While plans for its public-listing via the special purpose acqusition company (SPAC) merger stalled last year, Carsome continued to grow its revenue, operations, and new funding options.
Eric Cheng, Group CEO and Co-Founder, Carsome, shared this to Reuters at the sidelines of the Forbes Global CEO Conference 2023. Chenge specifically noted that he is looking for strategic investors who can add value to the overall operation of Carsome.
(Picture credit: Eric Cheng)
“(It can be from) car trading, financing, or insurance. We need (partners) that can appreciate the business we’re building,” Cheng said.
This is very much in line with what Carsome is currently focused on as it continues to organically expand its functions as a automotive purchasing platform.
Interestingly, the original plans for dual-listing in the US and Singapore are still on the table.
For the time being, Carsome will continue to expand after it reached multiple accolades over the last 18 months. From being tagged as Malaysia’s first tech unicorn, to recording a valuation of US$1.7 billion (~RM) after completing the Series E funding round, it is now seeking out new growth paths to tap into.
Right now, Cheng and his team are in no hurry to move towards public listing. While Carsome is ready to go public, there is no timeline or window as yet.
This includes the fintech venture that had been formed with TNGlobal. This consortium that Carsome is a part of had received the approval to operate as a digital bank in Malaysia.
“(Right now,) there are plans to launch the digital bank this coming year-end or early next year,” Cheng said.
Carsome, since its latest funding round, have reached operational profitability in the first quarter of this year and is expected to achieve its first group-wide profit by the end-2023.