AGTech enters Fintech sector as Macau Pass acquisition closes
China-based lottery hardware provider AGTech has completed its acquisition of payments business Macau Pass Holdings.
The deal will allow AGTech to enter the fintech business with a focus on the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macau Greater Bay Area, with Macau Pass becoming an AGTech subsidiary.
Macau Pass issues the Macau Pass Card, which was the first and is the most commonly used contactless payment card in Macau, with more than 3 million active cards in issue. The card was initially used for buses but is now accepted by a wide range of businesses.
In addition, the business owns the online payment platform MPay, which is used by more than 90% of adult Macau residents.
“As a local business, Macau Pass’s years-long investment in the community and economy of Macau has borne fruitful results, and is fully recognized and highly appreciated by AGTech,” AGTech chairman and chief executive Sun Ho said. “Over the years, Macau Pass has been actively involved in the local fintech industry, expanding its e-payment applications to different levels of Macau people’s daily lives.”
Sun added that, as part of AGTech, he hoped Macau Pass could help transform Macau through further payment innovations.
“AGTech shares Macau Pass’s ideology of services-oriented livelihood,” he continued. “While enabling a stable transition of Macau Pass into the AGTech business, we will cooperate with the local government to turn Macau into a smart city of the 21st century.
“Through innovation, we will strive to facilitate the integration of MacauPass, and will invest more resources into integrated payment scenarios that combine online and offline payments, as well as to create a hybrid platform that integrates mobile payment, e-commerce and local services for users and merchants.”
Sun added that he believed Macau Pass - the first payment platform based outside of mainland China to be approved for use on the mainland - would also help to deepen the level of integration between Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macau.
The deal to acquire Macau pass was first announced in October, and last week AGTech announced that it had received all necessary approvals for the deal to close.
At the time the deal was agreed, AGTech said the acquisition would create “tremendous” synergies to its existing business, particularly in terms of its mobile games and entertainment and the supply of non-lottery hardware businesses.
Earlier this week, AGTech announced that its revenue rose 56.7% to HK$253.2m (£24.5m/€29.3m/€32.4m) in 2021. Lottery hardware sales made up the majority of AGTech’s revenue, with this total rocketing 129.1% to HK$168.0m.