Infibeam Avenues Secures Majority Stake In Rediff.com In Rs 50 Crore Deal

Infibeam Avenues which is a notable player in digital payments and enterprise software, based in Gujarat, has made a significant strategic step by agreeing to acquire a 54 per cent share in Rediff.com India, one of India's oldest and well-known internet enterprises. According to an official release, the transaction, which is expected to cost around Rs 50 crore, would be funded through a combination of equity and debt.

The agreement marks a substantial alignment between Infibeam's fintech expertise and Rediff.com's already established brand and services. Rediff.com, known for its cloud-based enterprise email storage, content distribution and related commerce solutions, will now be linked with Infibeam's comprehensive digital payment services, platform business products and AI solutions. This combination is projected to result in a unified digital ecosystem in which financial transactions and content consumption are smoothly integrated.

Ajit Balakrishnan, Chairman and CEO of Rediff.com, voiced confidence in the acquisition, saying, "I am glad to hand over this historic brand and its history to Mr Vishal Mehta and Infibeam Avenues. I am confident that the new incarnation of Rediff under his leadership would improve the company and accelerate business growth." Balakrishnan, who started Rediff.com in 1996, will continue to give consultancy services to the company.

Infibeam Avenues, known for its digital payment gateway CCAvenue and business software platforms, plans to use this acquisition to boost user engagement and open up new revenue streams. Vishal Mehta, Chairman and Managing Director of Infibeam Avenues Ltd, emphasised the deal's strategic benefits by saying, "This transaction capitalises on the synergies between Infibeam Avenues' fintech expertise and Rediff.com's esteemed brand legacy." We are well-positioned to establish ourselves as a market leader in digital financial aggregation, cloud storage and content distribution.

Rediff.com, which ranks among the top 1,000 websites in the world in terms of traffic and receives over 55 million monthly visits, has a large user base that Infibeam intends to capitalise on. The company plans to exploit data from this user base to cross-sell financial items like loans, insurance and investments using artificial intelligence, expanding its market reach.

The acquisition will broaden Infibeam's portfolio by merging Rediff.com's enterprise email services, consumer financial services and content businesses. This strategic development is intended to strengthen Infibeam's position in the digital economy, aided by its strong regulatory capabilities.

The acquisition is a big step forward for Infibeam Avenues, establishing it as a leading player in consumer-facing digital financial services with a comprehensive offering that includes mainstream news, cloud-based enterprise email storage and collaboration platforms.

As Infibeam Avenues enters this new phase, the integration of Rediff.com's offerings is expected to accelerate the company's growth and strengthen its position in shaping the future of digital finance and content distribution.