Raiz Invest Limited announced its decision to exit Malaysia after four years, ending its joint venture with Jewel Digital Venture Sdn Bhd (JDV) and Raiz Invest Australia Limited. Following a strategic review, the partners have agreed to close the business.
Formerly Acorns, Raiz is an Australian financial technology company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). The company allows customers to micro-invest the remaining round-up of everyday purchases in exchange-traded funds.
The Malaysian entity, which was launched in July 2020, claims to have sufficient capital to cover closure expenses, with JDV committing an additional RM3 million to ensure a structured and timely wind-down process.
The company said that the closure will be implemented in phases to ensure the secure and efficient handling of client assets.
This exit will reportedly not affect the profit and loss of Raiz’s Australian operations, and the Malaysian operations will be classified as discontinued in their financial report.
Brendan Malone, Raiz Invest Managing Director and CEO said,
“The decision to close the Malaysian Operations will enable Raiz to focus on strengthening and expanding its Australian business.
With our continued product innovation and our marketing campaign, we are confident the Raiz Australian business will continue to grow and deliver a strong economic performance for shareholders.”
This decision follows an earlier announcement on 27 March 2024, when Raiz finalised its exit from its Indonesian Joint Venture operations.
In February 2024, Raiz’s subsidiary, Raiz Invest Australia Limited (RIAL), entered into a binding Conditional Share Purchase Agreement (CSPA) with senior management of the Indonesian business to transfer RIAL’s entire holding in the joint venture.
The transaction was completed after necessary approvals, and the company confirmed there was no significant divergence from the estimated ‘one-off’ exit costs, which were previously disclosed at AUD $700,000.
Malone described the transfer of operations to senior local management in Indonesia as a positive outcome, benefiting local stakeholders including customers, staff, and suppliers.
He shared that the focus is now on scaling Raiz’s core Australian business.
Featured image credit: Edited from Freepik
