Take the opportunity to unveil the world’s largest SPAC merger, valued at nearly $ 40 billion: sources

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The largest company in Southeast Asia, Grab Holdings, will announce a merger with US Altimeter on Tuesday, which will appreciate Grab at nearly $ 40 billion and lead to a public listing, four people told Reuters.

The merger, which will be the largest empty check business of all time, underscores the Wall Street frenzy, as the companies raised $ 99 billion in the United States so far this year after a record $ 83 billion fundraiser. dollars in 2020.

The Singapore Grab agreement with a special purpose procurement company (SPAC), backed by Altimeter Capital, includes a $ 4 billion public investment in public capital (PIPE) from a group of Asian and global investors, including Fidelity International and Janus Henderson, sources said.

Grab declined to comment on the SPAC agreement.

There were no responses from Altimeter, Fidelity and Janus Henderson, based in Silicon Valley, to email requests for comment.

The sources refused to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.

The deal for Grab, which was valued at just over $ 16 billion last year, will be a big win for its early supporters, such as SoftBank Group Corp. and Chinese Didi Chuxing.

Last year, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and IT services firm TIS Inc. invested $ 856 million in Grab as they expanded into financial services.

The quick assessment validates Grab’s co-founder Anthony Tan’s strategy of aggressively achieving growth in new sectors and increasing market share, pumping billions of dollars to locate its services and invest in high-growth economies.

“Institutional investors seeking the exposure of Asian consumers to the Internet are eager to diversify their allocation beyond a handful of companies,” said Varun Mittal, head of fintech business in emerging markets at EY Consulting.

Grab attracted global attention in 2018, when it acquired the Uber business in Southeast Asia after an expensive five-year battle and instead took a stake in the company.

Reuters reported in January that Grab, which has so far raised about $ 12 billion, is exploring a list in the United States. [L1N2JT0HC]

Grab’s agreed transaction will overtake the electric vehicle manufacturer Lucid Motors’ deal with a SPAC in February. [L4N2KS4YJ]

INDONESIA BATTLEGROUND

With operations in eight countries and 398 cities, Grab is already the most valuable start-up in Southeast Asia.

Using its travel business started in 2012, the company has moved into food and food deliveries, courier services, digital payments and is now boosting insurance and lending in a region of 650 million people.

The listing will give Grab extra firepower in its main market, Indonesia, where local rival Gojek is close to merging with Tokopedia, the country’s largest e-commerce company.

Grab, whose net revenue rose 70 percent last year, will not yet become profitable, but its largest segment – the food delivery business – is expected to reach the very end of 2021, as more consumers move to online food delivery after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The cash-rich sea, listed in the US, is also involved in the delivery of food and financial services to Indonesia. Both Grab and Sea won digital banking licenses in Singapore last year.