Radar, a South African HR and payroll startup, has been bought by mobile payments service SnapScan, allowing founders Kobus Ehlers and Gerrit Greeff to return to their original startup.
For nearly a decade, Kobus Ehlers and Greeff worked with banks to develop several payment products, culminating in SnapScan, which became South Africa’s largest mobile payments product before being acquired by Standard Bank at the end of 2016.
In 2019, they began working with Richard Oakley on Radar, an integrated service that handles everything a business owner needs to build and manage their staff, and in 2020 they signed their first customers.
As of today, Firepay, the company behind SnapScan and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Standard Bank, has purchased Radar in a deal that both parties claim has the potential to unleash several value-added services for SnapScan users.
“Firepay was one of the earliest investors in Radar due to the strategic compatibility between their service and what we developed. Both companies are attempting to resolve different issues faced by SME consumers. As Radar began searching for a means to extend our distribution and take the product to the next level, it became clear that collaborating closely with SnapScan would be a fantastic way to do so,” Ehlers told Disrupt Africa.
“When you combine our solution with the reach and expertise of the SnapScan team, there are a number of really intriguing opportunities.” We anticipate the product’s expansion and improvement of the lives of small business employers in South Africa.”
Firepay’s CEO, Marin Cundall, expressed excitement about Radar joining the team and the prospects it affords the company and its future offerings.
She stated, “Our focus is on providing the best experience for businesses, and we believe this acquisition will assist us in achieving that objective.”
The acquisition will result in the departure of Radar’s founders, while the remainder of the team will join Firepay. No immediate changes will be made to existing Radar customers or the goods available.
