DESPITE tanking a whopping US$1.1 bil in 4Q21 ending December, Grab is still sticking to its guns as it plans to launch its digibank and expand opportunity in its delivery service this year.
“2021 was our strongest year yet, even as we faced tougher conditions with the Delta and Omicron variants.
“We achieved outsized growth in both gross merchandise value (GMV) and revenues while continuing to improve our adjusted EBITDA margins year over year, demonstrating the resilience and growing relevance of our superapp,” The Edge reported Group CEO and co-founder Anthony Tan as saying.
Superapp Grab reported a loss of US$1.1 bil in 4Q21, which is 73% higher than the losses recorded in the previous corresponding quarter at US$635 mil.
The losses include US$311 mil non-cash interest expenses related to Grab’s convertible redeemable preference shares which ceased after Grab’s public listing and another US$328 mil related to one-time public listing expenses, of which US$290 mil is non-cash.
For FY2021, the Nasdaq-listed company posted a loss of US$3.06 bil, 30% higher than the loss of US$2.74 bil in FY2020.
However, revenue in 4Q21 stood at US$122 mil, a 44% decline y-o-y as the company “pre-emptively” invested to grow its driver supply to support strong recovery in mobility demand.
Consumer incentives for mobility and deliveries also increased as Grab invested in its category share and monthly transacting user growth.
FY2021’s revenue increased by 44% y-o-y to US$675 mil on the back of strong growth in deliveries and financial services.
When Grab got listed last year at Nasdaq, Tan vowed to investors and customers that he would pay more attention to Southeast Asian market, a region he stressed was “ripe for opportunity”.
“We believe this is Southeast Asia’s time to shine, and we hope that our entrance into the global public market will help bring greater attention to the tremendous opportunity here in the region,” he remarked. – March 6, 2022.
