PayPay Corporation (hereinafter “PayPay”) is pleased to announce that it has concluded an agreement with group company Yahoo Japan Corporation (hereinafter “Yahoo! JAPAN”) regarding the share acquisition of PayPay Card Corporation (hereinafter “PayPay Card”). Accordingly, PayPay Card will become a wholly owned subsidiary of PayPay from October 1, 2022.
Background to the Share Acquisition
Three years and nine months have passed since PayPay launched its cashless payment service “PayPay” in October 2018. Business is rapidly expanding, with the number of users continuing to grow steadily to nearly 50 million and the number of merchant locations 3.74 million*1. In FY2021, the gross merchandise value (GMV) surpassed 5.4 trillion yen and over 3.6 billion payments were made. Looking at the share of QR code payments in Japan, the PayPay app accounts for approximately two-thirds of both the GMV and number of payments, making it the top*2 QR code payment service in Japan.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has announced that the ratio of cashless payments in Japan was approximately 30% in 2021, and has stated that they will aim for 40% by 2025, with a future goal of 80% — one of the highest in the world. While cashless payments have rapidly become more common in recent years, it is still less prominent compared to other developed countries. With the entire country working to promote cashless payments, the business scale of “PayPay” and “PayPay Card” are expected to expand further. In February 2022, PayPay started offering PayPay Atobarai (Pay Later), a service that allows users to pay the amount spent on the PayPay app in a lump sum the following month by linking it to their “PayPay Card,” making it possible to use “PayPay” more conveniently with no need to top up. By making PayPay Card, with its high service affinity, a subsidiary of PayPay, this allows both companies to foster an environment that facilitates faster decision-making and the creation of synergies, thereby realizing further development of the financial services business as well as the future progress of cashless payments. PayPay with its strength in development and marketing and PayPay Card with its expertise in the credit card business, will together provide “PayPay” and “PayPay Card” users an easier-to-use environment that also offers better deals, thereby increasing the number of users and accelerating the shift to making “PayPay Card” the primary card. The entire group will work together to further expand its share in the cashless market.
About PayPay Card (wholly owned subsidiary of PayPay)
Name: PayPay Card Corporation
Established: July 2014
Share capital: 100 million yen (as of March 31, 2022)
Main business: Credit card business
Location: Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho Kioi Tower, 1-3 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
(Fukuoka Headquarters: 4-21-26 Hakata Ekimae, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka)
Number of employees: 718 (as of April 1, 2022)
Representative: Tomoaki Tanida, President & Representative Director
Mitsuhiro Wada, Representative Director
*1. Number of users as of July 2022 and number of merchants as of the end of June 2022 (*the number of merchants is the total number of locations registered with PayPay, including stores and taxis).
*2. The share of “PayPay” was calcualted by PayPay based on the publication by PAYMENTS JAPAN, “Survey on QR Code Payment Usage Trends in Japan in FY2021“.
