Ant-backed Thai fintech firm Ascend Money has hit a $1.5 billion valuation on a $150 million funding round.
Founded in 2013, Ascend Money is Thailand’s only fintech company with a regional presence across six SEA countries - Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
The company operates TrueMoney, a digital payment and financial service platform, which now serves more than 50 million users through its e-wallet application and 88,000 TrueMoney agents. It has also expanded its product portfolio to cover a full range of digital financial services including lending, saving, and investment.
The firm has grown significantly in the past few years. Across the six countries, its total payment volume stood at US$14 billion in 2020. The highest payment volume contribution comes from Thailand with 84% growth between 2019-2020.
New investor Bow Wave Capital Management joins Charoen Pokphand Group and Ant Group in backing the company, which will be used to extend its reach deeper into traditional bank niches and grow its user base.