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Chronicles

The story behind the story

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Grab agrees to acquire a 60% stake in Singapore-based BNPL platform Atome from Advance Intelligence Group and others for $1.49B; Atome had $470M in 2025 revenue

Grab Holdings Ltd. agreed to buy a majority stake in Singapore-based buy-now-pay-later platform Atome Financial for $1.49 billion …

Bloomberg Olivia Poh

Context & Ripple Effects

Atome entered the market's view with a $400 million Series D led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 in 2021, when its owner Advance Intelligence was valued at $2 billion. Reports five days ago that Grab was negotiating a majority purchase have become a signed transaction.

The deal extends Grab's acquisition-led push into financial services after its agreement to acquire U.S. fintech Stash Financial in February. Atome reported $470 million in 2025 revenue, giving the purchase a material operating business rather than only a lending product proposition.

First-order effects

  • Grab gains a controlling 60% interest in Atome Financial for $1.49 billion, placing the BNPL and digital-lending platform under its control.
  • Advance Intelligence Group and the other sellers convert a majority holding in Atome into cash while retaining the minority stake not being acquired.

Second-order effects

  • Grab adds Atome's BNPL and lending operation to an acquisition program that already includes Stash Financial, making financial services a more prominent part of its dealmaking portfolio.
  • Atome's remaining minority owners will operate alongside a controlling shareholder whose priorities and capital allocation will shape the platform's next phase.

Third-order effects

  • If Grab continues using acquisitions to assemble financial-service assets, Southeast Asian platform expansion may rely more on buying established specialists than on building each product internally.
  • The transaction points to a more consolidated BNPL market structure, in which independent lending platforms become potential acquisition targets for larger consumer platforms.

The trend: Consumer platforms are using acquisitions to bring regulated financial products and established revenue bases inside broader ecosystems.

Discussion

  • Anthony Tan Anthony Tan on linkedin
    I'm excited to share that Grab is acquiring a controlling interest in Atome Financial, a leading consumer BNPL and digital lending platform in Southeast Asia. …