Singapore AI startup Sqreem buys Australia-based Trade Indy

SQREEM Technologies, a startup developing an artificial intelligence (AI) platform, has acquired advertising technology company Trade Indy for US$30 million through a share swap.

Trade Indy, based in Melbourne, was founded in 2014 by brothers James and Mike Robertson. It has largely been self-funded and has not taken venture funding, the Australian Financial Review reported on Mar 11.

Trade Indy has 28 employees. Its technology helps clients optimise multichannel digital marketing campaigns, based on data that indicates the propensity for customers to spend.

The company operates across Australia, South-east Asia, the Middle East and North America.

Sqreem chief executive and co-founder Ian Chapman-Banks said Sqreem is sourcing for more acquisition opportunities in Europe and the UK. It plans to raise funding for acquisitions and organic growth.

Sqreem was founded in 2010 and has 120 employees post-acquisition. It develops AI solutions that help companies identify valuable groups of customers by analysing their online behaviour.

Chapman-Banks said the company has business in 80 countries, with a physical presence in Singapore, Tokyo, Jakarta and six more cities.

In 2021, Sqreem acquired advertising solutions platform Gamma SSP, headquartered in Singapore.

Sqreem’s partners include Rakuten, with which it has teamed up to provide AI-based marketing solutions, and English rugby union club Saracens, for which it is providing consumer intelligence.