IN FOCUS
In today’s newsletter, we look at:
- Shopee’s banner 2024
- Whether Indian consumers will pay for almost-instant iPhone deliveries
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Hi there,
While I was in Australia recently, a friend asked if I could help him purchase some items from Chemist Warehouse, a pharmacy chain offering low-price products, from vitamins to fragrances to skin care.
He changed his mind after realizing he could get the same items on Lazada.
Between platforms like Lazada and Shopee, you can now find almost everything you want and need. Shopee overtook the former to become Southeast Asia’s largest ecommerce platform a number of years ago, and it continues to maintain its lead.
In 2024, Shopee hit a milestone: It recorded positive annual adjusted earnings for the first time. The business is growing strongly, with parent Sea Group expecting Shopee’s gross merchandise value to expand by 20% this year.
In this week’s featured story, I take a closer look at Sea’s 2024 results and how Shopee is driving its adjacent lending business.
Logistics and delivery speeds were brought up during the company’s question and answer session with analysts in its latest earnings call. Sea said that in the fourth quarter of 2024, “almost half” of SPX Express’ orders in Asia were delivered within two days of a purchase.
That may seem fast, but it’s nothing compared to what is happening in India, where quick commerce is disrupting traditional ecommerce by promising to deliver items in under 10 minutes.
In this week’s Hot Take, I consider Apple’s new partnership with Blinkit, one of the country’s largest quick commerce players, and whether smartphones on demand is a viable business idea.
— Simon
THE BIG STORY
Shopee, loan growth fuel Sea Group’s 2nd profitable year
THE HOT TAKE
Shaping the future of business and policy in Asia
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