San Francisco, Calif. – RazerTM, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, today announced a strategic partnership with MOL AccessPortal, a leading e-payment enabler in Asia.
MOL has been appointed as a master distributor of Razer’s virtual currency, zGold. With the Southeast Asia gaming market set to grow to US$2.2 billion in revenue this year1, Razer and MOL will now take the lead in revolutionizing gaming transactions in South East Asia and other emerging markets.
The partnership will accelerate the global growth of MOL and Razer’s digital payment and content platforms – to be made available to gamers with over 1 million points of purchase in 17 countries.
zGold-MOLPoints to be the leading virtual currency for gamers in SEA
The MOLPoints virtual currency, currently the most widely-distributed in South East Asia, will be rebranded as “zGold-MOLPoints” to leverage Razer’s brand leadership in the gaming space. Together with Razer’s distribution network, zGold-MOLPoints will be sold at over 1 million online and retail stores in countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand.
Razer zGold Content Library to be increased to over 2,500 titles
Razer zGold virtual currency will soon be accepted as payment for over 2,500 content titles from the MOL network. Blockbuster games from distribution platforms such as PlayStation Store SEA, Facebook Gameroom, and publishers such as Nexon, Wargaming and more will become available for zGold users in selected countries.
Razer zSilver currency rewards to be made available to MOL users
Razer zSilver currency rewards will be extended to MOL users who top up their wallets and pay for digital content with zGold-MOLPoints. Users can use zSilver to redeem certain Razer products, Razerstore.com discount vouchers and digital content. This was previously exclusive to Razer zGold holders.
Together, Razer zGold and zSilver are part of Razer zVault – the secure digital wallet for gamers. Razer zVault is already accessible to more than 35 million registered Razer ID holders at https://zvault.razerzone.com. On the zVault website, users can browse zGold-enabled content, enjoy exclusive offers and redeem rewards available for redemption using zSilver.
Users can top up their wallets by acquiring zGold on the site via PayPal, major credit cards, Openbucks or Paysafecard.
Razer makes strategic investment in MOL
As part of this strategic tie-up, Razer has, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, ZV-Midas Pte. Ltd., purchased a minority 19.9% interest in MOL Global, Inc. (“MOLG”) from its shareholders, Hotel Resort Enterprise Sdn Bhd (“HRSB’) and MOL Investment Pte. Ltd. (“MOLI”). Under the terms of the purchase, HRSB disposed of 10,565,865 shares representing 15.65% equity interest in the issued and paid-up share capital of MOLG and MOLI disposed of 2,867,517 shares representing 4.25% equity interest in the issued and paid-up share capital of MOL at an implied valuation of US$ 100m for MOLG. This strategic investment is expected to help propel the partnership to greater heights by enabling both parties to work towards the goal of establishing zGold globally as the de facto virtual currency for gamers.
Apart from transforming how gamers purchase content, Razer and MOL will share technology to boost innovation in the FinTech sector. Their common vision is to help businesses commercialize digital content with virtual currencies as secure payment methods.
“This partnership holds true to our commitment to give value back to our gamers by offering a universe of digital content, secure and convenient payments and a unique gamer rewards program,” said Min-Liang Tan, Razer CEO and co-founder. “Together with MOL, we are one step closer to our ultimate vision of a unified virtual currency for gamers.”
Preecha Praipattarakul, group chief executive officer, MOL Global, Inc. said: “We are excited to partner with Razer to exponentially expand our reach to millions of gamers globally. With MOL and Razer’s leadership in virtual currency and gaming markets, everyone will have better access to great content.”
