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Astra International, a diversified conglomerate based in Indonesia, has invested IDR2 trillion (US$150 million) in vehicle insurance and leasing ventures during transport firm Go-Jek’s latest funding round.
According to Astra CEO Prijono Sugiarto, his group has been looking to invest in Go-Jek for quite some time.
“We see that Go-Jek is special, its development is significant,” Sugiarto told reporters at a news conference.
Aside from Astra, tech giant Google and Singapore’s national wealth fund Temasek also participated in the funding round for Go-Jek, which is considered Indonesia’s first “unicorn.”
“We have yet to have a fix business model [with Astra], but we are leaning towards two-wheel and four-wheel business leasing, or providing insurance to motorists,” Go-Jek CEO Nadiem Makarim was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Globe.
The investment will help Go-Jek compete with other regional rivals such as Grab in the fast-growing markets of Southeast Asia. The region’s large population and improving economies have seen increased adoption of app-based services and digital payment platforms in recent years.
