Emtek pours $375m in Grab’s Indonesian arm

Singapore-based super app Grab announced that its Indonesian arm has received US$375 million from Emtek Group, one of the largest conglomerates in the archipelago, to scale their respective ecosystems.

Photo credit: Grab

The partnership will focus on two objectives: accelerating the digitalization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individual entrepreneurs and creating more accessible digital offerings. Grab and Emtek are set to explore collaborations across logistics, ecommerce, financial services, telemedicine, advertising, digital media, and digital products for traditional local stores or warungs.

As part of their initiative, the companies said that they will host Festival Kota Mapan, an extensive accelerator for microbusinesses and SMEs in Indonesia’s Tier 2 cities. The inaugural program will be held in September, aiming to attract 1,000 participants and focus on enhancing their capabilities through curated and intensive training programs, and customized solutions supported by Bukalapak, GrabFood, GrabKios, and GrabMart.

Additionally, the two firms will look at opportunities to invest in and mentor Indonesian startups through KMK Online and Grab Ventures Velocity.

“The government aims to have 30 million SMEs go digital by 2024, and we are grateful that companies like Grab and Emtek Group have taken up the mantle to help our MSMEs in transforming their operations digitally,” said Teten Masduki, minister of Indonesia’s Cooperatives and SMEs department.