What it sells
PIE VAT, a traveler app for tax-free (VAT refund) procedures paired with an electronic tax-free procedure management system for retailers; refunds in 135 currencies.
Business model breakdown
Buyer: who owns the budget?
Retailers serving inbound tourists
Trigger: what makes them buy now?
Japan new refund-method tax-free system starts 2026-11-01; retailers need compliant e-tax-free filing and tourist sales.
Workflow: what inputs become what output?
Tax-free sales processing and refunds
Economics: what it saves and how it charges
Free for merchants (no setup, monthly or usage fee); fees are charged to tourists at refund; extra revenue from tourist app marketing and coupons.
Distribution: how it reaches customers
Merchant signup/inquiry form with free tax-office filing support; POS integrations (Smaregi, Shopify, Square); counters in commercial facilities (PIE VAT STATION).
Funding history and coverage
| Round date | Stage | Amount | Investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-11-27 | Series A | 1,550万米ドル（約23億円） | Builders VC, Coral Capital, DG Ventures, Green Visor Capital, Plug and Play Japan, New Commerce Ventures, Dreamcraft Ventures, MATH Venture Partners, Context Ventures | thebridge.jp |
Profiles summarize public reporting and company websites. Business-model notes are MaxBC's reading of that material, not confirmed facts; unknowns are left blank rather than guessed. Updated 2026-10-12.