Exclusive: Indonesian e-commerce giant Tokopedia pursues $1 billion US IPO

Author: Anshuman Daga

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Indonesia’s Tokopedia is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) worth at least $1 billion next year, two people with knowledge of the matter said, in what could be the biggest overseas listing of a Southeast Asian start-up .

The country’s largest e-commerce company plans a dual listing in the United States and Indonesia in 2021, sources told Reuters. One person said the IPO plan could value the company at least $10 billion.

The sources, who declined to provide details because they were not authorized to talk to the media on the matter, said the listing was subject to market conditions.

The dual listing plan is intended to help the company, which operates an online shopping platform, attract wealthy U.S. investors with high enthusiasm for technology stocks, while cementing Tokopedia’s credibility as a homegrown Indonesian leader, sources said.

If successful, Tokopedia will become the second publicly traded company in the U.S. and Indonesia, after state-backed PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia.

One of the sources said Tokopedia will use the proceeds from the listing to expand its operations and ensure liquidity of its shares.

Founded in 2009 and now a leader in e-commerce in the country of nearly 270 million people, Tokopedia has previously raised a total of more than $2 billion from companies including global technology investment firm SoftBank Group Corp, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding and state investor from Singapore Temasek Holdings.

Asked for comment on its stock exchange listing plans, Tokopedia referred Reuters to a statement issued earlier this week in which it said an indirect listing through a special purpose vehicle was an option, but had not yet made a decision on the market or method.

Reuters reported that Tokopedia received a merger proposal from a blank check acquisition company backed by Asian tycoon Richard Li and Silicon Valley investor Peter Thiel, but the start-up decided not to pursue the transaction.

Since Tokopedia’s founding, 39-year-old CEO William Tanuwajaya has become a role model for Indonesia’s burgeoning tech sector.

However, the company faces increasing competition from well-financed rivals such as online company SEA Ltd’s Shoppee, Southeast Asia’s largest e-commerce platform, and Alibaba’s Lazada unit.

(Reporting by Anshuman Daga; Additional reporting by Fanny Potkin; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)