According to media reports, Intuit will pay more than $80 million for TradeGecko, with the transaction expected to close in September
Silicon Valley-based fintech giant Intuit has entered into an agreement to acquire Singaporean SaaS startup TradeGecko, which develops online inventory and order management software for SMEs, Intuit announced in a blog post on Monday.
The deal is valued north of $80 million, making it one of the biggest Singapore exits this year, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources.
As part of the deal, which is expected to close in September this year, TradeGecko’s co-founders will join the Intuit team and play integral roles in the product and team integration, according to the statement.
Intuit developed QuickBooks, an accounting and bookkeeping software, which will be integrated with TradeGecko’s inventory and order management system, allowing sellers to run and grow their business from a single platform, the statement said.
Incorporating TradeGecko’s capabilities into QuickBooks Online will allow QBO customers to launch and manage products across multiple online and offline sales channels, manage orders and inventory fulfilment across multiple inventory locations and channels, synchronize inventory across online and offline channels, avoid stock-outs and access real-time insights, the statement said.
Founded in 2012 by CEO Cameron Priest and CTO Bradley Priest, TradeGecko currently serves customers in over 100 countries, who transact more than $3.7 billion value of goods through its platform, according to the startup’s website.
Cameron said, “Our mission is to enable entrepreneurs to build the business of their dreams, and partnering with QuickBooks will allow us to empower millions of small businesses.”
In January, the startup had laid off nearly 30% of its employees after limited revenue growth despite amped up sales and marketing efforts, Tech In Asia reported in January, citing anonymous sources.
Alex Chriss, EVP and GM of QuickBooks said, “Small businesses around the world are struggling to survive in this rapidly changing environment.”
“The need for a single tool that can reduce operational complexity for product-based businesses is acute. Integrating TradeGecko’s capabilities into QuickBooks Online will give our small business customers new paths to growth,” he added.
Quickbooks is a global platform of integrated services that allow companies to get paid fast, manage capital, and pay employees, and currently partners with more than 7 million small business across the globe.
The global pandemic has negatively impacted businesses worldwide, with SMEs and startups bearing the brunt of it with limited runway.
According to the statement, Quickbooks has helped its customers obtain more than $1 billion in SBA-funded PPP loans since the start of the pandemic.
Several VCs have predicted that mergers and acquisitions will intensify during the period as smaller businesses scramble to survive and bigger companies look to acquire intellectual property and expand products and services through consolidation, and Intuit’s acquisition of TradeGecko is the latest example.
However, Intuit’s $7 billion takeover of Credit Karma, a startup that launched a free tax prep offering to rival Intuit’s TurboTax, is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice (DOJ) because it could allow a dominant player to snuff out a competitor with an innovative business model, according to a report by ProPublica.
While the DOJ has requested for additional information from both companies at this point, it has the power to block the deal in case allegations are proved.
Header image courtesy of Intuit
