Tokopedia has since said that the SPAC route to listing is a potential option for the company but it is yet to commit to anything.Įxperts have pointed out that by dealing and negotiating with only one single investor, as opposed to embarking on a long IPO roadshow, companies merging with SPACs get a significant shortcut to a bourse listing. The SPAC then paves the way for the acquired company to become a listed entity through a back-door IPO of sorts.īridgetown raised $550 million in a Nasdaq initial public offering in October this year to target acquisition in “technology, financial services or media sectors in Southeast Asia.”Ī potential acquisition of Tokopedia will effectively see the Indonesian unicorn take the SPAC’s spot on Nasdaq. “In my opinion, this may spur other unicorns to continue to grow and consider this route to IPO,” said Alvin Suryohadiprojo, founding partner at corporate law firm Karna Partnership.Ī SPAC, also called a blank cheque firm, is a listed company without any business operations, formed only to raise capital to acquire privately-held businesses. In doing so, Tokopedia may inspire fellow Indonesian unicorns to follow suit. These plans may now be expedited as the e-commerce major has reportedly received acquisition interest from Bridgetown Holdings, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) backed by Richard Li and Peter Thiel, Bloomberg first reported last week. Since Indonesia’s unicorns started flirting with the idea of an initial public offering (IPO) some three years ago, e-commerce marketplace Tokopedia has, arguably, been the most zealous about executing the listing plan.Įarlier this year, the company admitted that it had made elaborate preparations for an IPO, with plans to go public in three years. LATEST Alibaba's Youku Wins Copyright Case Against Short-Video App Over Clip Sharing Tesla to Expand Production at Shanghai Plant China Smartphone Giant Xiaomi Shifts Gears With Plan to Build Electric Car Factory Cover Story: How Will New Data Security Rules Reshape China’s Internet Industry? Chinese Streaming Giants’ Losses Grow Along With Their Revenues Chongqing Changan Teams Up With Huawei to Roll Out Smart Electric Vehicle Temasek’s Appetite Grows for Investing in Food Startups Caixin Summit: Executive at Baidu’s Self-Driving Car Unit Trumpets Safety Benefits of Self-Driving Cars Huawei Donates Operating System to Chinese Tech Nonprofit Chipmaker TSMC Assures Customer Confidentiality in Data Submission to Washington Shanghai Esports Team Wins League of Legends World Championship Dozens of Apps Named and Shamed for Privacy Violations TikTok Hits the Telly, CATL’s New American Buyer Update: Tencent Unveils Three Computer Chips of Its Own Design ByteDance Founder Quits Board, Source Says Tencent Unveils Three Computer Chips of Its Own Design Hong Kong Airport Authority Plans Self-Driving Bus Service Factory Gas Transformed Into Pig Food as Researchers Pioneer Soybean Alternative GAC Aion Invests $52.6 Million to Test Out Self-Developed EV Batteries With Apple Veteran Onboard, Oppo Pushes Into Health-Focused Wearables