The go-to numbers of Indonesia’s biggest startup

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Investors often talk up Southeast Asia’s potential, and venture capital funds have poured billions of dollars into the region. But so far, only a handful of those investments have translated into big paydays from large listings or takeovers. Anyway, investors have had few ways to get in on the action, apart from Sea Group and Grab, which had its IPO late last year.

With GoTo Group hitting the market soon, Indonesia’s biggest startup could potentially become the king of super-apps and eventually deliver monster-sized returns.

The GoTo deal brings together a star-studded lineup of investors: Google, Facebook, PayPal, Alibaba, Tencent and JD.com. As part of today’s story spread, we point out some of GoTo’s key numbers – updated by quarter – to keep you abreast of the company’s performance.

Today we look at:

• GoTo Group’s key numbers
• A digital asset platform that offers an annual percentage yield of up to 90% on major cryptocurrencies
• Other newsy highlights such as the acquisition of a babycare brand and an NFT collection with US$1 billion in sales.

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The latest in SEA’s public markets class

Image credit: Timmy Loen

GoTo Group, the merged entity of prominent Southeast Asian startups Gojek and Tokopedia, is set to make its stock market debut in Indonesia, aiming for a valuation of a massive US$29 billion.

The company is looking to raise over US$1.2 billion in its public issue amid global market volatility, spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, ballooning inflation, and the prospect of increasing US interest rates.

However, GoTo will benefit from a booming stock market and an economic recovery in the world’s fourth-most populous country. Indonesia’s benchmark index is hovering at an all-time high compared to a sell-off across Chinese equities.

• Onwards and upwards: Within just the first seven months of 2021, GoTo cut its losses, caught up with its revenue from the previous year, and almost hit half of its adjusted EBITDA from 2020 as well. The company has also maintained its gross transaction value streak over the past three years.

• Shifting focus: GoTo has more than halved its product development costs within the first seven months of 2021 compared to a year ago. It has also trimmed expenses at its operational and support forefront, moving its focus into sales and marketing as well as promotional activities.

Sowing seeds for crypto yields