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Indonesian startups GoTo, Ula, Kopi Kenangan secure funding from global inventors

Indonesian startups GoTo, Ula and Kopi Kenangan have secured funding from global investors, representing the investors’ confidence in the promising growth that these startups have to offer. 

Several weeks ago, GoTo announced that it has secured more than $1.3 billion in the first close of its pre-IPO funding. The latest funding round was led by Abu Dhabi’s biggest sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) with a $400 million pre-IPO commitment. According to Bloomberg, it is the first principal investment in the technology business sector done by ADIA and it is ADIA’s largest deal in Indonesia.

Avanda Investment Management, Fidelity International, Google, Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), Primavera Capital, SeaTown Master Fund, Temasek, Tencent and Ward Ferry also participated in the latest round. More investors are expected to join in the final close of the funding in the coming weeks as the company is gearing up for a dual listing in New York and Jakarta later this year.   

“Indonesia and Southeast Asia are some of the most exciting growth markets in the world, and the backing we’ve secured shows the confidence that investors have in the region’s rapidly expanding digital economy and our market-leading position,” said CEO of GoTo Group Andre Soelistyo. 

Ula, which helps MSMEs and small grocery stores (warung) grow their business through digitisation, secured $87 million in its Series B funding round co-led by Tencent, Prosus Ventures and B Capital. Bezos Expeditions, which is owned by Jeff Bezos, Northstar Group, AC Ventures and Citius also joined the round.According to Tech in Asia, Ula offers small grocery stores a full catalogue of physical goods through an e-commerce application and doorstep services, allowing them to carry less inventory. Ula aims to revolutionise and digitalise Indonesia’s retail supply chain, driving financial inclusion by combining modern retail technology with the low-cost, local structure of traditional retail.

“We launched in 2020 with a single-minded mission to empower small, neighborhood retailers with technology to increase their income. We take a long-term approach to solve the underlying problems of traditional retailers by investing in technology, supply chain and data-enabled loan offering,” said Ula CEO and co-founder Nipun Mehra.  

Indonesia coffee chain startup Kopi Kenangan is reportedly in advanced talks with investors, including US asset manager Falcon Edge Capital, to raise about $100 million in its Series C funding round. With this investment, Kopi Kenangan obtains the status as a unicorn. 

Kopi Kenangan secured $109 million in its Series B funding round which was led by the company's current investor, Sequoia Capital. New investors such as B Capital, Horizons Ventures, Verlinvest, Kunlun and Sofina also participated in the Series B funding, along with Alpha JWC who also joined the previous round.