 
pleased to announce that it completed the Series D round of funding by March 
31, 2021, raising a total of US$120 million from JS Capital Management LLC, 
Soros Capital Management LLC, Tybourne Capital Management Ltd., and Wellington 
Management. Since late 2020, Paidy has additionally completed the loan 
facilities set up by upsizing the warehouse facility with Goldman Sachs, newly 
establishing the secured loan facility with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation 
and the other warehouse facility through the syndication led by Mizuho Bank, 
Ltd. This capital increase and additional debt financing from the financial 
institutions bring total capital raising since the company's founding to US$585 
million (of which, equity is US$337 million, one of the largest amounts of 
funding ever raised by a startup in Japan).

(Logo: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/img/202103313114-O1-v8Dv0Gp5)

(Image: 
https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M106563/202103313114/_prw_PI2fl_qt0N0Quw.jpg)


With the corporate mission to "Take the hassle out of your payment and purchase 
experiences," Paidy aims to create an environment where everyone can shop 
wisely and joyfully. With Paidy, customers can settle easily with just their 
mobile phone number and email address, and then pay the accumulated charges the 
following month. Paidy has been used by a large number of customers since the 
launch of the service at the end of October 2014. As of March 2021, the number 
of websites accepting Paidy exceeds 700,000 in Japan and the number of consumer 
accounts exceeds 5 million (*1). Aiming to make the service more convenient, 
Paidy also recently began offering "3-Pay," a service that allows customers to 
split charges into three equal, interest-free, monthly installments, (*2) which 
has been very well received.

The funds raised in the latest round will be used to expand transactions with 
large merchants, develop new services, and strengthen its balance sheet in 
response to the rapid expansion of "3-Pay."

Notes:
(*1) Including Taiwan business
(*2) Interest-free installment payments are available only with account 
transfers or bank transfers.

Russell Cummer, Founder and Executive Chairman of Paidy Inc., commented:
"Having the support of a powerful lineup including our existing shareholder JS 
Capital and Soros Capital of the United States and Tybourne of Hong Kong, and 
Wellington Management, makes me feel very encouraged about the future growth 
potential of a born-in-Japan startup that offers new values to the world. We 
intend to continue expanding our horizons and raising our sights. As our 
payment volume increases and '3-Pay' is used by more and more customers, we are 
strengthening our financial base to secure our growth trajectory as a trusted 
brand and reliable business partner for our merchants."

-Comments from investors participating in Series D:

James Chang, investment partner of JS Capital and Soros Capital (the family 
offices of Jonathan Soros and Robert Soros, respectively):
"As existing investors, we are pleased to support Russell, Riku Sugie and the 
entire Paidy management team with financial and strategic support by co-leading 
this financing round. Paidy's team, brand, technology and network have grown 
tremendously since our initial investment, and we are excited about their 
prospects as a leader in BNPL services for both customers and merchants in 
Japan."

Eashwar Krishnan, Managing Partner of Tybourne Capital Management:
"We are pleased to be investing in Paidy's latest round, following our series C 
investment in the company in Japan. Paidy is building a world-class 
organization in the BNPL space in Japan and we have been very impressed with 
what the company has accomplished even before the recent round of investment 
and are excited about its future. As an investment firm, we are very focused on 
supporting Japanese startups as we believe that these young entrepreneurial 
companies will lead the pace of innovation in the country. We look forward to 
working with Paidy management for many years to come to build an enduring 
company."

About Paidy
Paidy is Japan's pioneer and leading BNPL service with the mission to spread 
trust through society and to give people room to dream. Paidy offers instant, 
monthly-consolidated credit to consumers by removing hassles from payment and 
purchase experiences. Paidy uses proprietary models and machine learning to 
underwrite transactions in seconds and guarantee payments to merchants. Paidy 
increases revenue for merchants by reducing the number of incomplete 
transactions, increasing conversion rates, boosting average order values, and 
facilitating repeat purchases from consumers. Paidy continues to innovate to 
make shopping easier and more fun both online and offline.
https://paidy.com/

Source: Paidy Inc.