Grab Receives IDR 29 Trillion Fresh Fund

Grab has secured new funding worth of $2 billion (equivalent with IDR 29 trillion), which brings the company to $11 billion valuations (IDR 159 trillion). The round includes previously announced investment from Toyota Motor Corp worth $1 billion.

Funding was acquired from several investors, including OppenheimerFund, 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 some undisclosed investors.

Grab continues to increase capital for the sustainable growth in dominating the ride-hailing market in Southeast Asia. Surprisingly, the news was announced right when its rival GO-JEK, launching its operation in Vietnam by the name Go-Viet.

Compared by valuation after the series of funding and business merger with Uber, Grab's value has doubled GO-JEK. Indonesia's first Unicorn has around $5 billion (IDR 72 trillion) valuation.

Both company, with a large investment, are showing off various service innovations as transportation options. Grab has just add some funtionality, including groceries delivery (partners with HappyFresh) to create the super app ecosystem in-app.

Tansportation sector brings a huge potential to Southeast Asia. According to Google and Temasek observation, the value will grow four times up by 2025 into $20.1 billion.

Market control is not without issues. A while ago, Singapore Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) discovered a "double standard" by Grab post-Uber acquisition. It indicates a pattern trend in the market monopoly. The local government has given a warning for Grab not to reduce the transportation options (public) for locals.

– Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian