Passpod lists on Indonesia Stock Exchange; raises raises US$3.2mil

By Digital News Asia October 31, 2018

Shares were oversubscribed by more than 10.27 times
Funds will be used for business development, R&D, adding features and working capital

(From left) Ministry of Information and Communication Director General of Informatics Application Semuel Abrijani Pangerapan; with Passpod’s president commissioner Tiang Cun Hui; CEO Hiro Whardana; commissioner Andrew Suhalim; and operations and finance director Wewy Suwanto

PT YELOOO Integra Datanet Tbk (Passpod) listed its shares on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on Oct 29 with the ticker symbol YELO. With this listing, YELO becomes the 46th issuer in 2018, as well as the first startup built by the IDX Incubator to take part in the Indonesia Stock Exchange.

Shares were offered at IDR375 (US$0.025) per share. During the opening, the share price rose 48.94% to hit IDR560 (US$0.037. Passpod raised US$3.2 million from the exercise.

The shares were oversubscribed by more than 10.27 times. Passpod had appointed PT Sinarmas Sekuritas as guarantor for the stock issuance and PT Jasa Utama Capital and PT Erdikha Elit Sekuritas as underwriters.

A total of 130,000,000 new shares were issued, or some 34.21% of the issued capital. Funds generated by the IPO will be used for business development, research & development applications as well as adding new features and working capital.

The IDX Incubator is a startup incubation programme initiated by the IDX and Indonesia Financial Services Authority (OJK). The IDX Incubator serves to help develop startups in Indonesia in terms of business, legal, and funding to allow them to list on the stock exchange. Passpod has been one of the startups in the programme since February 2018.

Passpod CEO Hiro Whardana hopes that the move can inspire other startups to continue to take note of various funding options. "In the motivation we received from the incubation process at IDX Incubator, we learned not to wait for large growth before launching an IPO, as an IPO may actually help grow startups," said Hiro.

Passpod is a wifi modem rental service company that also provides travel assistance to Indonesian travellers abroad. Passpod has three business segments, namely travel services, AI & big data, and global connectivity.

As of April 2018, Passpod recorded IDR475 million in net profit in the current period. The figure represents a rise from the IDR26.5 million secured in the same period the previous year.

Hiro said that this performance cannot be separated from the business segments as the company believes these can provide a variety of innovative and relevant solutions according to current travel trends.

"The number of Indonesian outbound travellers will continue to grow, and is predicted to reach 10.6 million in 2021. By maximising the potential for big data, Passpod can provide maximum services and various recommendations to Indonesian travellers not only during preparation but also during the trip. Some of these include ticket sales on-the-spot to tourist destinations, itinerary builders, e-commerce, travel insurance and many others.”

Hiro acknowledged that the IPO was the first step in developing the Passpod business overseas. "In addition to funding needs, when it comes to engaging with stakeholders and business partners in other countries, public companies that prioritise accountability, transparency and good governance will certainly be more trusted," said Hiro.

Passpod aims to expand to Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Myanmar as well South Korea, in order to attract tourists from abroad to Indonesia.

Passpod operations and finance director Wewy Suwanto said, "Passpod, which can now be used in 70 countries and targets outbound travellers, certainly does not rule out the possibility that coverage will also include foreign tourists who want to travel to Indonesia as part of the support for Ministry of Tourism programmes.

“To achieve this goal, the company has secured Postel A & B and domestic content certification (TKDN) from the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Information & Communication. With the permit, Passpod will enjoy more freedom to work on both inbound and outbound markets, whose growth potential is still very large,” added Wewy.

By adding various features to the application, as well as expanding the marketing area, booting cooperation with more parties from the travel industry, and improving services to consumers, Passpod projects IDR165 billion in revenue in 2022 and IDR15.3 billion in net profit, as well as a 109.99% projected average annual growth (Compound Annual Growth Rate/CAGR) in net income.