Singapore’s Grab set for Nasdaq debut
07:50, 1 December 2021
The merger of Singapore-based ride hailing platform Grab Holdings and California-headquartered blank check company Altimeter Growth has been approved by shareholders, paving the way for Grab to be listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange in the US.
Altimeter Growth said on Tuesday that its shareholders approved the merger and that Grab's Class A common stock is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq on 2 December under the ticker symbol “GRAB”.
Shareholder redemptions were effectively 0%, at 0.02%, added Altimeter Growth.
SPAC listing
Earlier in April, Grab unveiled plans to go public in the US through a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Altimeter Growth in a $40bn deal.
SPACs list on the stock market with the sole purpose of acquiring a private company. Following the acquisition, the companies formally merge and the SPAC takes on the business model and identity of the company it acquired.
Grab said that the deal will provide the start-up with cash proceeds of about $4.5bn which will be used as “growth capital.”
Difficult environment
In September, the Southeast-Asia focused superapp cut its full-year 2021 outlook citing uncertainty of movement restrictions in Southeast Asia related to Covid-19.
In November, Grab said its third quarter loss widened to $988m from $621m from a year ago, while quarterly revenue fell 9% year-on-year to $157m.
Grab operates in Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines, according to its presentation. It is backed by Tiger Global Management and SoftBank Group, among others.
Superapp
Grab provides services including ride-hailing, food delivery, online shopping, bill payments, and insurance and investment solutions.
On Tuesday, shares in Altimeter Growth Corp fell 5.8% to $12.72. However, the stock rose 7.3% to $13.65 in aftermarket trade.