Facebook, PayPal join list of Gojek’s high-profile investors

Technology giant Gojek has announced that American tech companies Facebook and PayPal have invested an undisclosed amount in its new round of funding, joining other high-profile global corporations such as Google and Tencent.

The funds will be used to focus on increasing digital monetary growth in Southeast Asia, especially payment and financial services inclusion for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), said the decacorn, this means the business is valued at a lot more than US$10 billion.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us a resilient economy requires support from reliable digital infrastructure,” said Gojek’s co-CEO Andre Soelistyo in a statement on Wednesday. “With this collaboration, we will continue steadily to increase digital economy inclusion, in particular when the majority of SMEs in Southeast Asia still count on cash transactions.”

Gojek is the first Indonesian company to get an investment from Facebook, with the social media company seeking to create opportunities for businesses in Indonesia through its instant messaging service, WhatsApp.

“Gojek, WhatsApp and Facebook are important services in Indonesia. Through this cooperation, we are able to help millions of SMEs and their customers to become listed on the major digital economy community in Southeast Asia,” said WhatsApp chief operating officer Matt Idema.

Facebook has been on a mission to widen the marketplace because of its digital payment services, as the business talked with several e-wallet companies in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Gojek has agreed to integrate PayPal into Gojek’s payment system, GoPay, giving GoPay users usage of the PayPal network of 25 million merchants worldwide.

PayPal head of corporate development and ventures for APAC Farhad Maleki said that Southeast Asia was at an extremely crucial point in the process of digital adoption, that could create new opportunities to supply financial services to unbanked consumers.

“We are very excited about entering into a strategic relationship with Gojek to expand access and offer new encounters for our users in this very dynamic market,” he said.

While Facebook and PayPal had only recently invested in Gojek, Google and Tencent have been investors since 2018.

“Gojek has been active in supporting financial inclusion for SMEs, and we are proud to strengthen our collaboration through additional investments,” said Jeffrey Li, vice president of Tencent Holdings and managing partner of Tencent Investment.

Gojek has raised a combined total of Rp 14.5 billion in fresh capital injection from seven investors this season.