Amsterdam-based Recharge, a company revolutionising the prepaid payments industry, has secured a €45 million facility with ABN AMRO (backed Zenobe and Powerdot) to fuel its ambitious M&A strategy. This funding will enable the company to drive consolidation across markets, open new segments, and strengthen its leadership position in the prepaid payments industry.
What holds for the future?
This is part of a broader strategy to leverage strategic acquisitions as a growth driver. Combined with Recharge’s robust cash reserves, and following previous funding rounds, it has created a substantial war chest for identifying and integrating high-potential businesses in key markets. The company aims to close two to three deals in 2025.
With 30% year-on-year revenue growth in 2024 and growing demand for its digital prepaid solutions, the company aims to reach €1 billion in sales in 2025.
Fast and easy prepaid payments
The prepaid payments sector is evolving rapidly, fuelled by the shift from offline to online and the emergence of innovative use cases. Recharge was founded in 2010 by Robin Weesie and Dirk Ueberbach in the Netherlands to disrupt the digital call credit market. In 2012, the company launched as a cross-border call credit e-tailer. With the mission to make prepaid easy, the company offers over 16,000 digital vouchers and prepaid solutions, including gift cards, gaming cards, prepaid money cards, and mobile phone top-ups.
Recharge’s unified digital solutions are at the forefront of this change, redefining how people and businesses leverage prepaid payment products. It claims to be one of the first companies to offer easy online purchases of digital prepaid cards through its webshops and apps. Since its debut, the company has processed over 100 million transactions for satisfied customers globally.
Acquisition of StartSelect
Back in 2023, Recharge announced the acquisition of Dutch startup StartSelect in 2023. With this acquisition, the company aims to build its global network of digital marketplaces with prepaid payment products. Startselect, known for its extensive range of gaming products, particularly catering to gamers, brings with it a reputation for delivering high-quality digital marketplaces.
Bas Janssen, senior banker Digital and Consumer clients, ABN AMRO, stated: “ABN AMRO is proud to support Recharge as they continue to scale and innovate in the prepaid payments sector. ABN AMRO is on a trajectory to become the preferred tech bank in the Netherlands and North West Europe. This collaboration reflects our appetite to support digital transformation —one of our three strategic pillars. We see great promise in Recharge’s growth trajectory as they broaden their reach within the global prepaid payments space.”
Recharge’s CEO, Günther Vogelpoel, said “This new facility comes at a pivotal time for Recharge as we embark on the next phase of our journey. I am excited to partner with ABN AMRO, whose support enables us to accelerate our growth strategy and reshape the prepaid payments landscape on our terms.”
