ShopBack
A Singapore-founded cashback and shopping-rewards platform serving consumers across Asia-Pacific and selected international markets.
Last updated October 31, 2026
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Overview
ShopBack is a Singapore-founded shopping-rewards and commerce platform that enables consumers to receive cashback, discounts, vouchers and other benefits when they begin purchases through the ShopBack website or mobile application. Its model is based primarily on affiliate commerce: participating merchants pay ShopBack a commission for referred transactions, and ShopBack shares part of that commission with the customer as cashback. The arrangement gives merchants an additional customer-acquisition channel while presenting shoppers with a financial incentive to complete purchases through the platform. The company was established in 2014 by a founding team with experience at Zalora, the e-commerce fashion business. It initially concentrated on cashback for online shopping and expanded through partnerships with major retailers, travel businesses, delivery services, marketplaces and other digital merchants. Examples associated with the platform include Amazon, Booking.com, ASOS, Zalora, Woolworths.com.au, Lazada, Uber, Grab, Shopee, Tokopedia, GoWabi, Blibli, Alibaba and eBay. Availability and merchant coverage vary by market. ShopBack’s consumer proposition has broadened beyond basic cashback. The platform has offered discount coupons and voucher codes, product comparison and discovery functions, QR-code payment capabilities, and buy-now-pay-later services following its acquisition of hoolah. These additions reflect a strategy of positioning ShopBack as a broader shopping and payments intermediary rather than only a referral site. Its annual ShopFest program organizes coordinated promotional periods with participating brands, including regional sale dates such as 9.9, 10.10, 11.11, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and 12.12. Local events have included Malaysia’s MyCyberSale, Indonesia’s Harbolnas and Australia’s Click Frenzy. ShopBack expanded through venture funding, strategic investors and acquisitions. It raised seed and early-stage capital shortly after formation, completed a US$600,000 round in March 2015, and later attracted investment from firms including East Ventures, Accel-X, SoftBank Ventures Korea, Singtel Innov8, Qualgro and Credit Saison. Its US$25 million Series A in 2017 was followed by a US$45 million financing round announced in 2019, bringing reported cumulative funding at that time to approximately US$85 million. These figures describe private financing rather than public-market revenue or valuation. The company also pursued adjacent financial and consumer-services capabilities. In 2018 it acquired Seedly, a Singapore personal-finance platform, before divesting Seedly to CompareAsiaGroup in 2020. In November 2021, ShopBack acquired all of hoolah, a Singapore-based buy-now-pay-later provider, marking a more direct move into financial services. ShopBack has also faced operational and trust challenges, including a data breach disclosed in September 2020 after the incident occurred earlier that month. Despite that event, the platform remains an active international consumer-commerce brand with operations across Asia-Pacific, the United States and Germany.
History
ShopBack was founded in 2014 in Singapore by a team whose members had previously worked at Zalora. The business began with a straightforward cashback proposition: consumers accessed participating merchants through ShopBack, completed purchases, and received a portion of the merchant-funded affiliate commission. This model allowed the company to combine performance marketing for retailers with a direct financial benefit for shoppers. The company secured more than US$500,000 in seed financing shortly after its creation and raised a further US$600,000 in March 2015 in a round led by East Ventures and Accel-X. Additional early rounds brought approximately US$15 million in funding before the company’s Series A. In November 2017, ShopBack raised US$25 million in a round led by Credit Saison, joined by Blue Sky, AppWorks, Intouch Holdings, Aetius Capital and 33 Capital, as well as returning investors including SoftBank Ventures Korea, Singtel Innov8, Qualgro and East Ventures. The round was reported to bring total funding to roughly US$40 million. ShopBack expanded its merchant network and geographic presence across Asia-Pacific. Its partners have included large marketplaces, travel companies, fashion retailers, grocery businesses, ride-hailing and delivery services. By the late 2010s, the company was presenting itself as a regional shopping platform rather than a narrowly focused cashback website. It added voucher codes, product comparison and discovery features, and payment-related functionality. A 2019 investment round of US$45 million, led by Rakuten Capital and EV Growth, brought reported cumulative funding to approximately US$85 million. Amit Patel of Rakuten’s cashback business and Willson Cuaca of EV Growth and East Ventures joined the board in connection with that investment. Acquisitions supported ShopBack’s expansion into adjacent categories. In May 2018, it acquired Seedly, a Singapore personal-finance platform. ShopBack later divested Seedly to CompareAsiaGroup in October 2020. In April 2020, it announced the acquisition of Ebates Korea, extending its cashback capabilities in South Korea. In November 2021, ShopBack acquired all of hoolah, a Singapore buy-now-pay-later provider. The hoolah transaction represented a move beyond affiliate rewards into embedded consumer finance and installment payments. ShopBack developed ShopFest as a recurring promotional program conducted with e-commerce brands during the year-end shopping season. The program has included major regional sale periods such as 9.9, 10.10, 11.11, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and 12.12. It has also incorporated market-specific events including Malaysia’s MyCyberSale, Indonesia’s Harbolnas and Australia’s Click Frenzy. These campaigns allow ShopBack to coordinate merchants, incentives and traffic across several markets. The company’s expansion was accompanied by a significant cybersecurity incident. A breach occurred on 17 September 2020, and ShopBack notified customers on 25 September. The event became an important reputational and operational issue because the platform handles shopping-account and transaction-related information. Public descriptions identify the breach and notification timeline but do not provide enough verified detail here to characterize the full scope of the compromised data. ShopBack is an active platform operating in markets that include Singapore, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, the United States and Germany. Its current identity combines cashback, merchant promotions, shopping discovery and selected payment services, with the underlying business still closely connected to affiliate commerce and merchant-funded customer acquisition.
- 2021
hoolah acquisition
[1]ShopBack acquires all of Singapore-based buy-now-pay-later provider hoolah.
- 2020
Ebates Korea acquisition and data-breach disclosure
[1]ShopBack announces the acquisition of Ebates Korea and later discloses a September data breach to customers.
- 2020
Seedly divestment
[1]ShopBack divests Seedly to CompareAsiaGroup.
- 2019
US$45 million financing round
[1]ShopBack announces a round led by Rakuten Capital and EV Growth, taking reported cumulative funding to approximately US$85 million.
- 2018
Seedly acquisition
[1]ShopBack acquires Singapore personal-finance platform Seedly.
- 2017
Series A expansion
[1]ShopBack closes a US$25 million Series A led by Credit Saison and expands its investor base and regional growth capacity.
- 2015
Early institutional funding
[1]The company completes a US$600,000 funding round led by East Ventures and Accel-X after raising seed capital.
- 2014
ShopBack is founded
[1]ShopBack is established in Singapore by a founding team with prior experience at Zalora and begins developing a cashback-oriented shopping platform.
Products and positioning
A consumer savings, rewards and commerce platform that connects shoppers with merchants through cashback, promotions and selected payment services.
Cashback rewards · 2014
ShopBack Cashback
ShopBack’s core service tracks eligible purchases referred to participating merchants and returns part of the merchant-funded affiliate commission to the customer as cashback. Availability, rates and transaction eligibility depend on the merchant, market and applicable promotional terms.
Promotional commerce
Coupons and voucher codes
The platform aggregates discount coupons, promotional codes and merchant offers alongside cashback. These tools help shoppers compare incentives before completing a transaction and give merchants a mechanism for promoting specific products, campaigns or sale periods.
E-commerce discovery
Product comparison and shopping discovery
ShopBack provides shopping-discovery and product-comparison functions that help users find participating retailers and evaluate available offers. The service extends the platform’s role from post-purchase rewards into the earlier stages of browsing and purchase consideration.
Digital payments
QR-code payment services
ShopBack has offered QR-code payment functionality as part of its effort to connect shopping rewards with transaction execution. Specific payment availability and product naming can differ between national markets.
Buy-now-pay-later
hoolah
hoolah was a Singapore-based buy-now-pay-later platform acquired by ShopBack in 2021. The acquisition expanded ShopBack’s presence in installment-based consumer finance and complemented its existing shopping and rewards services.
Controversies
2026
ShopBack apologizes for TikTok ad
ShopBack issued an apology regarding a TikTok advertisement after the ad drew criticism for not adequately representing Indian culture. The brand acknowledged that the selected ad was misleading and in poor taste, and stated that it had taken the advertisement down. The incident is recorded as a controversy note concerning the advertisement's representation and content, with ShopBack accepting responsibility for the matter.
2020
ShopBack customer data breach
ShopBack suffered a data breach on 17 September 2020 and notified customers on 25 September. The incident created a customer-security and trust issue. The supplied reference does not establish the full scope of affected information or any final regulatory outcome.
Marketing campaigns
- ShopFest
Asia-Pacific · Australia · Malaysia · Indonesia
ShopFest is ShopBack’s recurring regional shopping-promotion program, run with participating e-commerce brands during the major year-end sale season. It has incorporated 9.9, 10.10, 11.11, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and 12.12 promotions.
Outcome. The program coordinates merchant offers and consumer traffic across multiple markets; a specific campaign-level financial outcome is not established in the supplied sources.
- Market-specific ShopFest events
Malaysia · Indonesia · Australia
Regional ShopFest activity has included Malaysia’s MyCyberSale, Indonesia’s Hari Belanja Online Nasional and Australia’s Click Frenzy, allowing the platform to align its promotions with established local shopping calendars.
Outcome. The supplied material confirms the events as campaign components but does not provide verified campaign-specific results.
Brand decisions
2021
Acquisition of hoolahM&ABackground
ShopBack aimed to extend its consumer-commerce proposition into financial services and installment payments.
Action taken
ShopBack acquired 100 percent of Singapore buy-now-pay-later provider hoolah in November 2021.
Aftermath
The acquisition marked ShopBack’s entry into buy-now-pay-later services; the supplied reference does not provide verified post-acquisition performance data.
2020
Acquisition of Ebates KoreaM&ABackground
ShopBack pursued geographic and product expansion in the Korean cashback market.
Action taken
ShopBack announced the acquisition of Ebates Korea in April 2020.
Aftermath
The supplied reference does not provide further verified integration or financial details.
2018
Acquisition of SeedlyM&ABackground
ShopBack sought capabilities adjacent to shopping rewards by acquiring Singapore personal-finance platform Seedly.
Action taken
The company acquired Seedly in May 2018.
Aftermath
ShopBack later divested Seedly to CompareAsiaGroup in October 2020.
Recent events
- Unconfirmed
Reported
ShopBack apologizes for TikTok ad[3]
ShopBack apologized for a TikTok ad after criticism that it did not adequately represent Indian culture, acknowledged that the selected ad was misleading and in poor taste, and said it had taken the ad down.
Reported
ShopBack launches its website and app in Vietnam[4]
ShopBack launched its website and mobile app in Vietnam, where shoppers could earn cashback from its merchant roster.
Reported
ShopBack announces acquisition of Hoolah[5]
ShopBack announced that it would acquire buy now, pay later startup Hoolah. The deal was described as involving stock and cash, with undisclosed terms; it had not yet closed.
Reported
ShopBack enters the Korean market[6]
ShopBack entered the Korean market through its acquisition of Ebates Korea. Ebates Korea users were directed to the ShopBack Korea beta platform from that day.
Reported
ShopBack announces acquisition of Ebates Korea[6]
ShopBack announced its acquisition of Ebates Korea, a Korean cashback platform, as it entered the Korean market. The source does not state a separate deal-completion date.
Sources6 sources
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