Despite initial optimism and historic debut as the largest IPO made by a Southeast Asian (SEA) company in US history, shares of Grab Holdings slowed down on the first day of its trading on Nasdaq on Thursday. Opening at US$13.06, the stock closed at US$8.75 during closing — down 20.5 per cent.
At some point, the stock fell as low as US$8.13.
This development was a follow-up of the agreement in April that combined the company with Altimeter Growth in a SPAC merger. The deal was valued at nearly US$40 billion.
In an interview with Fortune, Grab President Ming Maa explains the company’s strategy and plan following the IPO. There was an emphasis on keeping a focus on the SEA market, particularly on the delivery, financial services, and e-commerce infrastructure aspects of the business.
“We don’t see profitability and growth as mutually exclusive. In Q3, we posted our third consecutive quarter of record GMV growth. We’ve also made very good strides in improving our economics. Our mobility segment has been positive since Q4 2019 and our margins are industry-leading [in that sector],” Maa said.
Also Read: What you ought to know ahead of Grab’s IPO
The president also commented on the possibility of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic –with the recent rise of the Omicron variant– affecting the company’s path to growth and profitability.
“[In September], we did [write] down our forecasts for the year. But keep in mind that this was in a market environment where we had the Delta variant coming across Southeast Asia … Our revision was really out of an abundance of caution, rather than any weakness in the business itself,” Maa said.
Ever since it was first announced, as one of the leading tech unicorns in the region, Grab’s IPO was greeted with optimism. Angus Mackinstosh, founder of investment research firm CrossASEAN even dubbed it as a “beacon” that the region has been anticipating for years in an opinion piece published by Channel News Asia.
But recent development may serve as a caution for other regional tech unicorns who are planning an IPO in the near future, such as GoTo.
Earlier this year, Indonesian e-commerce giant Bukalapak also experienced a surge in its debut on IDX. But recent trends showed that their shares price continue to fall. Peaking at IDR505, the price opened at IDR490 on the morning of December 3 –an all-time low for the company.
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