IOUpay's MyIOU Islamic – announced last month – has had two major wins.

At the time of writing, the IOUpay share price is 8.4 cents, 16.67% higher than its previous close.

Let's take a closer look at today's news from the South East Asia-focused fintech company.

IOUpay share price gains on MyIOU Islamic wins

It's turned out to be a big day for the IOUpay share price.

Its day in the sun followed an update of the company's plan to offer BNPL products consistent with Shariah principles and the practices of Islamic finance.

The offering is expected to give the company access to new markets in Malaysia and other South East Asian nations with large Islamic populations.

Certification of Shariah Compliance

Firstly, the company has been granted certification of Shariah Compliance by independent global Shariah advisory firm, Tawafuq Consultancy.

The certification is expected to allow the product access to Islamic financing and BNPL opportunities within industry best practices for Shariah principles.

Following the win, the company is looking to offer both conventional and Islamic financing. That requires partitioning of the myIOU portfolio, separate documentation, and an Islamic bank account for all Shariah compliant transactions.

It also requires the platform to integrate with an Islamic payment gateway. Fortunately, IOUpay has also entered an agreement to do just that.

Islamic payment gateway integration

The second major update regards a merchant acquiring services agreement signed between IOUpay Asia and PayHalal.

Under the agreement, PayHalal can acquire and refer merchants that follow Shariah principles who want to offer customers BNPL options consistent with Shariah principles and the practices of Islamic finance to IOUpay Asia.

PayHalal's payment gateway has already been integrated into the myIOU BNPL platform.

IOUpay share price snapshot

Its been a rough year for ASX BNPL shares so far, and the IOUpay share price hasn't escaped the downturn.

The company's stock has slipped nearly 47% since the start of 2022. It has also plunged 66% since this time last year.

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At the time of writing, the Malaysia-based buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider's shares are up 7.94% to 6.8 cents.

Let's take a look at what drove the company's shares higher before quickly retracing throughout the day.

What happened to IOUpay shares?

After surging as high as 11 cents in early morning trade, the IOUpay share price was temporarily paused.

This came as the ASX issued the company a speeding ticket.

IOUpay took the next several hours to respond to a query regarding its ASX price movement and volume.

The company's management stated it wasn't aware of why the company's shares accelerated to astronomical levels.

However, it did note that its board believes shareholders may be "price-factoring" in relation to the company's non-executive chair appointment.

It also mentioned that other previous announcements could likely be contributing to its shares rising today.

Nonetheless, the sharp uptick comes amid a backdrop of extreme market volatility on the ASX over the past couple of months.

Investors have expressed their concerns regarding the downbeat economic outlook due to rampant inflation and aggressive interest rate hikes.

IOUpay share price summary

It has been a difficult 12 months for IOUpay shares, tumbling more than 70% as investors flee the BNPL sector.

When looking year to date, the company's shares are down roughly 56%.

Based on valuation grounds, IOUpay commands a market capitalisation of $37 million.

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The BNPL space was busy with transformational happenings. These included the announcement of a merger between Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) and Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL), the removal of former market favourite, Afterpay, and the inclusion of Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) on the ASX.

So, which ASX BNPL shares managed to outperform their peers last quarter? Let's take a look.

The 3 best-performing ASX BNPL shares of the March quarter

A quick note before we start: This list only considers ASX BNPL shares with market capitalisations of more than $50 million.

IOUPay Ltd (ASX: IOU) – gained 6.25%

Last quarter was rocky for the IOUPay share price, but it ultimately finished it in the green.

After ending 2021 trading at 16 cents, the BNPL stock was being traded for 17 cents at the final close of the March quarter.

That's despite the IOUPay share price dropping or trading flat on all announcements released by the company in that time.

The last time the market heard from IOUPay was a trading update for the first half of the March quarter.

Then, the company noted the uptake of its BNPL service had increased, as had its transaction volumes.

Block Inc – gained 4.93%

On joining the ASX in late January following its all-scrip takeover of Afterpay, the Block share price finished its first session of trading at $176.63.

Come the final close of the March quarter, Block was swapping hands for $185.33 apiece on the ASX.

Though, sailing wasn't as smooth for its New York listing – Block Inc (NYSE: SQ). It slipped 16% over the three months ended 31 March.

The big news from the payment services provider last quarter was its earnings for the 12 months ended 31 December and for the three months ended 31 December.

Over the 12 months, Block's profit soared 62% year-on-year, reaching $4.42 billion. Meanwhile, its revenue surged 86% to $17.66 billion.

Its December quarter earnings were also positive, with the company's quarterly profit increasing 47%.

The now-ASX BNPL share saw its value surge 32.49% on the release of its results.

Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) – fell 4.44%

The Humm share price outperformed most of its ASX BNPL peers last quarter even though its value declined. However, it might not be included in future lists like this one. That's because the company recently agreed to sell its consumer finance business which houses its BNPL segment.

The segment is set to be acquired by Latitude Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: LFS) for $335 million.

Following the sale, Humm will still control its commercial business flexicommercial.

The Humm share price slipped from 90 cents to 85 cents last quarter.

The post Own ASX BNPL shares? These were the best performers of the March quarter appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

While the broader market ended the month in the green – the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) and S&P/ASX 200 Index(ASX: XJO) each gained 6.3% in March – nearly all ASX-listed BNPL stocks slipped lower.

In fact, the market's favourite pureplay BNPL stock, Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P), recorded the biggest tumble of the month.

So, what dragged on some of the sector's biggest players in March? Let's take a look.

What drove ASX BNPL shares lower in March?

While ASX BNPL shares might have been hit with talk of inflation and interest rate rises, there were plenty of concrete happenings that weighed many down last month.

Firstly, shares in Zip and Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) both entered March fresh from the freezer after the former made a takeover bid for the latter.

The all-scrip deal – quickly accepted by Sezzle's board – will see investors receiving 0.98 shares in Zip for each Sezzle stock they own.

The Zip share price tumbled 6% on 1 March, while that of Sezzle gained almost 10%.

Zip also underwent a $148.7 million institutional placement to strengthen its balance sheet last month. Finally, it opened a share purchase plan that could raise $50 million.

Additionally, Sezzle made more headlines in March when it announced it would dump 20% of its workforce to save around US$10 million annually.

Over the course of last month, the Zip share price tumbled 32.5% while that of Sezzle fell 24.1%.

Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) was one of the only ASX BNPL shares to record a gain last month. It is, of course, the owner of former market favourite, Afterpay.

The Block share price gained 19.3% in March despite no news being released by the company. However, it was removed from the S&P/ASX 20 Index (ASX: XTL).

Speaking of index movements, shares in Latitude Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: LFS) entered the All Ords last month. Meanwhile, those of Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT) were booted from the benchmark index.

Novatti Group Ltd (ASX: NOV)'s stock also went through an index shakeup – it was dumped from the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX).

The share prices of Latitude, Novatti, and Splitit fell 5.7%, 4.1%, and 11.1% respectively last month.

Finally, ASX BNPL shares Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) and IOUPay ltd (ASX: IOU) also slipped lower last month. They fell 2.2% and 5.5% respectively.

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• The buy now, pay later (BNPL) sector could be in for a tough time in 2022 according to one expert
• 2022 has already seen a big decline for many of the players, including the Zip share price which is down 30% this year
• Brad Kelly points out that almost none of the BNPL ASX shares are making a profit, which will make it harder to raise capital

The buy now, buy later (BNPL) ASX shares could be in for a "tough time" according to one of the experts of the payments industry.

There are plenty of BNPL businesses on the ASX like Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P), Block Inc (ASX: SQ2), Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL), Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT), Laybuy Holdings Ltd (ASX: LBY), Openpay Group Ltd (ASX: OPY) and Ioupay Ltd (ASX: IOU).

Big declines

Investors have already seen major declines of the share prices of plenty of the buy now, pay later players.

In 2022, the Zip share price has fallen 30% so far. Over the past six months it has slumped 60%.

Since listing on the ASX a couple of weeks ago, the Block share price has fallen 17%. Block is the American company that recently acquired Afterpay.

In the calendar year to date, the Sezzle share price has fallen 27%. The past half-year has seen a 71% capitulation of Sezzle shares.

And so on. There has been a huge deterioration since the last reporting season.

'Tough time' coming

According to reporting by News.com.au, an expert of the payments sector called Brad Kelly has some negative expectations for the industry.

Mr Kelly, the managing director of Payment Services, said:

They are very good at marketing spin and PR, good at using the services of highly paid consultants to get around the Consumer Credit Act and are able to offer credit without it appearing as credit.

The reality is the BNPL provider's bad debts are astronomical, none of them have made a profit, none of them have paid a dividend and share prices are down 70% to 80% to even 90% in some cases.

Mr Kelly points out that nearly all of the companies in the buy now, pay later sector are reporting annual accounting losses.

Another, expert, Grant Halverson, the founder and chief executive of payments consultancy McLean Roche, thinks there is a danger that the buy now, pay later sector could see rising bad debts and the ASX shares could end up with a 'junk' rating regarding their debt.

Mr Halverson warned that the BNPL sector could suffer from rising interest rates, which would make it trickier to make a profit and raise money. Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, he said:

They're going to have to try to raise a lot of money.

It partly depends on how quickly interest rates go up, because if they go up quickly there could be carnage. If there's a slower uptick then obviously the carnage will be slower in my view.

What are some of the issues?

The experts point out that several large financial players have entered the BNPL space including Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN) and Citibank. PayPal is another player that now offers a buy, pay later option.

News.com.au reported that Mr Kelly believes that with no profit and none being sustainably profitable yet, it's likely that there will be consolidation in the sector.

There is also the longer-term risk of regulation and interest rate rises, which could impact growth too.

The post BNPL ASX shares in for a 'tough time': expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In fact, only 2 stocks with market capitalisations of over $30 million recorded share price gains for the last 12 months.

Let's take a look at the winning BNPL stocks of the last 12 months.

The best performing ASX BNPL shares of 2021

Fatfish Group Ltd (ASX: FFG) – up 36%

The Fatfish share price bested that of its BNPL peers over the course of 2021.

Having started the year trading at 3.8 cents, it finished at 4.9 cents.

The major news that boosted the company's stock was, interestingly, not released by it.

According to the company, its share price soared 440% over 2 sessions, likely due to a sale made by its investee iCandy Interactive Ltd (ASX: ICI).

Additionally, Fatfish acquired Forever Pay, a stake in Pay Direct Technology, BNPL Next, and has launched its BNPL offering, PaySlowSlow in 2021.

Novatti Group Ltd (ASX: NOV) – up 15%

The first half of 2021 saw the Novatti share price performing strongly. However, the second half saw it drop most of its gains to finish just 15% higher than it started.

The major news to move the company's stock was its agreement with fellow ASX BNPL company, Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT).

Afterpay selected Novatti to provide its services in New Zealand, sending the latter's shares 32% higher.

Having started the year trading at 25.5 cents, Novatti's stock finished 2021 swapping hands at 30 cents.

Ioupay Ltd (ASX: IOU) – down 21%

The Ioupay share price's major move of 2021 was an unexplained one.

In February it was handed a 'please explain' from the ASX after its stock gained 32% in a day. The company responded by saying it was as perplexed as anyone else.

Since then, its share price has once more slumped.

After starting 2021 trading at 19.5 cents, it's finished trading at 15.5 cents.

Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) – down 20%

The Humm share price outperformed many of its peers despite recording a 20% tumble.

It began the year trading at $1.13 and finished it at 90 cents.

The most recent news to rumble the company's stock was a mention of a potential takeover.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) – down 18%

Finally, ASX BNPL favourite Zip made it onto the podium – just.

The company's shares started 2021 swapping hands for $5.59 and have since tumbled to finish 2021 trading at $4.33.

Over the course of the year, Zip rebranded its previous purchase, QuadPay in the United States.

It has also acquired – or is working to acquire – inroads in Europe, South Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

The post These were the 5 top performing ASX BNPL shares of 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Earlier this morning, the Malaysia-based buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider announced an update on its investment in I.Destinasi Sdn Bhd (IDSB).

IDSB is a specialised finance company that provides instalment-based consumer credit services in Malaysia.

At midday on Wednesday, the IOUpay share price dropped 8.11% below yesterday's close before making up some ground. At the time of writing, IOUpay shares are fetching 17.8 cents apiece, down 4.05%.

IOUpay moves ahead with planned investment

Investors are sending the IOUpay share price lower following a broader market sell-off on the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO). The index is currently trading at 7,557 points, down 0.4% after some heavy losses recorded in Wall Street overnight.

In its announcement, IOUpay advised that it has satisfied all the required conditions to make its first payment for IDSB.

During September, IOUpay entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 42% interest in IDSB for approximately $41.3 million.

The terms of the deal would see the payment split into 2 equal tranches over a 6-month period.

As such, IOUpay tapped into its existing cash holdings to pay around $20.7 million to the vendors of IDSB. This represents 50% of the purchase price, or 21% of the shares in the total issued capital of IDSB.

The second tranche payment is due once the audit of IDSB's FY21 statutory accounts is complete, or within 6 months after settlement. The date, however, can be brought forward if IOUpay wishes to do so.

The company stated it will assess its cash position before making the final payment. It noted that it could conduct an equity capital raise as well as use its cash reserves to fund the second tranche.

About the IOUpay share price

Looking at the past 12 months, the IOUpay share price has gone nowhere, registering nil gains for the period.

The company's shares shot up in February, reaching a multi-year high of 85 cents, before gradually treading lower. More recently, the IOUpay share price hit a 9-month low of 15.5 cents on Monday.

IOUpay commands a market capitalisation of roughly $102 million at today's current share price.

The post Here's why the IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price is sinking today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Before it was put on the back-burner, the IOU share price was set to open at 18.5 cents, a slight gain from last week's close.

Let's take a closer look.

Why is the IOU share price halted?

The company requested a trading halt to be put in place on its shares today, in relation to the acquisition of a 42% interest in I.Destinasi Sdn Bhd (IDSB). IDSB is a provider of consumer credit services in Malaysia.

The trading halt is requested to be in place until the commencement of trade on 2 December 2021 or when that announcement is released to the market.

IOU previously announced the acquisition back in September, where it penned a letter to investors outlining the particulars.

It is set to acquire the interest on a $41.3 million consideration finalised over 2 tranches in a 6-month period. A contingency in the deal could allow IOU to acquire IDSB for less if its pre-tax profit is less than $9.8 million for FY21.

IOU will finance the transaction on an all-cash consideration that will be completed in 50% lots, pursuant with the 2 tranches outlined above.

In a separate release last week, the company also advised that it was waiting for consent from one of IDSB's banking partners to finalise the acquisition. It appears this may have been finalised judging by IOU's language today, but the company is yet to confirm in full.

Today's announcement builds on momentum after the company released its operations update last week. In that report, IOU recognised $3.2 million in total transaction value (TTV) whilst growing its consumer downloads by 67% since September 30.

The company's operations in Malaysia is performing, securing over 100 merchants operating more than 300 outlets to the myIOU platform during this quarter so far.

It has also deployed staff to grow its base in regional areas outside of the Klang Valley central economic hub which is by Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

There has been no movement on this update since the ASX announced the trading halt earlier in the session on Tuesday.

IOU share price snapshot

In the last 12 months, the IOU share price has gained almost 9% after rallying another 12% this year to date.

Despite this, it has fallen 26%% in the last month and has collapsed a further 12% this past week alone.

The post IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price halted amid acquisition news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

IOU shares are on the move as the market responds to its operations update which the company released earlier.

Here are the key takeouts from IOU's business update with information current up until 14 November 2021.

IOU share price struggles despite 13% merchant growth

Key investment highlights from the operational update include:

• $3.2 million in Total Transaction Value (TTV)
• $306,616 in Net Transaction Revenues (NTR)
• Strong growth in consumer and merchant sign ups, approval, and onboarding
• 2,613 merchants now onboarded (up 13% since 30 September)
• 1,182 merchants systems activated and listed on myIOU (up 25% since 30 September)
• 28,370 consumer downloads of myIOU (up 67% since 30 September)
• 8,201 consumer activated accounts (up 71% since 30 September)

What did IOU announce in its update?

The company posted its earnings results up until November. It has delivered $3.2 million in TTV, resulting in NTR of $306,616 for the period.

It also grew its merchant base by 13% since 30 September and now has 2,613 merchants onboarded. At the same time, IOU saw 28,370 consumer downloads of the myIOU platform, up 67% over the same period.

This activity means IOU now has 8,201 consumer activated accounts, representing a substantial growth of 71% since 30 September.

The IOU Merchant Services team also trained staff from Razor Merchant Services (RMS) during the period. Following the completion of systems integration testing by RMS, a pilot group of merchants is set to go live by early December.

The company's Malaysian operations added more than 100 merchants operating more than 300 outlets to the myIOU platform during this quarter so far.

New merchants have been added to almost every industry vertical category including electrical and electronics, automotive, IT and gadgets, home and garden, beauty, and health and personal care.

On its IDSB settlement process and acquisition progress, IOU advised it is waiting for third party consent from one of IDSB's banking partners for the change of shareholding in the acquisition.

It notes that "the Company expects this to be a formality and this has only been delayed due to the banking partner's ability to convene its normally scheduled formal Board meetings due to local COVID restrictions".

In respect to its COVID-19 response in Malaysia, the company advised that it has deployed a dedicated regional commercial officer to develop regional areas outside of the Klang Valley central economic hub encompassed by Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

Speaking on its ongoing marketing strategy and digital campaign, IOU stated:

As shopping choice expands with many new merchants added across industry verticals and physical store locations, consumer engagement with myIOU has shown a significant growth trend over recent weeks. This growth also correlates with the Government's easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the Company's ongoing Digital Marketing Strategy and various promotional campaigns.

IOU share price snapshot

In the last 12 months, the IOU share price is down 2.5% despite gaining around 18% this year to date.

Despite this, it has slipped 22% into the red over the past month, falling more than 11% in the last week.

The post Why is the IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price tumbling 7% on Tuesday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The tech sector is leading the market's gains today, as buy now, pay later (BNPL) favourites such as Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) are among those leading the charge.

The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) is soaring today, gaining 2.72%, or 85.3 points.

The sector's day in the sun is helping to push the broader market higher. Right now, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 1.07%, or 78.3 points, higher than it finished yesterday's session.

Additionally, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is gaining 1.14% or 86.6 points.

Today's increases follow the 1.02% gain that tech heavy Nasdaq index managed to chalk up overnight.

Let's take a closer look at how some ASX tech favourites are performing today.

ASX tech shares are out in front

The ASX tech sector is leading the market today, helping to boost the ASX 200 more than 1% higher.

The sector is being boosted by big name share prices such as that of Afterpay, which has gained 4.5% today on the back of the Square Inc (NYSE: SQ) share price's similarly exuberant overnight gain.

Other BNPL stocks are also soaring. Leading the index's charge is the Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT) share price, which has gained a whopping 10.8% today to trade at 46 cents.

Splitit's stock is soaring on news its chair, Dawn Robertson, bought 100,000 shares in the company, paying between 34.5 cents and 35.5 cents apiece.

The share price's of Ioupay Ltd (ASX: IOU), Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL), and Laybuy Holdings Ltd (ASX: LBY) are all also in the green.

Bringing up the rear of the sector, is the Netlinkz Ltd (ASX: NET) share price. It has plummeted 4.5% despite only silence from the company.

The post ASX tech shares are leading the market's gains on Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Shares in the buy now, pay later (BNPL) company have fallen around 7% in the past 7 days.  

Let's take a look at what's been dragging the IOUpay share price lower this past week.

Acquistion sinks IOUpay share price

It seems investors have lost interest in IOUpay.

Following a trading halt, the digital payment company made headlines late last week after announcing an acquisition.

IOUpay acquired a 42% stake in Malaysian finance company I.Destinasi Sdn Bhd (IDSB) for AU$41.3 million, via 2 tranches.

According to IOUpay, the acquisition was completed with the intention of using IDSB as a complementary business.

The BNPL player highlighted collaborative opportunities of "cross-selling" between IOUpay's short-term offerings and IDSB's long-term products.

In addition, IOUpay noted that IDSB owns a key credit licence (AG Code2) for the region.

The company also highlighted the purchase price could be decreased if IDSB's profit before tax is less than AU$9.8 million for FY21.

Shares in IOUpay initially rocketed more than 22% after the company announced the news, opening at 36 cents.  

However, in the past week, investors seem to have lost interest in the BNPL player.

As a result, shares in IOUpay have drifted and are currently trading around 28.5 cents.

More on IOUpay

IOUpay operates in the BNPL sector, providing mobile banking and payment services to people in southeast Asia. The company also services leading banks in Malaysia.

IOUpay also works with telecommunication network providers to supply mobile OTT (over the top) services that leverage their subscriber base.

Since the start of the year, the IOUpay share price has soared more than 69%.

Indeed, shares in the BNPL player rocketed to record highs earlier this year after the company entered into a merchant referral agreement with EasyStore Commerce.

Despite releasing further merchant agreements throughout the year, the IOUpay share price has given back much of its gains since February.

At the time of writing, shares in IOUpay are trading 1.72% lower for the day at 28.5 cents.

The post IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price continues its slump, down 7% in a week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

After initially rocketing 22%, the IOUpay share price has given back some of those gains and is currently up 3.23% to 32 cents per share.

Below we look at the company's acquisition announcement that looks to be driving investor interest.

What acquisition announcement did the company make?

The IOUpay share price is gaining today after the company reported it is acquiring a 42% stake in I.Destinasi Sdn Bhd (IDSB).

IDSB provides long-term installment-based consumer credit services in Malaysia.

IOUpay said IDSB is a complementary business "with prospective collaboration opportunities for cross-selling" between its short-term buy now, pay later offerings (which run up to 6 months) and IDSB's longer-term consumer loan products, which run up to 10 years.

According to the release, IDSB "holds a unique and highly valuable AG Code2 licence". This provides it with a significant competitive advantage in Malaysia consumer credit market. There are only 2 companies holding an AG Code2 licence in the country.

IOUpay will pay RM126 million (AU$41.3 million) for its 42% stake in 2 tranches over a 6-month period. It said that price won't be increased "if IDSB outperforms an audited profit before tax" for the 2021 financial year.

On the other hand, the purchase price could be decreased if the profit before tax is less than RM30 million (AU$9.8 million) for FY21.

IOUpay will fund the acquisition with a 50% upfront cash consideration from its current cash holdings. The remaining 50% is scheduled to be paid in 6 months. The company said it will assess the appropriate payment method closer to that time.

IOUpay share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the IOUpay share price has rocketed 550%. This far outpaces the 27% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) over that same time.

IOUpay's shares are up 30% over the last month.

The post Why the IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price is leaping higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

IOUPay released its myIOU BNPL service at the end of the June quarter. Today, the payments provider announced it has already seen nearly $3.5 million worth of transactions processed through myIOU.

Right now, the IOUPay share price is 9.43% higher than its previous closing price. The company's shares are swapping hands for 29 cents apiece.

Additionally, today is the first day this week IOUPay's shares could be traded on the ASX.

The company initiated a trading halt on Monday morning after it became aware of a procedural error when it issued 20 million new shares in March.

The Federal Court granted the company relief from the error yesterday and its stock was unfrozen after the market closed.

Let's take a closer look at the news driving the IOUPay share price today.

myIOU update

The IOUPay share price is booming on its return to the ASX.

Today, IOUPay told the market $2.9 million worth of purchases were processed through its myIOU service between 1 July and 16 August. That adds to the $584,459 that was spent through myIOU in June.

Of that, $299,079 has gone straight into IOUpay's pockets.

Additionally, 1,492 merchants have signed onto the service, while 7,372 people have downloaded the myIOU app.

IOUPay is planning to launch a digital marketing strategy that will include social media influencers and the "Face of myIOU", award-winning international singer-songwriter Yuna.

Yuna's music has reached number 3 on the US Billboard Chart and she has previously worked with brands including Malaysian Airlines.

IOUPay expects the marketing strategy to drive demand for myIOU in Malaysia.

The company also announced testing of the integration of Razor Merchant Services' payment system and that of IOUPay has been pushed back to September. The delay has been brought about by COVID-19 restrictions in Malaysia.

IOUPay share price snapshot

The IOUPay share price has been soaring lately.

It has currently gained 75% year to date. It is also 705% higher than it was this time last year.

The post IOUPay (ASX:IOU) share price soars 10% on news of BNPL offering appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Right now, IOUpay shares are trading for 24 cents apiece, 11.63% more than their previous close.

Additionally, more than 10.9 million IOUpay shares have swapped hands today. For context, over the past 4 weeks, the average number of IOUpay shares traded per day is around 4.3 million.

Let's take a look at what might be driving IOUpay's shares higher today.

What might be driving IOUpay?

The IOUpay share price could be being boosted by a number of factors today.

The share price movement could be a belated reaction to IOUpay's exciting news found within its quarterly report.

The report was released on Thursday. Within it, IOUpay detailed the successful launch of its myIOU buy now, pay later (BNPL) service.

As part of the service, IOUpay released a myIOU app to both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.

Despite only just launching the service, myIOU saw $584,459 worth of sales in June. After the end of the June quarter, IOUpay recorded another $1,609,431 worth of sales through myIOU.

Another factor that might be boosting the IOUpay share price is the broader BNPL market. Many BNPL shares are gaining at around the same rate as IOUpay today, likely spurred by the market's excitement over Afterpay Ltd's (ASX:APT) takeover offer from Square Inc.

Afterpay's board recommended Square's acquisition offer on Monday.

The Afterpay share price is up 12% today. Fellow BNPL giant Zip Co Ltd (ASX:Z1P) is gaining 9.2%, while Sezzle Inc (ASX:SZL) is also performing better than the broader market, gaining 4.4%.

IOUpay share price snapshot

The IOUpay share price is having a good year on the ASX. Right now, it's 20% higher than it was at the start of 2021. It has also gained 512% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $118 million, with approximately 551 million shares outstanding.

The post The IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price is soaring 11% today. Here's why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Right now, a share in IOUpay will set investors back 24 cents. One month ago, that same share was trading for 31 cents. That represents a 22.5% fall for the IOUPay share price in just 30 days.

Not to mention the IOUpay share price is now a long way from its 52-week high of 85 cents, which it reached in mid-February.

Let's take a look at what's been going on with IOUpay lately.

Quick refresher

IOUpay is a fintech company offering buy now, pay later (BNPL), mobile banking, and payment services to people in South East Asia.

It first listed on the ASX way back in 2000. At one point in 2002, the IOUpay share price closed at $5.55.

It plunged over the following years before booming again during the past 12 months.

The latest from IOUpay

The last time we heard from IOUpay was on 15 June when it announced it had entered into a master merchant agreement with Razor Merchant Services (RMS).

Despite releasing seemingly positive news, the IOUpay share price fell 3% that day.

RMS supplies payment services to merchants. Under the agreement, RMS will onboard and promote IOUpay's BNPL service to its Malaysian-based merchants.

It has been specified that IOUpay's branding will be displayed on merchants' premises and websites.

IOUpay will pay RMS a percentage of the income derived from purchases using its BNPL service.

IOUpay's CEO Khong Kok Loong commented on the agreement:

We are thrilled to be working together with Razer Merchant Services who represent one of the most progressive networks of online merchants in South East Asia. Providing our customers with more than 50,000 of Malaysia's most recognised and popular online stores to shop and pay using our BNPL service offerings is an important step in providing our customers with a wide spectrum of choice across brands, products and services.

IOUPay share price snapshot

The IOUpay share price has been having a decent run on the ASX lately.

It has gained 48% since the beginning of 2021. It has also increased by a whopping 842% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $135 million, with approximately 551 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price has fallen 23% in a month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

It seems there's always a microcap out there striking gold or developing some tech that helps redefine the way we do business. And often when milestone developments such as these are announced to the market, it can result in the value of a company surging exponentially over a relatively short period of time.

On that note, with FY21 done and dusted, here's a look at three ASX shares that managed to hit the coveted 10-bagger status over the course of the last 12 months.

These ASX shares went gangbusters last financial year

Podium Minerals Ltd (ASX: POD)

Podium Minerals is focused on developing its Parks Reef project, with plans of becoming Australia's first Platinum Group Metal (PGM) producer.

PGMs are a family of six chemically similar elements, most valued for their wide range of industrial, medical and electronic applications.

According to the company's May investor presentation, current inferred mineral resources include 1.39 million ounces of platinum, palladium and gold, as well as 53,900 tonnes of copper all within 100 metres of surface.

Podium Minerals is currently undergoing further drilling to accelerate its resource.

Recent exploration results have continued to show promise, with assay results released on 18 May resulting in a 21% spike in the Podium share price to 67 cents.

The company's promising large-scale PGM asset, combined with its systematic drilling, saw investors flock to the company's shares last financial year. The Podium Minerals share price began FY21 trading at a mere 2.3 cents and capped off the year at 51.5 cents for a whopping 2,139% gain over the 12-month period.

Looking ahead, Podium's investor presentation advised it has commenced mine optimisation studies and preliminary economic analysis to drive its pathway to production.

Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL)

During the 2021 financial year, Vulcan Energy began to emerge as a household name in the ASX lithium sector.

The German-based lithium company aims to become the world's first zero-carbon lithium producer for the electric vehicle industry.

According to Vulcan Energy's project timeline, the company is targeting the completion of many production pre-requisites by early 2022. These include offtake agreements with European customers, a bankable feasibility study, further exploration and plant piloting.

If all goes to plan, Vulcan believes construction should commence in late 2022 with its first lithium production taking place by mid-2024.

The company's zero-carbon ambitions, alongside the broader surge in ASX lithium shares, saw the Vulcan share price rally 1,245% from 56.5 cents to $7.70 in FY21.

IOUpay Ltd (ASX: IOU)

The IOUpay share price has been trending lower since February, from record highs of 85 cents to just 23.5 cents by 30 June.

However, shares in the South-East Asia-based buy now, pay later (BNPL) company came from humble beginnings of just 2 cents at the start of last financial year.

By the end of FY21, IOUpay shares had lifted a cool 1,075%.

IOUpay successfully completed a $50 million capital raising back in February 2020, paving the way to accelerate its opportunities in the BNPL sector in South-East Asia.

In February this year, the IOUpay share price staged a significant rally, surging from 17 cents on 5 February to an intraday high of 85 cents on 15 February.

The company's agreement with EasyStore may have been among the catalysts for its strong showing in February.

While the IOUpay share price might have stalled in recent months, the company has continued to be on the lookout for opportunities to grow its presence in Asia.

More recently, IOUpay signed a Master Merchant Agreement with Razer Merchant Services on 15 June.

The post 3 ASX shares that hit 10-bagger status in financial year 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Industry darling, the Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price rocketed 93.7% in FY21, soaring from $60.99 on June 30 2020 to a closing price of $118.17 on June 30 2021 after hitting a 52-week high of around $160 in February of this year.

Despite its strong showing, Afterpay didn't make it to the top 3 ASX BNPL shares list for FY21.

Let's take a closer look at the 3 shares that were best in class.

3 best performing BNPL shares of FY21

IOUpay Ltd (ASX: IOU)

The IOUpay share price was a true ASX hero during the 2021 financial year. It gained a whopping 1,075% and its share price went from a measly 2 cents to a respectable 23 cents.

IOUpay is a BNPL provider focused on the South East Asian market. February was by far the best month of the 2021 financial year for the IOU share price – It gained a mammoth 412% in the first 15 days alone.

IOUpay's incredible February gains were seemingly driven by its agreement with EasyStore. The agreement saw IOUpay's BNPL service rolled out to EasyStore's point-of-sales platform – used by more than 7000 merchants across South East Asia.

The most recent news from IOUpay was of a similar agreement it has made with Razer Merchant Services in June.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $129 million, with approximately 551 million shares outstanding.

Fatfish Group Ltd (ASX: FFG)

Another BNPL star of the FY21 was Fatfish Group. The Fatfish share price gained 757% over the 12-months ended 30 June 2021.

Fatfish Group also had an unbelievably good February. Its share price gained 400% over the month after it announced it was to enter the BNPL space through its investee company, Smartfunding.

Then, in early April, Fatfsh acquired an 85% stake in Malaysian-based BNPL company Forever Pay. Finally, later that month, it made its second foray into the sector, purchasing a 55% stake in South East Asian payment provider Pay Direct Technology. The company said the stake would have "impactful synergies" with its BNPL rollout.

Fatfish has a market capitalisation of around $60 million, with approximately 1 billion shares outstanding.

Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL)

The 2021 financial year was Sezzle's first full financial year on the ASX – and it performed brilliantly. The Sezzle share price gained 107% in the 12-months ended 30 June 2021.

The BNPL company's initial public offering (IPO) was on 2 August 2019. Come 30 June 2020, Sezzle shares were trading for $3.76. Exactly one year later, they were going for $8.81.

At its highest point of the financial year, the Sezzle share price was a whopping $11.99. However, it was hit hard by the US-driven tech sell-off in March.

The latest news the market heard from Sezzle, was of its partnership with US retail giant Target Corporation. The news saw the Sezzle share price gain another 22%.

The post Here are the top 3 performing ASX BNPL shares of FY21 – and they're not Afterpay appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This comes after the ASX buy now, pay later (BNPL) company emerged from a part-day trading halt preceding its new partnership announcement.

What partnership did IOUpay announce?

The IOUpay share price is on the move after the company reported it has entered into a Master Merchant Agreement with Razer Merchant Services (RMS).

Under the terms of the agreement, the company said RMS is "contracted on a non-exclusive basis to refer and acquire its merchants to onboard and utilise IOUpay's BNPL payment service offering".

All the participating merchants covered under the RMS agreement are in Malaysia. IOUpay will pay RMS a small, fixed percentage for every successful transaction conducted on its BNPL platform from the agreement.

RMS is operated by Razer Fintech, among the biggest O2O (offline to online) digital payment networks in emerging markets. According to the announcement, Razer has processed billions of dollars in total payment value to date.

RMS currently provides credit card, debit card and e-wallet payment options to its merchants. After successful system integration and testing between IOUpay and RMS, BNPL will join RMS' payment options. IOUpay said integration and testing could take up to 4 weeks.

Commenting on the new agreement, IOUpay's CEO Khong Kok Loong said:

We are thrilled to be working together with Razer Merchant Services who represent one of the most progressive networks of online merchants in South East Asia.

Providing our customers with more than 50,000 of Malaysia's most recognised and popular online stores to shop and pay using our BNPL service offerings is an important step in providing our customers with a wide spectrum of choice across brands, products and services.

IOUpay share price snapshot

IOUpay shareholders have been well-rewarded during the past 12 months, with shares up 1,169%. That blows the doors off the 31% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

However, the IOUpay share price has fallen hard from the 82 cents per share it reached on 18 February this year, currently trading for 33 cents. But even with that retrace, shares in IOUpay remain up 100% so far in 2021.

The post Up 1,169% in 1 year, why the IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price is higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

But if we zoom out a little, Ioupay's performance starts to make the ASX 200 look a little impotent by comparison. For starters, the Ioupay share price is up 5% over just the past week. Year to date, investors have enjoyed gains of 87%. And over the past 12 months, Ioupay shares are up a staggering 4,257%.

That would turn a $1,000 investment into approximately $42,570. That comes from the minuscule share price of half a cent that Ioupay was trading for around this time last year.

However, there's one more, and far larger, number to keep in mind. If you have been following this relatively new ASX buy now, pay later (BNPL) share for a while, you might remember it had a spectacular run back in February.

Between 9 February and 15 February, the Ioupay share price climbed a massive 256% and went as high as 85 cents. That puts the gains that Ioupay enjoyed between 9 June 2020 and 15 February 2021 at more than 8,000%.

But it's not all good news for investors. Anyone who bought in at those February peaks would currently be down more than 61% on their investment.

So what's new over at Ioupay?

Well, not a whole lot, at least recently. The company has made no new announcements or released any news since 14 May. However, the company did have a positive announcement earlier that month.

As we covered at the time, Ioupay announced on 5 May that it had inked a deal with the Southeast Asian payments company RMS Reloads. This deal will allow Ioupay customers to use BNPL payments over RMS Reloads' 10,000 strong merchant network across Malaysia. This announcement sent Ioupay shares up as high as 9% when it was made public.

At its current share price, Ioupay has a market capitalisation of around $173 million and a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 65.7.

The post The IOUpay (ASX:IOU) share price is up 4,000% in the past year appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In afternoon trade, the Malaysia-based buy now pay later (BNPL) provider's shares are up 9% to 41 cents.

Why is the IOUPay share price surging higher?

The IOUPay share price was given a boost today by the release of a positive announcement.

According to the release, the company has entered into a Bill Payment Service Agreement with RMS Reloads.

RMS Reloads has been established for over 10 years as one of South East Asia's largest offline-to-online payment networks.

The company was initially established in Malaysia in 2010 as MOL Accessportal, but was renamed RMS Reloads after being acquired in April 2018 by Razer Inc.

What is the agreement?

The agreement is for three years and will see RMS Reloads provide (on a non-exclusive basis) a collection agency service.

This service will enable IOUpay customers to make BNPL instalment payments at any merchant across RMS Reloads' extensive national merchant network of more than 10,000 physical points-of-presence in Malaysia stores.

Under the terms and conditions of the agreement, the collection agency service is provided by RMS Reloads to IOUpay in exchange for a standard low fixed percentage fee of the payment amount on a per transaction basis. The percentage has not been disclosed due to standard commercial-in-confidence reasons.

Management notes that the agreement adds material strategic value to the company's payment collection operations, in-field distribution presence, and merchant and customer reach. This is due to RMS Reloads' wide-reaching physical points-of-presence, which includes 2,500 7- Eleven stores, 1,900 99 Speedmart stores, and 518 KK MART stores.

Though, given that these are convenience stores, they're not exactly the type of locations that BNPL customers typically use these services.

Nevertheless, management is very positive on the deal. And so is the market, judging by the IOUpay share price performance.

IOUpay's CEO, Mr Khong Kok Loong, commented: "We are delighted to be working together with RMS Reloads and the Razer Pay Group. Providing our customers with 10,000 of Malaysia's most popular store locations with over-the-counter services to make their BNPL payments is an important step in making our BNPL service offering even more accessible and convenient for our customers."

"The RMS Reloads merchant network represents an infield distribution channel with some of Malaysia and SEA's biggest shopping brands. The Razer Fintech Group is a natural fit with IOUpay which we look forward to building further," he concluded.

Following today's gain, the IOUPay share price is now up over 100% year to date.

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