MALAYSIA should be able to redeem some lost pride with unicorn Carsome which is reportedly seeking to go public through a dual listing on Nasdaq and the Singapore Stock Exchange after letting Grab Holdings Ltd slipped by as a non-Malaysian entity when the e-hailing-cum-superapp outfit debuted on the US tech platform last December.
Valued at around US$2 bil, the used car marketplace has confidentially filed for its initial public offering (IPO) with Nasdaq already, according to a report from Deal Street Asia, citing people familiar with the matter.
The listing which is said to be aimed at raising US$400 mil was encouraged by one of Carsome’s key investors, 65 Equity Partners, a unit of Singapore sovereign-wealth fund Temasek Holdings.
In the investment realm, “unicorn” is used to refer to companies that have reached a valuation of US$1 bil without being listed on the stock market and are the dream of any tech start-up.
Carsome has reputed itself as Southeast Asia’s largest integrated car e-commerce platform. With operations across Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, Carsome aims to digitise the region’s used car industry by re-shaping and elevating the car buying and selling experience.
The company provides end-to-end solutions to consumers and used car dealers – from car inspection to ownership transfer to financing – promising a service that is trusted, convenient and efficient. Carsome currently has more than 3,000 employees across all its offices.
According to Forbes, Carsome did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The company became Malaysia’s largest tech unicorn after it received US$170 million (RM735 mil) in a funding round that lifted its valuation to US$1.3 bil (RM5.62 bil) last year.
Apart from Temasek-backed 65 Equity Partners, some of the other investors backing Carsome include Tsai Ming-kai’s MediaTek, Lance Gokongwei’s Gokongwei Group and Patrick Grove’s Catcha Group.
The Petaling Jaya-headquartered company has been expanding its operations across the region through a series of acquisitions. In March, Carsome bought a majority stake in CarTimes, one of the largest auto companies in Singapore.
That deal came just one month after Carsome completed its acquisition of Australia-listed iCar Asia for US$200 mil.
The platform was jointly founded in 2015 by enterprising college dropout Eric Cheng and former media and advertising executive Teoh Jiun Ee as a vehicle comparison site after the latter’s sister encountered problems buying a new car.
Carsome’s services cater to both consumers and used car dealers – from car inspection to financing and ownership transfers. It employs more than 3,000 people across all of its offices.
As with Grab, it is hoped that Carsome’s management would strategise its Nasdaq listing boldly given Grab has in recent times becomes a pale shadow of its past self. The Singapore-headquartered counter is now trading at a mere US$2.85 which was a fraction its 52-week high of US$17.15 as post-listing business reality sinks in. – April 24, 2022
