Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Jul 14, 2025

Grab plunges 21% in biggest Wall Street debut by a Southeast Asian company

Grab plunges 21% in biggest Wall Street debut by a Southeast Asian company

The Southeast Asian unicorn Grab had a rough first day on Wall Street. The Singaporean startup closed down nearly 21% Thursday as it began trading on New York's Nasdaq.

Grab went public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. The deal — in which Grab raised $4.5 billion, and was valued at nearly $40 billion — was the biggest of its kind on record, according to data provider Dealogic. It's also the largest US market debut by a Southeast Asian company.

The previous record was held by an Indonesian satellite company, which raised nearly $1.2 billion in 1994, according to data from Refinitiv.

Under the deal, Grab merged with Altimeter Growth Corp (AGC), a SPAC launched by Altimeter Capital, a US investment firm. Shares in the company, now trading under the ticker symbol "GRAB," opened up Thursday nearly 20% above Altimeter's closing price the day before.

But they soon reversed direction, closing at $8.75 per share.

Grab took a relatively unconventional road to market, albeit one that has gained popularity over the past year. Combining with SPACs used to be sneered at on Wall Street, but recently a slew of major companies have chosen to take the same route, including Playboy, DraftKings, and electric vehicle startups Lucid Motors and Arrival.

SPACs are shell companies with limited or no operating assets. They usually go public solely to raise money from investors that is then used to buy existing businesses.

Regulators, though, have stepped up scrutiny of the process. The Securities and Exchange Commission, for example, has tightened its accounting guidance for SPACs, while lawmakers in Congress held a hearing on the matter.

That attention has caused SPAC activity to plummet, and more regulation could be on the way: Bills to tighten rules around SPACs are currently making their way through Congress. One proposal would compel blank check firms to disclose to retail investors the risks of backing shell companies, while another bill could boost their liability for making false or misleading forward-looking statements.

A 'super app'


Through its deal, Grab raised funds from investors including Fidelity, BlackRock, T. Rowe Price, Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala and Singapore government investment arm Temasek.

Co-founders Anthony Tan and Hooi Ling Tan rang the exchange's opening bell in Singapore on Thursday night in a ceremony including Grab drivers and merchants.

The Malaysian entrepreneurs, who share a surname but are unrelated, founded Grab in 2012. It quickly soared to become Southeast Asia's most valuable private company.

Grab acquired Uber's Southeast Asia business in 2018, and has since expanded into a variety of other services, including food delivery, digital payments and even financial services.

In recent years, the firm has cast itself as a "super app," letting users do everything from booking rides to taking out insurance and loans. More than 25 million people use the app each month to make a transaction, across 465 cities in eight countries.

In an interview Thursday, chief financial officer Peter Oey said that the company would use the proceeds from the listing to double down on its existing playbook.

"We're just getting started in Southeast Asia," he told CNN Business.

Oey argues that there is still "huge opportunity" to grow the firm's core businesses at home. Grocery delivery services in the region are still in their infancy, he said. Meanwhile, ride-hailing in the region is far less established than in China, he added.

Oey also did not rule out the possibility of doing more mergers and acquisitions, noting that "strategic opportunities will come up."

Grab has previously said that it chose to go public in the United States, rather than in Southeast Asia, because it wanted to tap into a larger investor base.

But Oey said Thursday that the company wouldn't rule out the possibility of listing on another exchange at some point. "We're open to Southeast Asia and other opportunities," he added.

Still, the executive emphasized that the company would take it one step at a time.

"For us right now it's [about] making sure that we execute the business and stay focused, and support those shareholders who are in the ride with us," said Oey.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
×