Indonesia's answer to Alibaba and Tencent, ride hailing startup Go-Jek has announced that it is acquiring three startups to expand into payments, savings, and lending. With over 60% of the Inonesian population unbanked, Go-Jek is seeking to accelerate financial inclusion and provide affordable finance alternatives.
Go-Jek said Friday it had bought offline payments service Kartuku, payment gateway Midtrans and saving and lending firm Mapan for undisclosed amounts. "The acquisitions will immediately accelerate the acceptance and market leadership of Go-Pay in the offline space through Kartuku, as well as the online space through Midtrans, while also increasing financial inclusion for the unbanked through Mapan," Andre Soelistyo, president at Go-Jek, said. According to World Bank data, an estimated 2 billion adults have no access to formal financial services. In September, Go-Jek's Soelistyo told CNBC that the company wanted to imitate the successes of Alibaba and Tencent in China with its digital payments offering