Grab to buy Atome Financial for $1.49B in BNPL push

Grab Holdings ↘ 2.01% announced on Tuesday that it has agreed to acquire a controlling 60% stake in Singapore-based buy-now-pay-later platform Atome Financial for $1.49 billion in cash, marking the ride-hailing giant's largest deal yet as it accelerates its expansion into consumer lending across Southeast Asia.reuters+1

The transaction, structured in two phases, will see Grab take initial control of Atome, with an agreement to purchase the remaining 40% approximately two years after the first phase closes, according to a company press release. The first phase is expected to complete by the third quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals.grab+1

A Two-Phase Deal With Variable Pricing

Under the terms announced Tuesday, $260 million of the $1.49 billion consideration is earmarked as primary growth capital for Atome. The second-phase price will depend on Atome's performance, with a valuation floor of $2 billion and a cap of $4.5 billion, according to Reuters. At least half of the second-phase consideration will be paid in cash.fintechnews+2

Grab will fund the initial acquisition entirely from its existing cash reserves. Atome Financial's management team, led by Jefferson Chen, will continue to run the business after the first phase closes, at which point Grab will consolidate it into its Financial Services segment.grab+1

Scaling Financial Services

Atome operates across Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, offering buy-now-pay-later financing, consumer cash loans, BNPL cards and digital lending. The platform has recorded 25 million cumulative transacted users and works with more than 30,000 brands, with a gross loan portfolio of about $1 billion.fintechnews

Grab President and COO Alex Hungate said Atome's "leading use of AI to underwrite digital lending to millions of users across the region, while managing risk effectively, will help to scale and strengthen Grab's whole ecosystem".grab

Upgraded Targets Signal Confidence

The deal comes after Grab reported its first full-year net profit of $200 million in 2025 on revenue of $3.37 billion. With the Atome acquisition, Grab raised its 2028 targets to $1.7 billion in adjusted EBITDA and compound annual revenue growth exceeding 30% from 2025 to 2028. The financial services segment alone is expected to generate $500 million in adjusted EBITDA and a gross loan portfolio of more than $6 billion by 2028.investors.grab+3

The acquisition follows a string of recent deals by Grab, including its purchase of U.S. investment platform Stash Financial and an agreement to buy Foodpanda's Taiwan business for $600 million.fintechnews