jakartaInvest Indonesia (INA), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, announced Thursday that it has participated in the latest round of Jakarta-based online travel agency Traveloka, along with global investment firms including BlackRock, Allianz Global Investors and Orion Capital Asia. $300 million in financing.
INA CEO Ridha Wirakusumah said in a statement that the move reflects the fund’s aim to help develop Indonesia’s digital ecosystem.
“We are delighted with Traveloka’s financing,” said Ridha, “as it aligns with INA’s mission to create long-term prosperity for Indonesia by laying the foundation for a sustainable digital ecosystem.
“We believe that Traveloka is a national and regional champion in Indonesia and a key catalyst for the digitization of travel and accommodation in Indonesia and the region. We believe this joint investment allows Traveloka to deepen its leadership and create value for the entire travel ecosystem,” Rita explain.
Online travel agencies like Traveloka are showing good growth, he said. Online businesses accounted for about 33 percent of Indonesia’s travel booking market by 2021, up from 24 percent before the pandemic, and are expected to grow to 36 percent by 2024, Ridha said.
For BlackRock, Traveloka’s presence in Southeast Asia has attracted one of the world’s largest investment firms.
“Traveloka is a strong leader in online travel in Southeast Asia, a region that has become one of the world’s most popular travel destinations,” said Celia Yan, head of private credit for Asia at BlackRock.
Sumit Bhandari, head of Asia private credit at Allianz Global Investors, said the investment firm was impressed with how Traveloka had handled the Covid-19 pandemic that had devastated the domestic and international travel market.
“We are excited to back an execution-focused company like Traveloka, which has an excellent track record and has a long way to go. We have been impressed with the way Traveloka has weathered the crisis and have been keen to support Such businesses and management are resilient and built for the long term,” Bhandari said.
Ming Eng, managing partner of Orion Capital Asia, said the firm believes in Traveloka’s ability to serve Southeast Asia’s growing tech-savvy population. “We look forward to continuing to support Traveloka’s growth in the future,” she said.
Traveloka CEO and co-founder Ferry Unardi said the business will accelerate as the region recovers from the pandemic. “This financing gives us the opportunity to further strengthen our balance sheet, allowing us to continue to focus on our core business while building for the future,” he said.
Tags: Keywords:
