Asian e-commerce firm Lazada raises €200 million

Lazada, the Southeast Asian e-commerce company founded by Germany’s Rocket Internet , has raised €200 million (RM842 million) in a new funding round led by Singapore investment company Temasek.

Rocket Internet said in a statement that Temasek had joined existing investors including Rocket, Kinnevik and Verlinvest in the funding round, which valued Lazada at €1 billion.

Rocket said it contributed €15.3 million, with its stake in the business slipping to 23.8% from 26.7%. It did not say how much the other investors had contributed to the €200 million total or detail their stakes.

Lazada said it would use the funds to expand and improve its logistics infrastructure, payment solutions and IT systems.

“The eCommerce market in Southeast Asia is still in its early days and we will continue to invest in our operations to enhance our customer experience,” Lazada Chief Executive Maximilian Bittner said in a statement.

Rocket Internet listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange last month and said it would use part of the proceeds to invest more in some of the dozens of companies it has launched.

Earlier this week, Rocket said existing shareholders had agreed to invest another 120 million in its African e-commerce start up Jumia.

Lazada, launched in early 2012, last year secured US$250 million (RM842 million) in funding from investors including British grocer Tesco Plc, Access Industries and Kinnevik.

Selling consumer electronics, household goods, toys and sports equipment in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines and Vietnam, Lazada reported net revenues of €47 million in the first half of the year. – Reuters, November 29, 2014.