Ringier Africa Deals Group Acquires Nigerian Online Shopping Platform ​DealDey

Lagos, Nigeria ­ March 23, 2016 

Ringier Africa Deals Group, a newly-­founded joint venture between Swiss Ringier Africa  AG and South African Silvertree Internet Holdings (Pty) Ltd, today announces it has  acquired one of Nigeria’s biggest online shopping platforms,​ DealDey. The acquisition  represents an expansion of Ringier Africa’s portfolio beyond publishing and digital  marketing in Nigeria and Silvertree’s first e­commerce investment in the country. It sees  the two companies invest significantly in Nigeria’s fast­-growing multi-­billion dollar e­commerce sector as part of their partnership in the Ringier Africa Deals Group. 

DealDey, the online deals e­commerce platform, was launched in 2011 by serial entrepreneur  Simdul Shagaya together with Investment AB Kinnevik. With over 1 million users, 15,000 active  merchants and 20,000 verified listed businesses, ​DealDey is the largest online deals business in  the region. In addition to its core platform, ​DealDey today also comprises of the couponing platform ​Promohub and discovery platform Lyf,  both forming part of the acquisition.

DealDey Co-­CEOs Kehinde Oriola & Etop Ikpe say: "The ​DealDey  team is excited about joining  forces with the newly­formed Ringier Africa Deals Group. It offers great opportunities as ​DealDey brings a wealth of experience in technology, merchant management and consumer behavior in  Nigeria ­ and we will be leveraging the Ringier Africa portfolio in marketing, classifieds and media  as well as Silvertree’s e­commerce expertise towards supporting the sustainable growth of the  group."   

Kehinde Oriola will continue as the CEO of ​DealDey as part of RADG, while Etop Ikpe will be  moving on to new ventures. As acting CEO of RADG, Damien Bonnabel, current Head of e­Commerce for Ringier Africa and General Manager of Ringier Kenya, will be working with the management of ​DealDey and the group’s other companies.    

Ringier Africa Deals Group (RADG), the purchasing holding company, has been created by a carve out of the leading Kenyan online deals business ​Rupu out of Ringier Kenya and of the leading  Ghanaian online deals platform​ Tisu out of Ringer Ghana. The JV’s partners, Ringier Africa and Silvertree, both come with 10+ years’ e­commerce experience. Their mutual aim is to lead the  online deals businesses to continued success based on a long-­term, joint plan. Key to this is the continued collaboration with local merchants and brands wanting to enter the markets ­ while satisfying clients’ needs for the best service and product offers online. Silvertree has already expanded its own e­commerce portfolio in South Africa, having acquired ​PriceCheck from Naspers in November of last year. Ringier Africa’s mother company Ringier AG runs ​DeinDeal  and ​Geschenkidee, the two biggest online deals and gifting platforms in Switzerland respectively. 

Ringier Africa General Manager Leonard Stiegeler says: “Ringier Africa has identified e­commerce as a key area for growth and we are excited by the inclusion of​​ DealDey in the Ringier Africa Deals Group. With the addition of e­commerce ­experienced ​Silvertree​ as a partner and investor, we are on track to significantly increase our interest in the space, with particular  focus on serving the important markets of Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya.”    

Silvertree Co-­Managing Director Paul Cook says: "We are extremely excited to be entering three  of Africa's most exciting e­commerce markets, through our partnership with Ringier and joint  investment into ​DealDey, ​  ​ Rupu ​and ​Tisu. Through this deal, we get to build on excellent existing  platforms as we look to serve Africa's emerging middle class. With Ringier's deep content  expertise and African footprint, we look forward to further accelerating the growth of these  exciting businesses. Our focus will be on rapid but sustainable growth, as Africa's e­commerce industry starts to mature and consumers look for world­-class offerings, excellent customer service  and great deals."    

Ringier AG, Corporate Communications  

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