eWallet Startup MoMo Lands $100 Million From Warburg Pincus, Other Investors

Rising eWallet star MoMo is on a roll when it comes to bringing new investors on board.

The eWallet firm, Vietnam’s largest, has pulled in $100 million from a group of six investors co-led by Warburg Pincus and Goodwater Capital, Reuters reported on Wednesday (Jan. 13).

The Hanoi-based MoMo plans to use the cash infusion to finance plans to become a “super-app” and go public in 2025, according to the news service, citing both the company and a source familiar with the deal.

FinTech has been a fast-growing sector in the nation of nearly 100 million, with the coronavirus pandemic, as it has around the world, having pushed shopping activity online and left consumers scrambling for contactless payment options.

The company would not confirm the exact amount, but Reuters cited a source familiar with the deal that pegged it at about $100 million.

MoMo is looking to double its user base to 50 million in the next two years.

“The amount was not disclosed due to our strict agreement with investors but this deal size is somewhat bigger than our previous fundraising of $100 million,” Pham Thanh Duc, MoMo CEO, told the news service.

In particular, MoMo plans to draw upon its new cash stockpile to develop the e-wallet into “an all-in-one smartphone application offering multiple services,” according to Reuters, noting this model has proven successful both in China and Indonesia.

That, in turn, means following in the footsteps of already established “super-apps” like Singapore’s Grab and Gojek in Indonesia.

In addition to Warburg Pincus, other investors behind MoMo’s latest round of capital include “Affirma Capital Singapore PTE, Kora Management, Macquarie Capital and Tybourne Capital Management,” Reuters reported.

“We hope to go public in the 2021-2025 period, possibly in 2025. For us, IPO is a must,” Duc told Reuters of the prospect of an Initial Public Offering, adding it was too early to discuss on which exchanges MoMo might list.