TORONTO, Sept. 29,
2024 /PRNewswire/ - Payfare Inc.
("Payfare" or the "Company") (TSX: PAY) (OTCQX:
PYFRF), a leading international Earned Wage Access
("EWA") company powering instant access to earnings and
digital banking solutions for workforces, today announced that its
Board of Directors has initiated, with the assistance of outside
legal and financial advisors, a comprehensive and thorough
strategic review process to explore and evaluate a broad range of
potential options for the Company to enhance value.
The foundation, funding, and execution of Payfare's ongoing
programs remain secure with a robust pipeline of potential new
opportunities in the gig economy and EWA space. To support
conversion of these new opportunities and alleviate concentration
risk, the Board has decided to initiate a strategic review to
accelerate these goals. During this process, Payfare remains
focused on executing its current business strategy and will
continue to provide industry-leading financial solutions for its
clients and cardholders. This review process will assess strategic
alternatives that may include, but are not limited to strategic
partnerships, strategic investments, accretive acquisitions, a
potential sale, merger or other business combination.
In conducting the strategic review, the Company's Board and
management team are committed to acting in the best interests of
the Company, its shareholders and its stakeholders. There is no
deadline or definitive timetable for the completion of the
strategic review and Payfare does not intend to comment further
unless the Board has approved a specific transaction or otherwise
determined that disclosure is necessary or appropriate. There can
be no assurances that the strategic review will result in any
specific transaction or outcome.
Advisor
The Board has engaged Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. (KBW) as
financial advisor to assist with the strategic review process.
Support for DasherDirect Program and Cardholders Through
Early 2025
Payfare is proud to have built DasherDirect, an award-winning
digital banking solution providing cardholders with free instant
pay, cashback rewards, and other meaningful benefits. Since
inception, the program has successfully serviced millions of
cardholders and processed billions of dollars of transactions. The
level of adoption, user reviews, and app store ratings, including
its consistent position as the top finance app as ranked by unitQ,
demonstrates both the value proposition to cardholders and
Payfare's ability to deliver a best-in-class user experience.
Payfare will continue its role as a good partner supporting the
DasherDirect program and cardholders through early 2025.
Long-Term Client Renewals with Uber and Lyft Executed in
2024
On July 25, 2024, the Company
announced the long-term renewal of its agreement with Lyft
Inc. to power the Lyft Direct program. The renewal allows
drivers on the Lyft platform to continue benefiting from free
instant pay, a feature-rich digital banking product and cashback
rewards for years to come. Subsequent to the extension, Payfare
also announced new value-added product enhancements to Lyft Direct
including Balance Protection, Lyft Direct Savings, and more. Active
Lyft Direct users have increased by more than fifty percent year to
date, demonstrating the ongoing success of the program.
On March 5, 2024, the Company
announced the launch of the Uber Pro Card, a new program with Uber
providing free instant payouts after every trip or delivery,
enhanced loyalty features for drivers and delivery people, and
backup balance for qualifying users on the Uber platform in
Canada, powered by Payfare's
leading digital banking app. Active users of the Uber Pro Card have
increased by more than five times compared to the legacy
program.
Well-Funded to Support Future Growth
Payfare has over $100 million in
cash, cash equivalents, and guaranteed investment certificates and
is well capitalized to fund ongoing operations and new strategic
initiatives. Although the loss of the DasherDirect program will
have a substantial impact on the Company's revenue profile, Payfare
intends to right size its operating expenses to align with the near
to mid-term reduction in revenues while providing the flexibility
to execute on new business and initiatives to build long-term
value.
About Payfare (TSX:PAY, OTCQX: PYFRF)
Payfare is a leading, international Earned Wage Access ("EWA")
company powering instant access to earnings through an
award-winning digital banking platform for today's workforce.
Payfare partners with leading e-commerce marketplaces, payroll
platforms, and employers to provide financial security and
inclusion for all workers.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking
Information
Information and statements contained in this news release that
are not historical facts are "forward-looking information" within
the meaning of applicable securities legislation that involve risks
and uncertainties relating, but not limited, to Payfare's current
expectations, intentions, plans, and beliefs. Forward-looking
information can often be identified by forward-looking words such
as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "goal", "plan", "target",
"intend", "estimate", "could", "should", "may" and "will" or the
negative of these terms or similar words suggesting future
outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives,
assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or
performance. Examples of forward-looking information in this news
release include, without limitation the strategic review process
and timing and length of such process, exploring potential options
including strategic partnerships, strategic investments, accretive
acquisitions, a potential sale, merger or other business
combination, execution of Payfare's current business strategy and
continued provision of industry-leading financial solutions for its
clients and cardholders, support for the DasherDirect program and
cardholders through early 2025, the impact of the loss of the
DasherDirect program to the Company's revenue profile, intentions
to right size operating expenses and impacts to Payfare's liquidity
position, and executing on new opportunities and initiatives. This
forward-looking information is based, in part, on assumptions and
factors that may change or prove to be incorrect, thus causing
actual results, performance or achievements to be materially
different from those expressed or implied by forward-looking
information.
Security holders, potential security holders and other
prospective investors should be aware that these statements are
subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
suggested by the forward-looking statements. Such risks include the
factors discussed from time to time in Payfare's filings with the
Canadian Securities Authorities, copies of which can be found under
Payfare's profile on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca. In
addition, there is risk that opportunities identified through the
strategic review may take longer than anticipated or may not be a
fit or appropriate for the Company or will not be at terms that are
acceptable to the Company, and right sizing efforts may not have
the intended impacts as expected by management on its
liquidity.
Security holders, potential security holders and other
prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking information. By its nature, forward-looking
information involves numerous assumptions, inherent risks and
uncertainties, both general and specific, that contribute to the
possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and
various future events will not occur. Payfare undertakes no
obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any
forward-looking information whether as a result of new information,
future events or other such factors which affect this information,
except as required by law.
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SOURCE Payfare Inc.