Startups that Harvest Transactions and Loss Due to Corona Pandemic

Corona pandemic affects the economy, entrepreneurs and even the small population. Some startup operations were disrupted due to a pandemic. However, some transactions increase. One startup sector whose transactions are increasing amid a pandemic is financial technology (fintech) payments. In fact, Bank Central Asia (BCA) and Bank Mandiri free GoPay top-up services.

“Free GoPay balance top-up fees and a 50% discount on topping up the LinkAja Balance may be a joint movement to minimize physical contact,” BCA Director Santoso said in a press release on Thursday (1/4).

Chief Communications Officer (CCO) DANA Chrisma Albandjar once conveyed, the transaction had dropped when the announcement of two residents infected with the coronavirus, early March (2/3) then. However, afterward, DANA recorded a significant increase in transactions.

SVP Marketing GoPay Timothius Martin estimates that the transaction will increase, especially health services. “The health services available in the Gojek, Halodoc and several other partners are likely to increase (transactions),” Timothius said in Jakarta.

Health Startups Transactions are Increasing due to Corona Outbreak

Health startup services have certainly improved amid the corona pandemic. Good Doctor, who entered the Grab ecosystem, for example, noted that the question and answer request increased 400% during the week in mid-March.

Frequently asked questions related to Covid-19 increased 20x in March compared to February. Good Doctor also provides a free consultation service and Covid-19 (telemedicine) risk check via the Grab application. Alodokter also launched a similar service.

Within a week of being launched, the telemedicine service was used by 900 thousand people. Educational articles and videos about covid-19 were even accessed more than 15 million times in two weeks. Visits to the Alodokter’s main information page also reached 2 million since the coronavirus broke out until March 11.

Halodoc noted the increasing demand for consulting services. Therefore, the company increased the number of doctors who provided 24-hour services. E-commerce also harvests users and transactions amid a pandemic. In addition to health products and groceries, Lazada noted sales of snacks, ready-to-eat foods and beverages increased.

E-commerce, Games and Video Conference Applications Users Are Increasing

Increased transactions also took place on the Tokopedia platform, particularly health products and staples. “The most sought after products such as masks, antiseptic liquids, and healthy snacks,” Nuraini Razak, Tokopedia’s VP of Corporate Communications said. Likewise in Bukalapak. Before the corona pandemic, electronic goods and household appliances were the most purchased products.

In addition, the use of games and video conferencing applications such as Zoom, Skype, and others has increased. This is because most people learn and work from home, aka work form home. Even so, some startup sectors were negatively affected by the corona pandemic. Requests for ride-hailing both taxi and motorcycle taxi online decreased by 80%.

Then, financial financing technology (fintech lending) anticipates the possibility of bad credit surging due to the corona pandemic. Because some borrowers have decreased income or even lost their jobs.

Investors will Wait Before Investing

Chairman of the Indonesian Venture Capital Association (Amvesindo) Jefri Sirait said investors chose to wait and see (wait and see) before making investments. Startups that are considered to support government policies to reduce the spread of the coronavirus still have the potential to be funded.

The culinary startups (food and beverage), health, logistics, and telecommunications. “I think this is a process that recovers from one another,” Jefri told Katadata.co.id. Jefri is optimistic that the economy, including funding for startups, will improve in the third quarter or fourth quarter of 2019, until early 2021.

To be able to survive until then, startup companies whose transactions have fallen due to a pandemic have to encourage efficiency. “Any company, when it needs cash, that’s what he has to work for. This will be the concern of the government, venture capital, and investors, “said Jefri.