Grab Reports US$815 Million Net Loss in Q2 2021
The company behind Southeast Asia's most popular ride-hailing app, Grab, recently reported that it suffered a bigger net loss in the second quarter of 2021 than it did at the same time in 2020.
Grab announced that it lost US$815 million - US$97 million more than last year's net loss of US$718 million - due to the uncertainty caused by the movement restrictions that swept through the Southeast Asian countries the company operates in. The loss is enough for Grab to lower its predicted net sales by US$8 million year-over-year (YoY) in 2021.
Another factor that played a key role in Grab's net loss was an increase in the company's convertible redeemable preference shares, which are non-cash items.
Additionally, the company logged a US$1.9 billion increase in its total outstanding debt on 30 June 2021 from its original debt of US212 million in December 2020. This was due to the closing of its US$2 billion Term Loan Facility in late January 2021.
Despite these setbacks, however, Grab was able to grow its revenue during this year's second quarter to US$180 million - a 132% increase from last year's revenue.
Grab explained that the increase was brought on by strong YoY growth of its deliveries and mobility services, which grew by 58% and 93% respectively. This growth is mainly spearheaded by the gross merchandise value (GMV) of its delivery services. Moreover, the company plans to launch 10 new GrabKitchens in the second half of 2021 and introduce new contactless dine-in solutions through the Grab app.
Anthony Tan, Grab's co-founder and CEO, praised the company's growth, calling it a testament to the company's resilience while mentioning other growth opportunities the company is creating like expansions on GrabFood's and GrabPay's merchant base.
Peter Oey, Grab's Chief Financial Officer, said that the company would continue to invest in its delivery business which he noted as continuously outperforming and rapidly growing.
Grab's ride-hailing service has also contributed to the company growth despite the movement restrictions in the countries it operates in, generating a GMV of US$685 million. The company expects that its ride-hailing service will soon be in demand again as vaccination rates increase across the whole of Southeast Asia.
Grab also said that talks with Altimeter Growth Corp regarding their merger deal continues to progress and is expected to be closed during the fourth quarter in 2021.
Written by John Paul Joaquin