Pan-Asian fintech WeLab is to acquire a commercial bank in Indonesia to complement its Hong Kong-based virtual bank.
WeLab investors have contributed $240 million towards the acquisition of PT Bank Jasa Jakarta, which will be relaunched as a fully digital bank serving the country's unbanked population in the second half of next year.
WeLab already has over 150,000 digital banking customers since running WeLab Bank in Hong Kong in 2019. It has also an established presence in Southeast Asia since 2018 through a joint venture with Astra International to operate a licensed online lending app, Maucash, which counts more than three million Indonesian users.
For this transaction, a WeLab-led consortium, Welab Sky Limited has already completed the strategic investment for a 24% stake in BJJ. The remaining stake for majority control will be completed upon obtaining the relevant regulatory approvals.
Simon Loong, founder and group CEO of WeLab, says: “We continue the journey that we started in 2018 to build one of the first pan-Asian digital banking platforms, first in Hong Kong and now in Indonesia. WeLab combines its advanced digital banking technology with the BJJ network to further grow the bank’s business towards a bright digital future."