Go-Jek confirms reports about its upcoming entry to Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines in the “next few months”

Having been focussed on the local market since its inception, Indonesian ride-hailing giant Go-Jek has long been reported to be looking towards an international expansion. It started with the 2016 acquisitions of Indian tech startups to support its development team and ramped up when the company set up a data office in Singapore.

Recently, the company has reportedly been working towards launching its customer-facing services, such as ride-hailing and food delivery, in several Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand.

Today, Go-Jek publicly revealed its expansion plans to the media.

The unicorn is set to invest US$500 million to support its expansion into Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines, whereby the company is set to launch its ride-hailing service in the “next few months”.

Starting with ride-hailing services, Go-Jek aims to replicate the business model that it has implemented in Indonesia. However, it does not mention whether it will launch a motorbike-based ride-hailing service in the new markets. (In Singapore, motorbike ride-hailing is illegal so they will need to adjust).

In the press statement, Go-Jek explained that it is currently working with regulators and other stakeholders to plan the launch of its operations.

The company also said that its operations will be run by local teams with technological and expertise support from Go-Jek.

The local operations will also be given the freedom to determine their own brands and identities.

Also Read: Go-Jek, Openspace inject money into Bangladesh’s bike-hailing startup Pathao

“Consumers are happiest when they have choice and at the moment, people in Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines don’t feel that they’re getting enough when it comes to ride-hailing. We hope that as we arrive in new markets, we will quickly become everyone’s go-to lifestyle app. That is our aspiration. In the meantime, we hope our presence will provide the welcome competition markets need to thrive,” said CEO Nadiem Makarim.

The expansion plan followed the company’s most recent funding round, which involved the likes of Astra International, Google, JD.COM, Meituan, Tencent and Temasek.

“We have been considering international expansion for a long time and wanted to make sure that we initiate a plan when we’re in the strongest possible position to do so … Our most recent funding saw the addition of a significant number of strategic investors both Indonesian and global. We are therefore confident that we have the support needed to take one of the most amazing growth stories in the world from being an Indonesian phenomenon to a regional one,” said President Andre Sulistyo.

In its home market Indonesia, in addition to continuing its expandsion to tier-2 and tier-3 cities, Go-Jek has also been focussing in expanding its cashless payment service Go-Pay outside of the Go-Jek ecosystem.

In addition to paying for Go-Jek services such as ride-hailing and food delivery, the feature can now be used to pay for transactions in street food stalls and chain stores.

The company has also announced its foray into content creation by launching a streaming platform and production house.

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