Terence Lee · · 2 min readRakuten to close Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia marketplaces, lay off about 150 staff
Yes, Rakuten has a cafe.
Japanese ecommerce giant Rakuten will be shutting down its Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia marketplaces, it said in a press release. Further, the company confirmed with Tech in Asia that these marketplaces will shut down by March 2016.
About 150 staff are about to be laid off. The company will assist with finding employment and giving severance packages in accordance with local laws, it said.
Rakuten has also confirmed it is in the midst of selling off Tarad, an ecommerce site in Thailand it acquired in 2009.
The company did not give a specific reason for the closures, except to say that the moves are in line with a new roadmap.
In the place of these marketplaces, it plans to introduce its consumer-to-consumer marketplace mobile app, called Rakuma, in Southeast Asia.
The Rakuten group did US$6.34 billion in consolidated revenue in 2015, up from US$5.31 billion in the year before. Even as it withdraws in Asia, it looks set to double down on Japan and Taiwan, the two markets where it is performing well.
The potential introduction of Rakuma to Southeast Asia could pose a challenge to Rakuten. Carousell and Shopee are the top C2C marketplaces in the region, which means it might be too late to the game.
That said, Rakuten Ventures is also an investor in Carousell, which means a deal could be made to bring the fast rising app into the Rakuten umbrella.
The closures do not amount to a total exit from the region. Its regional headquarters in Singapore will be keeping the lights on, and so will its other businesses, which includes Rakuten Ventures and Rakuten Travel.
Here’s a timeline of Rakuten’s expansion into the region:
May 2008 – Started operations in Taiwan
Oct 2009 – Acquired Thai ecommerce site Tarad
Oct 2010 – Launched online shopping mall in China Lekutian with Baidu.
Jun 2011 – Started Rakuten Belanja in Indonesia
April 2012 – Closed Lekutian
May 2012 – Started Malaysian marketplace
March 2013 – Rakuten Belanja in doubt
April 2013 – Rakuten Belanja is alive
Aug 2013 – Rakuten goes it alone in Indonesia
Dec 2013 – Started Singapore marketplace
Feb 2016 – Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore marketplaces to be closed.
Editing by Malavika Velayanikal
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