Days after CEO exit, Hoolah cuts jobs in restructuring effort

Hoolah, a buy now, pay later (BNPL) firm headquartered in Singapore, has applied the brakes on its expansion plans, a sign that competition in the sector is intensifying in Asia.

Last month, the company significantly reduced its workforce to about 60-plus employees to streamline its operations, Hoolah co-founder Arvin Singh tells Tech in Asia.

Hoolah co-founder and chief operating officer Arvin Singh, who has stepped up as interim CEO / Photo credit: Hoolah

“Market changes and the ongoing effects of the global pandemic have led to a strong need to adjust our business strategy and realign resources, which includes further development of existing businesses in Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong with a leaner structure,” Singh wrote in an internal memo sent to employees on September 13.

Citing sensitivities, Singh declined to share the exact number of employees who were laid off, but he said the job cuts affected staff members across departments and seniority levels. According to its LinkedIn profile, Hoolah currently has 128 employees and has operations in Malaysia and Hong Kong.

The move came just days after Hoolah CEO Stuart Thornton handed in his resignation, which Singh claims was a “completely unrelated event” to the company-wide retrenchment that took place on August 25.

Thornton “made that decision to focus on his family,” explains Singh, who is now Hoolah’s interim CEO. He added that the company’s other two co-founders, Jason Van and Daniel Pieper, remain dedicated to the business and will continue in their roles as chief technology officer and chief information officer, respectively.

Launched in February 2018, Hoolah allows consumers to split up payments into three interest-free installments at the point of purchase. Its BNPL services are available at both online and physical stores of retailers including gaming-chair manufacturer SecretLab, furniture shop HipVan, and skincare brand Clarins.

Compared to local BNPL players such as Atome or Rely, the average transaction on Hoolah is worth about twice as much at around S$350 (US$261).

A recently laid-off Hoolah staffer who talked to Tech in Asia on condition of anonymity estimates that between 70 to 90 employees lost their jobs. The company informed the employees via one-on-one virtual meetings that the source described as a “messy” termination with “no heads-up.”

Hoolah is committed to treating its employees with “utmost respect and dignity,” says Singh, and it has had conversations with all affected staff. For employees who agreed, the firm has reached out to startup founders, hiring managers, and HR professionals on their behalf to provide support in the next stage of their careers. “We’ve already had some staff getting placed as a result of that,” he adds.

Fundraising efforts hit a snag

The dismissals were implemented on “grounds of redundancy,” according to two retrenched employees who spoke to Tech in Asia. Another source said that Hoolah had cited the effects of the pandemic as well as rising competition in the BNPL space.

A fourth staff member told Tech in Asia that he had been informed that Hoolah was unable to secure a new round of investment, which led to the restructuring effort. All sources requested anonymity as they are not authorized to speak to the media.

Battling the pandemic

A “global land grab”

Were default rates a factor?