SUMMARY
The acquisition marks NTT DATA's foray into India's payments market
NTT DATA will help Atom provide cross-border payments
Atom aims to further broaden its customer base globally
Tokyo-headquartered IT services provider NTT DATA has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Mumbai-based Atom Technologies, an end-to-end payment service owned by 63 Moons Technologies. The terms of the deal are yet to be disclosed.
Dewang Neralla, CEO, Atom Technologies said, “At Atom, it has always been our endeavor to offer world-class payment services to our customers and our association with NTT DATA will help us evolve into our next phase. We look forward to greater synergies and to implement NTT DATA’s global learning into the Indian markets and thereby further enhance the payments ecosystem in the country.”
The deal marks NTT DATA’s foray into the rapidly expanding Indian payments market. With this deal, the company aims to strengthen its business presence in the South Asian markets. With a revenue of $19 Bn, it has a presence in over 50 countries and employs more than 1,20,000 people worldwide. It claims to have a pan-Asian focus on digital payments, having acquired companies in Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Thailand, and is expected to play a pivotal role in its expansion strategy.
Isao Arima, Senior Vice President at NTT DATA believes that Atom has a substantial presence in both brick-and-mortar and online payment sector in India. “Our payment business in Japan, as well as South East Asia, will help Atom provide cross-border payment services to their merchants. Moreover, our customer base and development capability will allow Atom to upward its growth trajectory,” he added.
In the recently concluded 13th India-Japan annual summit, the prime ministers of both countries worked to further strengthen bilateral economic trades and strived to push a digital partnership wherein leading corporates from both countries could foster a collaborative economic environment.
Atom, launched in 2005, is India’s first company to have created a multi-channel payments platform covering PoS, online, IVR as well as mobile. This partnership will help Atom leverage NTT DATA’s presence across the globe and emerge as a large global payments entity. Utilising NTT DATA’s relationship across the spectrum, Atom aims to further broaden its universe of customers both in India and globally.
“The company has grown exponentially over the years and has great potential to grow further. In line with the strategy of 63 moons to exit from the market ecosystem, we were looking for a reliable partner that would elevate our institution to greater heights,’ Rajendran, MD and CEO of 63 moons technologies said.
It’s not the first high-profile acquistion in the Indian fintech space. Earlier in 2018, Naspers-backed PayU, a Gurugram-based payment service provider acquired fintech company Citrus Pay for $130 Mn. Later, in May 2017, US-based Ebix Inc. acquired 80% stake in Mumbai-based fintech company Itzcash for $123 Mn and rebranded its Indian subsidiary as EbixCash.
