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20 Things You Didn't Know About Prosus

financial technology

Prosus is an international internet assets company that is a division of the larger multinational company called Naspers, of South Africa. It is a global investment group that has grown to become the largest European consumer internet group. Additionally, it is one of the biggest investors in technology on the planet. If you're not familiar with this successful startup here are 20 things you probably didn't know about Prosus.

1. Prosus holds a large portfolio of international firms

Prosus specializes in investing in multinational businesses. It possesses a portfolio of investments that is diverse, including food delivery systems, and fintech operations within the international internet industry. The total amount of products and services that its investments and businesses provide serve people across 89 markets to the tune of over 1.5 billion consumers.

2. Prosus N.V. is a Dutch company

According to Wikipedia, Prosus was originally founded in The Netherlands. It is a global company that is an extension of a larger parent company originating in South Africa. The startup is mostly owned by Naspers, which is Europe's third-largest consumer internet company by the value of its assets. Although heavily tied in with South Africa and The Netherlands, it serves clients around the world.

3. Prosus is a public company

Prosus is a publicly traded enterprise that offers shares in its stock for purchase, trade, and sale. The ordinary shares of Prosus stock were listed on the Euronext Amsterdam and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on September 11, 2019. when Prosus made its debut on the stock exchange, it was reported that the prices soared, even though trading was conducted at a significant discount to its portfolio value. If you're looking to diversify your portfolio, you can find these shares available.

4. Prosus covers the gamut of internet platforms for multiple industries

The Prosus group has expanded into multiple industries. It has multiple companies that are publicly listed companies. Prosus owns a subsidiary in e-commerce under the ticker symbol OLX, its Fintex subsidiary PayU, and under food delivery,iFood, Delivery Hero, and Swiggy. It owns the retail subsidiary eMag, Ctrip under travel, Bykea for Mobility, and Codeacademy, Stack Overflow, Brainly, and Udemy under the EdTech category. It's also the largest shareholder of Tencent, and Mail.ru Group in the social internet platforms.

5. Prosus is listed under three main industries

According to Crunchbase, Prosus is listed as a finance enterprise. It is also categorized s financial services and a venture capital company. It goes under a few different names. Prosus Ventures is the name of the venture investing arm of Prosus which is a global consumer internet group as well as a large global technology investor. Another name that it is known by is Prosus Ventures Portfolio Companies. It is a sub-organization of Prosus & Naspers.

6. Prosus is still a young company

Prosus hasn't been in operation for long. The company was founded in 2015. It's only been active for just 6 years as of 2021. This makes its rapid growth and expansion even more impressive as it has grown in just a few years to be a global leader in the financial and venture capital categories with multiple holdings for its internet platform. The company has its headquarters based in Cape Town, South Africa with offices in The Netherlands (Holland).

7. The leader of Prosus Ventures is Eoin Ryan

Eoin Ryan is the Head of Investor Relations for Prosus Ventures. He currently works two jobs for the company at one time. In addition to his job at Prosus Ventures, he is simultaneously the Head of Investor Relations at Naspers. Before that, he was the senior vice president of financial planning and analysis investor relations at AOL. He was named the Head of Investor Relations at Prosus Ventures in September of 2019, and of Naspers in October 2018. Mr. Ryan works out of the New York office of Prosus.

8. Prosus has a 22-member core executive team

The executive team that makes up the core leadership for Prosus is made up of 11 members. Aileen O'Toole is the Group Chief People Officer. Emily Barker is the head of legal and corporate. Nikolaus Tacke is the head of corporate affairs in Europe. Prajna Shanna is the global head of sustainability and vice president at Prosus Group and Naspers Limited. Rem Veen is the vice president of human resources at Prosus Group Karthik Sivan is a strategy director. Katrin Marbus is a strategy director. Quintin Lourens is a financial controller. Ran Hu is a food division controller.

9. Prosus has made 3 diversity investments

Prosus Ventures has made 3 diversity investments. The most recent was made on August 25, 2021, in a company called Biome Makers, which raised $15 million in a round of Series B funding. The company is Hispanic-led. On July 21, 2021, Prosus Ventures invested in a woman-founded and women-led company called SoloLearn. $24 million was raised in a round of Series B funding. On October 27, 2020, Prosus Ventures invested in women who founded a company called Honor, in a round of Series D fundraising which raised $140 million. Prosus has made a total of 37 large investments and it has served as lead investor in 24 funding rounds for various organizations.

10. Prosus has made two acquisitions

Prosus is a major stakeholder in dozens of different companies, but there are a few that it has completely purchased. On June 5, 2021, it bought a company called GoodHabitz for a price of $257 million. On June 3, 2021, it purchased a company called Stack Overflow for a whopping $1.8 billion. There is a distinction between the companies that it invests in and those that it has acquired. The two companies acquired in 2021 contribute to the expansion of the size of Prosus and they also help it to expand further into the regions that are served by the new subsidiaries. Prosus is on the move and still growing rapidly.

11. Prosus acquired BillDesk

According to Techcrunch, Prosus frequent acquired BillDesk. The company is a giant payments company that is based in the country of India. The price of the acquisition was an astronomical $4.7 billion. Plans are to merge BillDesk with its PayU fintech group. This is a majors consolidation of two international investments in the payments niche of the financial industry which enhances its already strong presence in India and expands its existing global fintech and payments operations.

12. The latest merger will make PayU one of the largest global payment providers

We also learned that the latest acquisition made by Prosus will make its subsidiary company PayU one of the largest global payment providers. The company processes $147 billion in payments annually. Its pending merger with BillDesk will take the company over the top. Prosus has maintained a recent focus on India's developing markets and this is one of the largest investments that Prosus has made to date. It will increase Prosus' fintech holdings in the country of India to a cumulative investment n the nice to more than $10 billion in value.

13. Prosus has a long-term growth strategy

The most recent acquisitions made by Prosus are a part of an overarching strategy for growth. Prosus and Naspers are making investments in startups and also acquisitions into multiple industries in India, including Indiagold and DotPe. The latest acquisition is still awaiting the Indian regulator Competition Commission of Inia's approval. They don't foresee any major issues for securing approval but it is a process that takes time. BillDesk is the network that India's largest banks and merchants use. Its clients include travel and e-commerce verticals, telecom, insurance utilities mutual funds, and more.

14. Prosus is going up against the stiff competition

India is a country where many new startups in Fintech have sprouted up and achieved remarkable success. The country is experiencing a boom in e-commerce market growth and PayU is a strong player in that arena. BillDesk's merger with PayU will give Prosus a larger slice of the pie, but it goes up against some stiff competition as Sequoia Capital is backing India's RazorPay. BillDesk and CCAvenue were the largest competitors, and one of them has just been acquired, which will help to seat Prosus owned companies more deeply.

15. Prosus is deliberating yet another global move

Prosus has proven itself to be a master strategist and it is engaged in a global game of chess figuratively speaking. Right now, Prous is considering the expansion of its most recent acquisition (BillDesk) to take the business outside of India and bring its services to other parts of the world. This is something that is currently under discussion. Prosus has not yet made a concrete decision, but it's certainly on the table. It is something that helps to strengthen the digital economy of India and it is also bringing services to those who have previously not had access. They're deciding if this could be replicated through BillDesk in other parts of the world with the same measure of success. BillDesk is a unicorn company that is firmly established and thriving currently.

16. Prosus is good for India's digital economy

Ownership of PayU India and BillDesk is significant in the financial and payments arena. Owning both gives Prosus a significant presence in the country of India and it is believed by those who are deeply involved in the industry that the moves made will strengthen India's digital economy further. The business that Prosus is condition is in full alignment with the vision that the Government of India has for the digital finance future for the country and it may help to expand the operations into a greater global movement, which would also be good for India.

17. Prosus is good at taking calculated risks

According to Reuters, Prosus made a risky move when it allocated $4.7 billion toward the purchase of BillDesk. The cost was the equivalent of nearly five unicorn companies' value, and although the funding is there, it was a calculated risk where a lot of different things could go wrong. It was a brilliant move that complements its existing PayU business in India. As a result, Prosus shares have risen five percent. Although the price tag is high, Prosus leadership confirms that the anticipated growth to come is also high and they believe that it was a move that will pay for itself in valuation many times over if things continue in the economic situation for the country on the same trajectory. So far, the outlook is good for that to happen.

18. Prosus is the European version of Softbank

Reuters describes Prosus as Europe's version of Softbank and its Vision Fund. It is spreading out and growing with new acquisitions and expansion within those new companies. We learned that Prosus has maintained a strong focus on India, but it is also operational in other countries throughout the world. In addition to strong fintech holdings in Europe and India, it is also expanding its reach within Latin American countries.

19. Prosus is committed to empowering people and enriching communities

We wanted to learn more about the overarching mission of Prosus, to get to the heart of the massive operation. We consulted with its official website to see what we could discover. According to the official Prosus website, the company's move to become a stronger global presence is made within markets with long-term growth potential. It's is good for Prosus, but it is also good for the end-users who rely on the services provided by the companies under ownership. The consumer internet companies that it is building are intended to empower the people who benefit from their use, thus enriching the larger communities.

20. Prosus is a company to keep your eye on

Prosus is six years old. Within this time it is already a leader in the financial industry. The growth that the massive operation is achieving is astronomical. It's on the move, and from what we can tell, this is just the beginning. It has already risen to the status of a global player and investor in fintech. It appears that for Prosus, the sky is the limit. This is a company that bears watching and consideration if you're interested in diversifying your investment portfolio.

Allen Lee

Written by Allen Lee

Allen Lee is a Toronto-based freelance writer who studied business in school but has since turned to other pursuits. He spends more time than is perhaps wise with his eyes fixed on a screen either reading history books, keeping up with international news, or playing the latest releases on the Steam platform, which serve as the subject matter for much of his writing output. Currently, Lee is practicing the smidgen of Chinese that he picked up while visiting the Chinese mainland in hopes of someday being able to read certain historical texts in their original language.

Read more posts by Allen Lee

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