Published: 07 Apr 2022

In 2019, Southeast Asia had 360 million internet users and was the most engaged mobile Internet region in the world. The Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) of Southeast Asia's internet economy reached US$32 billion in 2015, and this value continues to increase up to US$100 billion in 2019. The GMV of Southeast Asia's internet economy is expected to reach US$300 billion by 2025. Moreover, Indonesia will dominate. The GMV of Indonesia's internet economy is predicted to reach US$133 billion by 2025, ahead of Singapore and Thailand. Indonesia is the largest and fastest-growing Internet economy in the region, with a 49% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR).

Thus said Dr. Erman Sumirat, Mbuss, CSA, CRP, CSA, Ak., in a webinar entitled “Valuation for Digital Business: Bubble or Bullish” held by the Postgraduate Study Program Master of Technology Management, President University (PresUniv), Thursday (31/3). Erman, a value investor, said Indonesia's internet economic growth occurred in all sectors, including e-commerce, online travel, online media, and ride-hailing. As of 2019, Indonesian e-commerce has increased 12 times over four years, while ride-hailing has increased sixfold. "The growth of all these sectors benefits from the growth in the adoption of digital payments," said Erman

Erman also said that the valuation depends on the company's life cycle. Tech companies do not have a “mature” period because they always have distractions. "Technology companies require high capital expenditure, innovation, funds to acquire other businesses, and have a short life cycle, so the risk exposure is higher," he explained. Erman said, technology companies should not conduct valuations that are too long because of their short life cycle. "The valuation period cannot be more than five years," he said. (Gilang Suryanata, PR team. Photo: Gilang)