SP.LINKS

SP.LINKS Inc., formerly known as Sony Payment Services Inc., is a Japanese payment solutions provider headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, that offers credit card payment processing and convenience store payment services to e-commerce businesses, shopping mall operators, internet service providers, insurance companies and other enterprises. Sony Group es... tablished its payment service business in 1995 within Sony Finance International, which became a standalone company in 2006 when Sony Payment Services Inc. was established to take over Sony Finance International's payment business, continuing to offer an Internet-based credit card payment system since 1998. The company is one of the top payment service providers in Japan, offering high-speed and secure infrastructure for customers and businesses to process online payments. The company's flagship e-SCOTT credit card payment service, launched in 1998, connects directly to 16 credit card companies, providing stable and fast payment processing with minimal risk of failure, which is unique in the non-face-to-face payments industry. The company also offers Authentication Assist Service, a unique anti-fraud solution. In 2023, the company launched a simple credit card payment solution called RaPP. In December 2023, private equity funds managed by Blackstone entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Sony Payment Services Inc. from Sony Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Group, marking Blackstone's first investment in the financial technology sector in Japan. On January 31, 2024, Blackstone-affiliated special purpose company acquired 80% of the shares, with Sony Bank retaining a portion of its equity and continuing to support the company's growth as a minority investor. Following the acquisition, the company changed its name from Sony Payment Services Inc. to SP.LINKS Inc. The company provides diverse payment methods including credit cards, convenience store payments, online payment gateways, QR and bar code payments, mobile carrier billing, and ...Read More