Recharge acquires StartSelect to consolidate prepaid payments

Recharge, a player in the prepaid payments' industry, has announced its successful acquisition of Startselect, a European digital gift and gaming card company. This significant move positions the company to generate €750 million in annual sales in 2024.

Since 2010, Recharge has aggressively grown with its online "supermarket" for digital gift cards and mobile top-ups. They were among the first companies to offer easy online purchases of digital prepaid cards through their webshops and apps. Early on, Recharge recognized that many consumers sought more convenience by buying gift cards online. Since its conception, Recharge has processed over 100 million transactions for satisfied customers globally.

This is Recharge's first achievement in their M&A strategy to consolidate the digital prepaid payments market and further build out their global leadership position. The recent macroeconomic headwinds have unlocked momentum for M&A opportunities, and the company is ambitious to close another two-three acquisitions in the next 12 months.

The acquired company, Startselect, has a long-standing record of providing a high-quality digital marketplace for gamers with various gaming products. Founded in 2017 in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, Startselect specializes in the fast and easy distribution of digital gift cards, in-game credits, and subscriptions. It operates as the official reseller of various digital products, ensuring authenticity and customer trust.

The acquisition of Startselect strengthens Recharge's diversified prepaid product offerings, now adding Startselect's stronghold in the gaming cards market.

"Consolidation has been a theme in fintech in the recent period, and I have no doubt in the value of this combination for our company. I'm also excited to welcome the Startselect team to the Recharge family. Combining our strengths and capabilities leads to a powerful competitive position in the industry. Together, with our larger scale, we can offer an even better service to prepaid users worldwide," says Günther Vogelpoel, chief executive officer of Recharge.

With its mission to "Make Prepaid Easy", Recharge offers over 16,000 digital vouchers and prepaid solutions, including gift cards, gaming cards, prepaid money cards, and mobile phone top-ups. Operating in over 180 markets worldwide with their robust global network of digital marketplaces. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Amsterdam, the company is backed by Prime Ventures, Smartfin, Committed Capital and BlackRock.

This recent acquisition comes after the company's recent expansion into the U.S. and Canada with Blackhawk. 

"I feel proud of the whole team at Startselect that made this milestone possible. Being a part of Recharge starts a new chapter for us, where we can reach new heights. We are eager to continue our growth path together," adds Max Gudden, founder of Startselect.

Startselect will extend Recharge's consumer label offering, which includes global shop Recharge.com and country-specific labels Beltegoed.nl, Recharge.fr, Guthaben.de, Herladen.com, and Mobiletopup.co.uk. With the addition of Startselect, the company continues building their global network of digital marketplaces with prepaid payment products.