Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten said that it will fold its payments and points division into its credit card company.

On Thursday, Rakuten said that it would consolidate its payments and points businesses, folding them into credit card and loans unit Rakuten Card. This unit, the company said, would become the ‘driving force’ of its integrated payments business with a view to forming strategic partnerships with other companies.

The company, which operates more than 70 services across three segments, has lost money for 12 consecutive quarters as a result of the costly build-out of its mobile phone business.

Its core e-commerce offering continues to perform well, but the company has a reported 1.9 trillion yen ($13.22 billion) in debt, with 406 billion yen due in 2024 and a further 430 billion yen in 2025. Rakuten has listed several units including internet banking business Rakuten Bank as a means of generating funds.

For the April-June period, the group posted an operating loss of 48.9 billion yen ($340.13 million). This beat analyst expectations of a 51.2 billion yen ($356.7 million), with losses at the mobile segment decreasing to 82.4 billion yen ($574.04 million).

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