Nusatrip Acquired by Vietnamese Technology Company “Society Pass”

Society Pass Inc. (SoPa), a technology company from Vietnam, announced the acquisition of NusaTrip, an OTA startup based in Jakarta. This strategic move also marks the entry of SoPa into the Indonesian market, as companies in other ASEAN countries have done --- with the acquisition of local companies.

NusaTrip is an OTA startup that was founded in 2013. This startup is accredited by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and is a pioneer in one-stop service provider pintu for a wide selection of airlines and hotels for corporate and retail customers in Indonesia. NusaTrip is claimed to have more than 1,2 million users, 500 airlines and 200 hotels worldwide, connecting with more than 80 million unique visitors on his site.

* SimilarWeb data, accessed as of August 15, 2022 at 11.00 WIB

In an official statement delivered today (15/8), SoPa's Founder, Chairman and CEO Dennis Nguyen said the acquisition of NusaTrip is part of the company's growth strategy by expanding into the Southeast Asian market. SoPa combines cutting-edge technology and platform operational efficiency e-commerce travel NusaTrip with its building experience brand.

“With this acquisition, now SoPa integrates six verticals (loyalty, lifestyle, food, telecommunications, digital media, travel) into one platform loyalty and E-commerce cohesion to provide better products and services for consumers and merchant in key markets in Southeast Asia,” said Nguyen.

He continued, this year it is claimed that SoPa is growing rapidly with the ability to seize opportunities to acquire market-leading companies, as well as collaborate with visionary partners, underlining its unique approach as an aggregator, which will immediately produce results in the form of cost optimization and additional revenue sources.

Society Pass Indonesia Country Manager Patrick Soetanto added that the entry of SoPa to Indonesia opens up opportunities for NusaTrip to open more business opportunities in countries in Southeast Asia where SoPa operates. The form can be through product integration travel more diverse and create more competitive offerings for more regional and international users.

The tourism industry is in growth momentum

Currently, the tourism industry is preparing for the growth momentum of travel outbound and inbound which is predicted to continue to increase, as more consumers travel post-pandemic. "This increase is supported by government initiatives to promote tourism, the rise of the middle class economy, and high levels of internet penetration, making it easier for people to book flights and hotels through various OTAs."

NusaTrip founder Galumbang Menak also delivered his statement. He said he was delighted to be a part of SoPa, allowing the company to enter the vast SoPa ecosystem in Southeast Asia. “We are excited about this merging of marketing capabilities,” he said.

He continued, observing the rise of the tourism industry in Southeast Asia in the second and third quarters of this year, the company is optimistic that it can grow its user base more rapidly. Also, offering business travelers and travelers more competitive hotel and airfare booking prices at no extra cost, flexible payment options, and making travel plans more convenient.

When compared to other OTA services, especially those currently leading the Indonesian market, the services offered by Nusatrip are not as complete as theirs. While others are trying to focus on presenting a comprehensive lifestyle experience, Nustarip is still focused on being an OTA with the main product being Flights and Hotels.

Even in terms of experience using the service, the appearance of the existing site is still impressed with the style that was popular about 5 years ago. This is regardless of the performance and the selling price they offer.

For application NusaTrip alone, is currently estimated to have been downloaded by nearly 1 million users. Implying that since its debut, the focus of user service is using the website. They also optimize the mobile web version for users.

About SoPa

SoPa itself is a startup that has been on the floor since November 2021 on the NASDAQ with the code SOPA. The current recorded market capitalization of SoPa is $51,86 million (more than 762 billion Rupiah). The Company operates in Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, with branch offices in Los Angeles, Bangkok, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Manila, Singapore.

SoPa has a business model that focuses on analyzing user data through loyalty platforms, Society Pass, and points turnover universal loyalty, Society Points. The Society Pass platform helps merchants to further increase user acquisition and retain loyal customers.

The presence of Society Points is a step for the company to maintain customer retention in a highly competitive vertical and now requires a connected experience more than ever. Currently, consumers E-commerce demands multiple touchpoints to easily purchase goods and services, earn loyalty points, and refer friends.

The Society Pass's multi-brand ecosystem enables consumers to earn and redeem points across a wide variety of retailers, while facilitating a unified approach to customer rewards and incentives for merchants.

Since its establishment in 2018, SoPa has accumulated more than 3,3 million registered users and more than 205.000 registered merchants/brands on its platform. The company has invested over two years in building a patented IT architecture with cutting-edge components to effectively scale and support consumers, merchants, and acquisitions.

In expanding its business footprint in ASEAN, since the beginning of this year SoPa has been actively acquiring various local startups. Among them, two startups from the Philippines, namely Mangan.ph, a food delivery service provider startup and Pushkart.ph, a daily necessities delivery service provider. Next, enter Thailand through the acquisition of Thoughtful Media Group, a social commerce which offers network premium digital video multiplatform.

Then in June 2022, the acquisition of Gorilla Networks, the network operator mobile devices web3 based blockchain in Singapore, which will later be integrated with the loyalty ecosystem in SoPa. The company also operates other businesses, namely Leflair.com, a platform E-commerce well-known lifestyle and Handycart.vn, an online restaurant delivery service provider, both hail from Vietnam.