FiinResearch, the Research and Consulting Division of FiinGroup, has completed a comprehensive market research on Intermediate Payment Services (IPS) sector to support KB Financial Group (South Korea) in its Series A investment in GPAY in Vietnam

FiinResearch is pleased to announce that its client, KB Financial Group (South Korea) has completed a Series A investment in Gpay, the intermediate payment service arm of G-Group (Vietnam).

In the transaction, Gpay is valued at VND425bn (equivalent to US$18.4mn). Further details of the transaction are not disclosed. 

Licensed by State Bank of Vietnam in April 2020 as an intermediate payment service provider, Gpay is to provide payment gateway, e-wallet and cash collection and payment support services. It aims to provide inclusive financial services and reach 5 million active users by 2023, leveraging the existing 30 million customers of G-Group ecosystem, including peer-to-peer lending platform (Tima), social network (Gapo), digital entertainment and content platform (BEATVN), gaming platform (GTV), cybersecurity services (VSEC) etc.,

Besides the investment in Gpay, KB Financial Group and G-Group also announced to form a joint venture, namely KB Fina, with total investment of VND300bn (equivalent to US$13mn) for Phase 1.

FiinGroup was engaged by KB Kookmin Card (a subsidiary of KB Financial Group) to conduct a comprehensive market research and M&A target screening project on intermediate payment service sector to support them to formulate optimal market entry strategy in penetrating Vietnam market.

Mr. Dong Le, Head of Market Research & Consulting, FiinResearch, commented: “We are delighted to have worked for KB Financial Group to help them get in-depth understanding of intermediate payment service sector in Vietnam as well as consummate this investment transaction. The intermediate payment service market in Vietnam has witnessed an exponential growth in recent years and is expected to continue its momentum in the future thanks to favorable demographics factors (i.e. golden population with a tech-savvy young generation, rising disposal income, improved living standards etc.,), booming e-commerce platforms, strong digital transformation in financial sector. With strong supports and in-depth expertise from KB Financial Group, a leading financial service provider in Korea, we believe that Gpay is well placed to successfully develop its business in Vietnam in the time to come”. 

ABOUT KB FINANCIAL GROUP

KB Financial Group is Korea’s leading financial services provider offering broad range of financial products and services. The Group was founded in 2018 and is currently operating with 13 subsidiaries including KB Kookmin Bank, KB Securities, KB Insurance, KB Kookmin Card, Prudential Life Insurance, KB Asset Management, KB Capital, KB Life Insurance, KB Real Estate Trust, KB Savings Bank, KB Investment, KB Data Systems and KB Credit Information.

In Vietnam, KB Financial Group has established its presence in banking (i.e KB Kookmin Bank Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City branches) and securities services (i.e KB Securities Vietnam Joint Stock Company).

ABOUT G-GROUP

Established in 2016 and headquartered in Hanoi, G-Group is a leading technology group in Vietnam with core business lines in finance and technology sectors with 8 group companies, including Tima (P2P lending platform), Gpay (intermediate payment service provider), Gapo (social network), BEATVN (digital media and entertainment service provider), GTV (specializing in esports, livestream, Idols training, streamers, and game publishing), VSEC (cybersecurity services company), G-Innovations (focusing on R&D of AI, Big Data core technology) and G-Capital (venture capital fund). The estimated number of customers of the ecosystem is around 30 million.

ABOUT FIINGROUP AND FIINRESEARCH

FiinGroup is the leading business information service, market research and consulting firm in Vietnam and has been an associated company of Nikkei Inc. (Japan) since Sep 2014.

Established as a leading independent market research team in Vietnam, the FiinResearch, a research and consulting division of FiinGroup, provides high-quality independent research reports, in-depth analytics and consultancy services across major South East Asia markets in various sectors. In recent years, it has successfully supported so many foreign investors to penetrate and/or expand their business in the Vietnam market.