Telkomsel Reviews to Add Investment to Gojek IDR 4.3 Trillion

The telecommunication company, Telkomsel, is reviewing an additional investment of US$ 300 million or around IDR 4.3 trillion for Gojek. Previously, this red-plate corporation invested in Indonesia’s decacorn at US$ 150 million or IDR 2.1 trillion in November 2020.

“So, Telkomsel has the option to invest up to US$ 450 million in Gojek within a year of the first investment,” said President Director of Telkomsel Setyanto Hantoro as quoted by Reuters, Thursday (22/4).

Now, the company is reviewing the additional US$ 300 million investment. Telkomsel will also see positive results from investing in Gojek.

A Reuters source said that Telkomsel’s additional investment in Gojek made the telecommunications company one of Decacorn’s eight largest investors.

Previously, there were several large investors participating in funding such as parent Google, Alphabet, Alibaba and Softbank.

When injecting funds into Gojek in November last year, the two companies will collaborate in the field of lifestyle. In addition, developing digital-based advertising solutions.

They will develop new products. The two of them are also working on innovative programs that focus on saving costs, such as joint promotions and bundling.

The two of them work together in the field of talent empowerment through experience exchange and professional skills development programs.

“This collaboration begins with the same vision to reinforce the position of local players as hosts in their own country,” said Setyanto in a press release, November last year (17/11/2020).

He is optimistic that this collaboration will accelerate the transformation of Telkomsel as a digital telco company and continue the development of an inclusive and sustainable digital ecosystem.

“Collaboration will continue to be our foundation in presenting the benefits of digital technology,” he said.

Done in Line with the Gojek Merger Plan with Tokopedia

On the other hand, the additional investment is being carried out by Telkomsel in line with the plan to merge Gojek and Tokopedia. A source from The Information said the agreement between the two jumbo startups is targeted to be completed this month.

“GoTo’s top management will be filled with senior leaders from the two companies, including Gojek Co-CEO Andre Soelistyo and Kevin Aluwi, as well as Tokopedia CEO William Tanuwijaya and President Patrick Cao,” was quoted as saying by Kr Asia, two weeks ago (14/4).

According to a Bloomberg source, Gojek will own 58% of GoTo’s shares, while Tokopedia will have the rest. Later, GoTo will have three business units, namely ride-hailing under the auspices of Gojek, then e-commerce Tokopedia, and financial services, Dompet Karya Anak Bangsa aka DKAB.

CLSA Sekuritas estimates that the market capitalization value of the combined entities of the two startups is US$ 35 billion – US$ 40 billion (IDR 504 trillion – IDR 576 trillion).

If the projection is correct, then the value exceeds Telkomsel’s holding company, Telkom, which has a valuation of IDR 329 trillion. However, the valuation is still below BCA at around IDR 838 trillion and BRI of IDR 585 trillion.

Companies Support Gender Equality

Gojek, as one of the leading technology companies in Southeast Asia, has become the first company from Indonesia to join the United Nations (PBB) to support gender equality through its program to end the “All-Male Panels” industry.

Gojek signed the Women Empowerment Principal (WEP) to coincide with the 2021 Kartini Day celebration to ensure this commitment.

The steps taken by Gojek to bring gender equality between women and men were also appreciated by representatives from the UN Women Indonesia Representative and Liason to ASEAN Jamshed M. Kazi who also attended the WEP pledge.

Prior to joining WEP independently, Gojek at its internal company was active in promoting gender equality and diversity. Gojek even formed “Women@Gojek”, an Employee Resource Group which is led by Gojek employees.

Women@Gojek enables female employees to develop their potential through training, collaboration and discussion while fostering greater awareness of inclusion in the workplace.

Apart from internal efforts, Gojek is also a pioneer in creating a culture of safety for women in public spaces in Indonesia through the #AmanBersamaGojek initiative.