After Toyota’s US$1bil, Grab raises another US$1bil in financing round
By Digital News Asia August 2, 2018
- Will use a significant portion of the proceeds to continue investing in Indonesia
- To expand the universe of everyday services available to users through partnerships
GRAB Holdings Inc (Grab), Southeast Asia’s leading O2O mobile platform, announced on Aug 2 it has raised US$2 billion (RM8.1 billion) for its current round of financing.
Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) has been joined by a slate of leading global financial institutions, including OppenheimerFunds, Ping An Capital, Mirae Asset - Naver Asia Growth Fund, Cinda Sino-Rock Investment Management Company, All-Stars Investment, Vulcan Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Macquarie Capital and other investors, underscoring Grab’s aim to be the leading technology player in the region.
The investment by these leading global financial institutions reflect their belief in Grab’s long-term growth opportunity, and the company’s unique ability to unlock the region’s growth potential through Grab’s O2O and transportation platform.
Grab president Ming Maa, said: “We are honoured to welcome these top-tier financial institutions into our roster of strategic investors and partners. Grab is today the industry-changing O2O platform that enables millions of consumers and entrepreneurs to come online and drive the digital economy in Southeast Asia. We have seen overwhelming interest from global strategic investors and partners who are keen to partner with us to capture the region’s booming growth.”
Grab will use the funds to expand the range of O2O services it provides in Southeast Asia and to grow into becoming the everyday super app of choice for millions in the region.
Today, Grab users have a one-stop solution to meet their everyday needs; whether it is using the Grab app to pay merchants through GrabPay, ordering food through GrabFood, sending parcels through GrabExpress, or hailing rides with Grab’s range of transport services, Grab is looking to expand the universe of everyday services available to its users through partnerships.
In July, Grab launched its vision to become the region’s everyday super app of choice through its open platform strategy and announced the launch of GrabFresh, an on-demand grocery delivery service in Jakarta, with other cities to follow later in 2018.
In particular, Grab will use a significant portion of the proceeds from the current fundraise to continue investing in Indonesia.
Grab has over 7.1 million micro-entrepreneurs on its platform, more than half of whom reside in Indonesia.
Through Grab’s partnership with local wallet and rewards programme, OVO, Grab has formed the country's most widely accepted mobile payments ecosystem, with more than 60 million downloads.
GrabFood has grown exponentially this year, expanding from Jakarta to serve 28 cities and towns across Indonesia, winning significant market share with Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) in Indonesia almost quadrupling in the first half of 2018. Similarly, GrabExpress GMV in Indonesia has more than doubled in the first half of 2018.
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Toyota to invest US$1bil in Grab
Grab launches Grab Ventures to boost SEA tech ecosystem