US-based e-commerce app Slice has been acquired by Japan-based online retailer Rakuten for an undisclosed fee, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
Slice mines email inboxes for purchasing receipts to create data and notifications for consumers when items are delivered, special offers become avaliable or when money can be recouped from previous purchases.
The acquisition has been made as Rakuten plans for a possible expansion into the US and it aims to increase its product offering to compete with the likes of Amazon. The information Slice gathers will also be sold to other companies, with particular focus on financial institutions and other firms seeking credit card spending data.
Slice raised $23m in a series B round in 2013 from Rakuten, marketing research company NPD Group, DCM, Innovation Endeavors, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Russia Partners. In 2011, the company raised $9.4m in a series A round from DCM, Lightspeed, Floodgate and angel investors.