Facebook Inc’s messaging platform WhatsApp and PayPal Holdings Inc. have announced that they have invested in a food delivery, payment and ride hailing app operator Gojek as a part of the Indonesian firm’s ongoing fundraising round.
However, both WhatsApp and PayPal haven’t disclosed the size of investment or the stakes they would eventually receive. Matt Idema, the Chief Operations Officer of WhatsApp said, WhatsApp would work with Gojek, “to support the growth of millions of small businesses.”
This move is likely to strengthen WhatsApp’s presence in Indonesia, where more than 100 million people uses the instant messaging platform. This investment comes just after a month since its $5.7 billion in India’s Reliance Industries Ltd.
Cameron McLean, the Market head at PayPal International, said in a statement “payment capabilities would be integrated into Gojek’s services” and enable its users to use GoPay at PayPal merchants globally.
Back in 2010, Gojek was founded as a ride hailing firm and since then it has evolved into an app, from where, users can make online payments and order food and services. Gojek is active in four markets and owns an e-wallet start-up in the Philippines. Gojek said in a statement, its existing investors Tencent Holdings Ltd, and Google has also joined the latest fundraising round, which people with direct knowledge of the matter said valued the firm at $10 billion.