OSLO, Norway, March 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Opera Limited
(NASDAQ: OPRA), one of the world's major browser providers with 380
million monthly active users globally, today announced it has hired
PayPal veteran Allen Hu to become
new Executive Vice President (EVP) of Dify, Opera's fintech arm. An
expert in financial technology and payments, Allen Hu will lead the Dify business. He brings
a wealth of experience from nearly ten years at PayPal, where he
was Regional Head of Global Core Payments, based in California.
This news follows the recent launch of Dify in Europe. Dify's first offering is an in-browser
cashback service for online shopping as well as a Dify Wallet app,
which provides Opera's large user base with access to a personal
account and a virtual Mastercard debit card. Dify targets a
fast-growing set of "power shoppers" whose online shopping
experience would benefit from cashback offerings, a privacy-first
shopping mode, a digital debit card and eventually, services like
savings management, credit and investment opportunities.
Mr. Hu gained expertise in fintech as a Venture Partner in
Sequoia Capital China, where he focused on investments in the
fintech sector. Prior to that, he was the General Manager of Baidu
Pay, the COO of the Fortune 500 company Ping An FinTech, and the
Deputy General Manager of TenPay, a Tencent company, where he launched WeChat Pay.
WeChat Pay was reported to have 1 billion daily transactions in
2019. Hu has an engineering background, and holds a MS degree in
Computer Science from University of
Iowa and an Executive MBA from CKGSB.
Krystian Kolondra, EVP Browsers
& EEA Fintech at Opera, said, "Appointing such a senior figure
from the fintech and payments industry speaks to our commitment to
the vertical, and to the investment and growth potential we see for
Dify. Allen's expertise will be invaluable in helping us drive the
fintech division and achieve our ambition to continue to bring new
services to market under the Dify brand."
Allen Hu, EVP at Dify, said, "I
am delighted to join Opera and truly excited about the opportunity
Dify has to become a leader in fintech. Opera's approach to
initially offer its 50 million monthly active users in Europe an online in-browser cashback service
as well as the Dify wallet app marks the start of many innovative
financial services Dify will offer. Just as PayPal captured the
fintech world initially with its online payment solutions, I see
huge potential for Opera to similarly disrupt financial services
and become a key fintech player through Dify."
About Opera
Founded in 1995 in Norway,
Opera delivers browsers and AI-driven digital content discovery
solutions to more than 380 million MAUs worldwide. The quickly
growing company remains one of the most innovative browser creators
in the world. Opera is listed on Nasdaq under the OPRA ticker
symbol.
About Dify
Dify, built by Opera, takes advantage of the company's expertise
in delivering cutting-edge internet browsers and consumer
technology solutions to deliver an intuitive, mobile-first approach
to financial services. Dify uses technology from the Opera browser
to provide modern shoppers with the highest quality online
experience by making it safer, more personal and more rewarding.
The cashback service as well as the Dify app are currently offered
in Spain in beta, with more
European markets to follow in the future. For more information go
to https://getdify.com.
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SOURCE Opera Limited