1. Startups

Xendit Reportedly Aiming At Bank Sahabat Sampoerna

Planning to become majority shareholder, acquisition up to 51% in stages

Xendit participated in the roar of digital bank competition in Indonesia. The startup that obtained unicorn status last year is reportedly targeting a majority stake in Bank Sahabat Sampoerna. Source DailySocial.id said that corporate action will be carried out in stages until it finally controls 51%.

DailySocial.id attempted to contact a Xendit representative for a response, but as of this writing no response has been provided.

The acquisition is allegedly a smoothing step for the company through the application its digital bank, Nex. Currently the company is conducting internal trials and opening a waiting list (waitlist) for public. Initial features offered are 6% annual interest paid daily on savings, free admin and transfer fees, and ease of sending and receiving funds. Things that are commonly offered by modern digital banks.

The Nex application is managed by three parties, namely PT Nex Digital Technology, PT Sumber Digital Teknologi (iluma.ai), PT Sinar Digital Ter Depan (Xendit), and their affiliates. Ilum in charge of doing e-KYC and checking credit scores for more seamless pattern. Iluma is most likely part of Xendit because its office is located in the same building as Xendit's headquarters.

Previously, Xendit also owned shares in BPR Xen. Referring to OJK data, BPR Xen (PT Bank Perkreditan Rakyat Xen) was previously named BPR Arthakelola Cahayatama which is located in Depok, West Java.

Xendit co-founder Theresa Sandra Wijaya (Tessa Wijaya) entered as a shareholder in BPR Xen with 0,68% ownership in June 2021. The majority shareholder is PT Indo Digital Raya (99,32%). Theresa increases her stake to 1% in December 2021.

Not much information can be obtained about PT Indo Digital Raya. However, it can be ascertained that it is affiliated with the company due to its location with Xendit's head office. Previously, the company had cast denial involved with BPR Xen.

“Xendit has just entered into a strategic partnership with PT BPR Xen, a BPR located in Depok, West Java. PT BPR Xen and PT Sinar Digital Ter Depan are two separate entities and are not affiliated in ownership," said a spokesperson for Xendit. They also admitted that they are still in the exploration stage regarding how the partnership can have a good impact on MSMEs.

Sampoerna Friends Bank

Separately, in an interview with CNBC Indonesia, Finance & Business Planning Director of Bank Sahabat Sampoerna Henky Suryaputra said that banks are trying to meet the core capital requirement of IDR 3 trillion by the end of this year. The closest option being explored is to accept new strategic investors.

"Most likely there are several strategic investors who are interested in joining Bank Sahabat Sampoerna," Henky said on January 13, 2022.

This action to fulfill core capital is part of the regulator's encouragement through POJK No. 12 of 2020 concerning Consolidation of Commercial Banks to stipulate a minimum core capital of IDR 3 trillion as of December 2022.

Last year, Bank Sahabat Sampoerna had fulfilled a core capital of IDR 2 trillion as of November 2021. This addition was made through direct capital injection from previous shareholders, the presence of new investors, and the accumulation of profits. It did not specify who the new investors were because Michael Joseph Sampoerna through PT Sampoerna Investama remains the bank's controller.

Quote from Cash, referring to the financial report of Bank Sahabat Sampoerna as of September 2021 compared to the report as of March 2021, there is one new investor, namely Sutan Agung Mulyadi, owner of Serba Mulya Group, with a share ownership of 2,96%.

The majority owner is still controlled by PT Sampoerna Investama with 78% ownership.

Bank Sahabat Sampoerna itself is quite active in developing digital products. A number of fintech services have partnered. Most recently they collaborated with KoinWorks to present services KoinWorks NEO, Julo, Indodana, Kredivo (paylater physical credit card), Akulaku, and others.

They also collaborate with various companies payment gateway, such as Xendit, Instamoney, Safecash, and Dhasatra to facilitate various digital transactions.

Previously a number of fintech platforms had taken similar steps to become bank owners, such as Akulaku who is the controller at Bank Neo Commerce, Kredivo which is the majority shareholder in Bank Bisnis Internasional, and Ajaib which has the largest share in Bank Bumi Artha.

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