MapmyIndia, Foodpanda weigh cost of battling Goliath

Opening Bell 🔔 is Tech in Asia’s free newsletter that brings you the biggest news and latest trends around Asia’s publicly listed tech companies. [Read from your browser]( Opening Bell 🔔 Welcome to the Opening Bell! Delivered every Monday via email and through the Tech in Asia website, this free newsletter breaks down the biggest stories and latest trends on Asia’s publicly listed tech companies. If you’re not a subscriber, get access by [registering here](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Written by Peter Cowan Journalist Hello {NAME} When you find yourself in a tussle with a Goliath, it’s a high-risk, high-reward situation. Sure, if you can put his eye out with your slingshot, people will still know your name thousands of years later. But if you can’t take down the giant, you’re going to get squished. MapmyIndia (MAPMYINDIA, NSE) is taking on one of the biggest giants it could hope to encounter: Google (GOOGL, Nasdaq). The Indian firm provides digital maps, geospatial software, and location-based IoT tech, all of which looks set to put it on a collision course with Google Maps for market share. While MapmyIndia is confident that it has what it takes to outperform the Goliath in its sector, it seems like the same can’t be said for Foodpanda. The Asian food delivery platform is owned by Delivery Hero (DHER, FWB) and the German firm is a Goliath in its own right. While it wouldn’t be fair to liken Foodpanda to David, it certainly has a smaller share of Southeast Asia’s food delivery market compared to Grab (GRAB, Nasdaq). It seems in the case of Foodpanda and Grab, the whale is about to swallow the relative minnow, as Foodpanda has been slashing its workforce and could soon be acquired by Grab. -- Peter  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THE BIG STORY [MapmyIndia’s shares outperform Indian tech peers, but battle with Google looms]( MapmyIndia is hoping to win the country’s US$8 billion market for digital maps and location-based services. ---------------------------------------------------------------  3 TRENDS TO KEEP EYE ON Hot stocks, earnings reports, restructuring, pressure from activist investors, and more. 1️⃣ Panda cull: As Delivery Hero mulls selling off the business, Foodpanda has been [laying off]( employees in Asia Pacific. The company didn’t confirm how many employees had been let go in its [second retrenchment]( this year. However, it did tell Tech in Asia that the exercise was “critical” for its operations to be “leaner and more agile.” The news of the potential sale of Foodpanda seems to have helped Delivery Hero’s [stock]( rebound after a significant fall-off from its July peak. 2️⃣ Brand new brand, same as the old brand: AirAsia (5099, MYX) has done yet another [rebranding exercise]( with AirAsia Super App being renamed to AirAsia Move. Just last year, the AirAsia holding company was [rebranded]( as Capital A, though the company still operates under the AirAsia brand. Confused? That makes two of us. But my colleague Emmanuel Samarathisa’s [column]( is here to make some sense of the moves. Rebrands for AirAsia also seem to come with restructuring and diversification. But as Emmanuel points out, perhaps the firm would be better suited to focus on its core aviation business. 3️⃣ IPO no-go: Amid mixed results from three companies that have recently gone public, Vietnamese tech firm VNG Corporation has [postponed]( its planned IPO. The operator of popular messaging service Zalo has been exploring an offering in the US since 2017 and finally [filed]( for a Nasdaq listing last month. However, the mixed responses for three September listings - Arm Holdings (ARM, Nasdaq), Instacart (CART, Nasdaq), and Klaviyo (KVYO, Nasdaq) - has forced a pause in VNG’s plans, sources told Bloomberg. The Vietnamese firm will also have to be creative with how it lists in the US and hope for favor from its home country’s regulators. Vietnam’s laws forbid foreign investors from owning more than 49% of a company in the gaming sector.  2 EYE-POPPING NUMBERS Tech in Asia scours the internet to bring you head-turning numbers from the world of business. - [13.28%]( How far the shares of K-pop agency YG Entertainment (122870, KRX) fell after reports emerged that three of the four members of Blackpink, one of its biggest groups, would not be renewing their contracts with the South Korean firm. How you like that? If you’re a YG shareholder, not very much. - [11,315]( The number of electric vehicles VinFast (VFS, Nasdaq) delivered worldwide in the first half of the year. Earlier this year, the Vietnamese automaker’s founder and majority shareholder, Pham Nhat Vuong, said he expected the firm to sell 50,000 cars in 2023. THE ONE YOU DIDN'T SEE COMING We spotlight the story that had everyone talking and social media buzzing during the past week. Grabbing market share?: As we mentioned above, Grab is reportedly a [potential buyer]( for some of Foodpanda’s business in the region. Such a deal could be worth more than US$1.1 billion, according to German publication Wirtschaftswoche. It would also cement Grab’s dominance in Southeast Asia’s food delivery market. The last time Grab made such a paradigm-altering acquisition was when it bought Uber’s Southeast Asian business in 2018. Back then, Grab did the deal without notifying Singapore’s competition authority, resulting in substantial fines for both ride-hailing firms. Grab is unlikely to get its hand caught in the cookie jar again now that it’s a listed company.  That’s it for this edition - we hope you liked it! Not your cup of tea? You can unsubscribe from this newsletter by going to our preference center at the bottom of this email. Happy investing and see you next week! Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only. 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