Asia’s largest companies try to sell down stakes in start-ups
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
(FT by Mercedes Ruehl) – Asia’s biggest companies are selling down their stakes in the region’s most promising tech start-ups, including Indonesia’s Gojek and China’s Didi Chuxing, as they refocus their resources to weather the coronavirus crisis.
The venture capital arm of one large Asian company has approached secondary market investors about selling a slice of Gojek worth between $50m to $100m, two people with direct knowledge of the offer said.
Mitsubishi, Rakuten, Samsung and Tencent are all investors in Gojek, along with several other corporate venture capital funds. The start-up is Indonesia’s most valuable, providing a range of services including ride-hailing, food delivery and financial services. Gojek declined to comment.
