Report: Carsome To Be Listed On US & SG Stock Exchanges At RM8.6 Billion Valuation
Malaysia's first tech unicorn is going bigger.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 22 Apr 2022, 10:19 AM
Malaysia's first tech unicorn Carsome is reportedly aiming to go public through a dual listing on US and Singapore stock exchanges that would value the company at around RM8.6 billion
According to Bloomberg citing DealStreetAsia, people familiar with the matter revealed that the used car marketplace has confidentially filed for the Initial Public Offering (IPO) with Nasdaq, a New York-based stock exchange.
It aims to raise USD400 million (about RM1.72 billion) in the stock market.
The company has seen tremendous growth after it raised USD290 million (RM1.22 billion) in a financing round earlier this year.
As of last month, the company is valued at USD1.7 billion (RM7.13 billion), and currently has operations across four major Southeast Asian markets – Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia.
It is reported that the listing was encouraged by one of Carsome's key investors, 65 Equity Partners
65 Equity Partners is a unit of Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings.
Other investors of Carsome include:
– Taiwanese entrepreneur Tsai Ming-kai's MediaTek, a smartphone chipmaker company
– Filipino business mogul Lance Gokongwei's Gokongwei Group, a conglomerate that has interests in food and beverages, property development, aviation, and more
– Singaporean and Australian tech entrepreneur Patrick Grove's Catcha Group, an Internet group that has interests in streaming services, property listing websites, media, and more
Carsome has been expanding its operations across the region through a series of acquisitions
In March, the company bought a majority stake in CarTimes, one of the largest auto companies in Singapore.
Prior to that, Carsome completed its acquisition of Australia-listed iCar Asia for USD200 million (RM860.5 million).
The car listing platform was founded in 2015 by Eric Cheng and Teoh Jiun Ee as a vehicle comparison site, reported Bloomberg.
Fast forward seven years later, it currently has operations in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Singapore.
In Malaysia, it boasts itself as the only car listing marketplace that provides 175 car inspection points and allows customers to test own the vehicles before purchasing.
It services cater to both consumers and used car dealers, which also provides financing and ownership transfer services. It employs more than 3,000 people across all of its offices.
Carsome Certified Lab, the largest car refurbishment facility in the region located in Klang, Selangor.
Image via Carsome