Jaja Finance, a UK-based fintech startup, announced on Friday it has entered into in agreement to acquire credit card accounts for Bank of Ireland UK. Jaja reported as part of a consortium of funds affiliated with Centerbridge Partners LP and KKR it will acquire the existing Bank of Ireland UK, Post Office and the AA credit card accounts for an initial cash consideration of £530 million.
“The acquisition forms part of Jaja’s strategy to scale its UK credit card business by working in partnership with other financial institutions and consumer brands. This acquisition will build on Jaja’s portfolio which includes its own brand credit card, and a point of sale financing solution with ASDA’s George.com.”
While sharing more details about the partnership, Neil Radley, CEO of Jaja Finance, stated:
“This announcement with Bank of Ireland UK is an exciting and important development in Jaja’s journey and is part of our strategy to create partnerships that will help more people embrace a simpler way of managing credit. Our vision is to enable a new generation of mobile-first credit card products with unrivalled functionality, service and security. We’re excited to be welcoming Bank of Ireland UK customers as cardholders.”
Bank of Ireland UK CEO, Des Crowley, also commented:
“Jaja is an innovative company which shares our commitment to delivering outstanding customer service. We are proud to partner with them and bring their next generation credit card to customers across the UK. Today’s announcement demonstrates the Bank’s continued progress in delivering against its strategic targets for growth and transformation to 2021, as set out at its Investor Day in June 2018.”
Jaja then reported that the Bank’s customers can continue to use their credit cards as normal and will still have access to the same dedicated Customer Help & Support Service. Customers will be written to prior to the transfer of their credit card account to Jaja in 2020.
As previously reported, Jaja Finance was founded in 2016 and is on a mission to create “beautiful simplicity where there is needless complexity.”
“We believe your money should be as fluid as your life. And the credit card as we know it is anything but. It’s a product that is traditionally overly complicated, loaded with hidden fees and cumbersome to manage. It just makes no sense to us. In a world where you can Uber a taxi or Deliveroo your next meal – why can’t you manage your credit card in the same way – at the touch of a button, in an instant.”
