US Expense Management Startup Ramp Expands into Europe with Strategic Acquisition
Ramp, a burgeoning player in the expense management sector, has underscored its European aspirations by acquiring a payment firm based in London and Stockholm.
This strategic maneuver positions Ramp to compete directly with US rival Brex, which is also venturing into the European market.
Valued at a staggering $32 billion, Ramp has taken a significant step by acquiring the fintech company Billhop. This acquisition marks Ramp’s inaugural foray into international markets, establishing new offices in both London and Stockholm.
Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Stockholm, Billhop is a payment infrastructure firm that employs approximately 15 individuals and operates across the EEA and the UK.
While financial specifics of this transaction remain undisclosed, Billhop is renowned for its innovative technology that facilitates the swift payment of business invoices, even for vendors who do not accept card payments.
Billhop holds a Payment Institution license from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as well as the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finansinspektionen), granting it passporting rights across the European Economic Area.
Ramp, on the other hand, offers a comprehensive solution that integrates payments, corporate cards, vendor management, procurement, travel booking, and automated bookkeeping.
Nearly half of Ramp’s clientele engages in international transactions across over 180 countries weekly.
By assimilating Billhop into its operations, Ramp aims to bolster its capacity to assist businesses throughout the UK and EU.
With a customer base of 50,000, Ramp plans to commence onboarding UK and EU-based companies directly this summer.
Eric Glyman, Ramp’s co-founder and CEO, expressed enthusiasm regarding the acquisition: We’ve spent years building Ramp into a tool that ambitious US companies depend on.
This summer, for the first time, businesses headquartered in the UK and EU will be able to utilize Ramp directly.
In their inaugural year, the typical Ramp customer realizes a 5% savings and a 16% revenue increase. Europe is home to exceptional companies, and we are eager to engage.
Niklas Bothén, CEO of Billhop, added: At Billhop, our mission has always been to alleviate friction in B2B payments, simplifying expense management for businesses.
Aligning with Ramp enables us to actualize this vision on a broader scale. Together, we can facilitate faster, more intelligent, and less complex money transfers across countries and currencies.
Ramp’s expansion reflects its ambition to position itself as a notable competitor to Brex, which was recently acquired by the financial services titan Capital One for $5.15 billion.
Before its acquisition by Capital One, Brex announced plans to expand into Europe, having secured a license that allows it to cater to European businesses and intends to roll out its services across the EU and the UK.
Source link: Tech.eu.
