Weekly Tech Updates (April 16, 2021)
Weekly Tech Updates is an easy and convenient way to keep up with all the happenings in the tech world. Stay tuned every Friday for all the latest updates.
New Launch / Release in Malaysia:
News:
1. GRAB agrees to a US$39.6 billion (RM163.5 billion) merger deal with Altimeter Growth Corp
Grab Holdings Inc. (“Grab”), Southeast Asia’s leading superapp, today announced it intends to go public in the U.S. through a merger with US-based Altimeter Growth Corp.
The proposed transactions value Grab at an initial pro-forma equity value of approximately US$39.6 billion at a PIPE size of more than US$4.0 billion and will provide Grab with approximately US$4.5 billion in cash proceeds.
The listing on NASDAQ is expected to be the largest-ever U.S. equity offering by a Southeast Asian company. The combined company expects its securities will be traded on NASDAQ under the symbol “GRAB” in the coming months.
Speaking of GRAB, be sure to also check out their Star Trek themed Ramadan ad in Indonesia.
2. Pine Labs acquires Fave for RM185million
Pine Labs, an India based merchant platform company that provides financing and last-mile retail transaction technology has acquired Fave, one of Asia’s leading merchant commerce platforms in a deal valued over $45 million (SG$60 million / RM185 million).
With this acquisition, Indian consumers will be able to use Fave app later this year to save across 500,000 merchant network points powered by Pine Labs across 3,700 cities in India.
Fave’s founders will have their roles expanded to lead the overall consumer platform for the group across Asia. Fave will also be hiring over 100 new employees in Southeast Asia and India to accelerate cashless payments and smart savings across the region.
3. Citibank to Exit Consumer Retail Banking in Malaysia
Citi intends to exit from its consumer franchises in thirteen markets across Asia and EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa). The affected businesses include the consumer franchises in Malaysia, Australia, Bahrain, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
This effort is part of an ongoing strategic review – which will allow Citi to direct investments and resources to the businesses where it has the greatest scale and growth potential.
Citi will focus its Global Consumer Bank presence in Asia and EMEA on four wealth centers — Singapore, Hong Kong, the UAE and London.
According to Citi Malaysia chief executive officer Usman Ahmed, “There will be no immediate change to our operations, and no immediate impact to our colleagues as a result of today’s announcement by Citi to pursue an exit from our consumer bank business in Malaysia.”
“We will continue to serve our consumer banking customers with the same dedication as we do today,”
