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Bukalapak eyes IDX listing in July
E-commerce Bukalapak is reportedly going public on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on July 29, as stated in a leaked mini public expose document.
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omegrown e-commerce unicorn Bukalapak plans to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) in Indonesia on July 29, according to a mini public expose document leaked to the media.
The document showed that Bukalapak would be listed at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) under the ticker BUKA and it would offer up to 25 percent of its enlarged capital.
“We are continually looking at financing and growth opportunities for the company. However, no decisions have been made at this time,” Bukalapak corporate affairs vice president Siti Sufintri Rahayu told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
She went on to say that the company would focus on finding strategies to become a sustainable company and create value for its customers and partners.
According to the leaked document, Bukalapak’s net losses shrank 51.7 percent year-on-year (yoy) to Rp 1.35 trillion (US$93.46 million) last year even though income rose 25.5 percent yoy to Rp 1.35 trillion, which was insufficient to offset a 34.6 percent yoy sales and marketing expenses to Rp1.52 trillion. Thus, the company plans to focus on attaining “near-term profitability.”
Valued at $2.5 billion, Bukalapak is one of Indonesia’s five unicorns, which are start-ups valued above $1 billion. The others are ride-hailing company Gojek, travel booking firm Traveloka, e-commerce outlet Tokopedia and e-wallet provider OVO.
Despite their significant funding and soaring gross merchandise values (GMVs), not one of the five unicorns has recorded a profit so far.
The document leak came amid a flurry of news reports this year that Indonesian unicorns were planning to go public either at home or abroad. The report compelled the IDX to begin work on new rules hoping to win over the listings.
Read also: Start-up digest: Which Indonesian firms have IPO plans?
Earlier in June, IDX assessment director I Gede Nyoman Yetna revealed that one e-commerce company had submitted the necessary documents in preparation for an IPO.
However, the stock exchange could not name the company without the Financial Services Authority’s (OJK) approval as per existing regulations.
The IDX did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment about Bukalapak’s listing.
Bukalapak is the fourth-largest e-commerce site in the country in terms of online traffic, according to iPrice. The company gets most of its total processing value (TPV) from tier-two and tier-three cities.
The company has been increasing its efforts to digitalize small and medium enterprises outside large cities through its Mitra Bukalapak program.
Read also: Bukalapak gains 3 million new merchants, mostly in smaller cities
Bukalapak was previously reported as planning to sell 10 to 15 percent of the company and increase its valuation to around $4 billion or $5 billion, two sources told Reuters on June 16.
The sources also said that the e-commerce firm planned to raise as much as $800 million through the IPO, potentially making it Indonesia’s biggest listing in 10 years.
