Affinity backs Singapore financial SaaS platform

It represents the private equity firm’s first technology investment in Southeast Asia, although the sector is increasingly well represented elsewhere in the regional portfolio.

Affinity has a minority interest in SSG.com, the e-commerce arm of Korea’s Shinsegae Department Store, and a controlling position in online recruitment business JobKorea. Last week, it agreed to sell MedicalDirector, an Australia-based clinic management software developer, via a A$350 million ($257 million) trade sale.

The M-Daq deal, described as a Series D round, sees Affinity join an investor roster that includes Ant Group, EDBI, NTT Communications, Samsung, and Kiwoom-Shinhan. Richard Koh, founder and CEO of M-Daq, told Tech in Asia that the initial cash proceeds are $34.8 million because the round includes secondary shares and not all the new equity has been drawn down.

M-Daq builds over-the-top (OTT) applications to facilitate cross-border business and manage foreign exchange risk. Its software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform processes more than S$10 billion in transactions every year, primarily catering to e-commerce and technology companies, including China’s Alibaba Group and JD.com.

The company’s product suite includes Aladdin, which allows customers to shop in their home currency, while merchants receive payment in their desired currency through a guaranteed foreign exchange conversion service.

It also offers Fliq, which enables local e-wallets to be used to pay merchants in any other country when users travel overseas, a real-time currency conversion-as-a-service engine, and a foreign exchange benchmarking and execution service for ASEAN currencies.

M-Daq claims S$23.2 billion in total transacted volume since inception, of which S$16.2 billion comes from Aladdin. Shoppers have secured savings of S$170.9 million, while selling platforms have realized S$135.7 million in additional revenue streams.

The company received Series A funding in 2010 – the year it was founded – from GK Goh Group, among others, at a valuation of S$25 million after failing to agree terms with GSR Ventures. Two years later, the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and Citigroup offered a Series B term sheet but then fell out with one another, abandoning the deal and leaving M-Daq with close to zero funding.

It re-emerged in 2013 with a S$14.5 million Series B, at a S$95 million valuation, led by GSR. Citi Venture Capital International (CVCI) – now The Rohatyn Group – Kresna Securities, and Vickers Venture Partners also participated. In 2015, M-Daq closed a S$118 million Series C, of which S$30 million was primary capital, at a valuation of S$250 million. EDBI invested around this time.

The company turned profitable in 2018 and secured investments from Samsung, NTT, and Shinhan the following year. The current plan is to pursue inorganic growth and complete an IPO of $3-5 billion before the end of 2024.

“We are excited at the opportunity of partnering with M-Daq’s management to unlock the vast potential of this top-tier global fintech company and support its ambitious growth plans. We are also immediately seeking synergistic areas of collaboration with our existing portfolio companies which are leading players in their respective countries or sectors,” said Benny Lim, head of Southeast Asia at Affinity, said in a statement.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Technology
• Financials
• Expansion
• Singapore
• TMT
• e-commerce
• Growth capital
• Affinity Equity Partners