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Did you know that equity mutual funds in the US alone manage 6x the comparable value handled by buyout funds and 18x what venture capital firms preside over? No wonder going public seems to be the dream of almost every startup.
(Meanwhile, here I am, struggling to scrape together enough money to buy a modest flat to call home.)
That mania is catching in Asia, with Tech in Asia analysis showing that several tech startups across China, India, and Southeast Asia are reportedly planning for an IPO this year. As our journalist Doris Yu puts it, some of the biggest-ever tech IPOs (by capital raised) took place in 2020 with the likes of Airbnb and DoorDash. This has stoked interest in looking into who’s next, and 2021 is shaping up to be a banner year for listings.
Let’s see how many of these Asian hopefuls go public before I’m able to finally get my hands on a set of house keys.
Today we look at:
- The Asian IPO dreams of 2021
- A big series E for a Singapore-based retail tech firm
- Other newsy highlights such as Huawei getting into the electric cars game, and Spotify’s new voice command feature on mobile
PREMIUM SUMMARY
Asian tech giants eyeing that public pie
Tech stocks have boomed during the pandemic, and according to Tech in Asia’s analysis, as many as 34 tech startups across China, India, and Southeast Asia are reportedly planning for an IPO this year. Out of this number, 19 startups could collectively raise over US$25 billion. However, this figure could potentially surpass US$50 billion since a few of them, such as Gojek, Traveloka, Bukalapak, and ByteDance, haven’t set or disclosed their target fundraising amount yet.
Just thinking about that amount of money makes me sweat.
- Lucrative industries: Most of the Asian startups looking to be listed come from the ecommerce, fintech, logistics, and ride-hailing scenes.
- Where in the world?: The US is a popular destination for a listing, especially for Southeast Asian firms. Meanwhile, Indian firms like to stay home, and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange comes in at number three.
- An alternative: Going public via special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) is getting increasingly popular, and this type of IPO accounted for most of the growth in the US’ IPO market last year compared to 2019. The likes of Grab, Traveloka, Bukalapak, and Tokopedia are strongly considering this alternative.
Funding for this retail unicorn is on Trax
An AI-powered boost for Singapore’s tourism space
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