Gojek, the mobility and payments platform, has received a $150 million investment from Indonesia’s Telkomsel.
According to a release Gojek, which offers a numbers of services via its app including ride-hailing, food delivery, payments and activities, will partner with Telkomsel to “grow the country’s mobile-first market and accelerate digital transformation.”
Telkomsel is a network service provider and a subsidiary of Telkom, Indonesia’s state-owned telecoms company.
The statement adds that the investment is an expansion of an existing multi-year partnership between the two companies that has provided data packages to Gojek drivers for the past two years.
The statement says: “Users of both platforms can look forward to multiple initiatives that provide greater convenience and benefits, such as innovative product offerings, and cost savings through joint promotions and product bundles. The companies will also collaborate on growing Indonesia's digital lifestyle sector and increasing the advertising technology solutions available to merchants of all sizes.”
Subscribe to our newsletter below
Gojek rivals Grab, which raised $856 million earlier this year, for consumer attention in Southeast Asia.
According to a recent Lufthansa Innovation Hub report on travel and mobility tech in Asia, while $8 billion has been invested in travel and mobility startups in 2020, the vast majority went into mobility startups.
Andre Soelistyo, co-CEO of Gojek, says: "In a fast-growing, mobile-first market, collaborations like this one are crucial for supercharging the digital economy as great things can only be achieved if the region's leading technology companies pool their resources and work together to accelerate development.
"Gojek has always looked up to successful homegrown technology businesses such as Telkomsel and this agreement signifies a real vote of confidence in our platform model and reach in Indonesia and throughout the region. It also puts us in an even better financial position as we look to navigate the years that lie ahead.”
Setyanto Hantoro, president director, Telkomsel, says: "The collaboration between Telkomsel and Gojek is built on a common belief that local companies can be the market leaders in Indonesia. We are therefore very proud to strengthen our partnership with Gojek, a leading homegrown platform that continues to make such a considerable positive impact on the daily lives of millions of Indonesians.”
Earlier this year, Facebook and PayPal participated in Gojek's series F fundraising, a round which has raised more than $3 billion.