The Business Times

Jofie Yordan

Jofie, based in Jakarta, is a correspondent at Tech in Asia, covering startups and venture capital. While addressing various startup topics, his primary focus lies in the dynamics of the e-commerce sector in South-east Asia.

emailjofie.yordan@techinasia.com
Joseph Simbar (left), co-founder and CEO of Mimin, says entering China is difficult due to the language barrier, cultural differences, and strict regulations.

Indonesian startups chasing growth test waters in the Gulf

Startup funding in Indonesia has been on a decline since 2021

Shopee’s office in Singapore

Shopee, Lazada are laying the ground for AI shopping agents. Is a brutal price war looming?

RELYING on artificial intelligence (AI) for gift selection this holiday season may be a stretch, but the e-commerce industry’s move towards AI...

According to Tirtanata, Kopi Kenangan’s revenue rose by 40% year on year in Q3.

Kopi Kenangan turns Ebitda positive in Malaysia, eyes new markets

The coffee chain currently has around 130 stores in the country

Known as GPT-based or agentic commerce, this new way of shopping allows consumers to search for product information, dig deeper into reviews, and compare products within their conversations on AI tools.

The next retail war in South-east Asia: marketplaces vs GPT prompts

People can also buy directly on these chatbots

After laying off 12% of its employees in the city-state in August, Ninja Van is reportedly in talks to raise US$80 million.

Is it time for Ninja Van to quit e-commerce logistics?

While some observers point out that it can still be viable, while others see B2B as a necessary pivot

Many sellers are sticking with Shopee, even though their margins are shrinking, sales volume continues to rise as Shopee reinvests fees into discounts and promotions that drive demand.

Niche players chasing Shopee could lure sellers – but they have to survive first

South-east Asia’s pool of niche marketplaces has always been narrow

While other platforms have also raised their fees, Shopee’s rates generally remain the highest.

Shopee tightens grip on South-east Asia’s sellers as take rates climb

Over the past year, the company has gradually increased seller fees across its markets

As of April 2025, Bluebird had 24,500 taxis in its fleet.

Bluebird’s answer to Grab and Gojek? Not discounts

The Indonesian taxi company is sticking to delivering consistent and reliable service

(FILES) The logo of Japan's Toyota Motor is displayed at a dealership in Tokyo on February 9, 2022. Shares in Japan's biggest car companies fell on March 27, 2025, after US President Donald Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on auto imports to take effect next week. The world's top-selling automaker Toyota dropped 3.7 percent as the Tokyo market opened, while Nissan shed 3.2 percent and Honda fell as much as 3.1 percent. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

Toyota crashes Indonesia’s used-car party with US$120 million bet

Can Carro, Carsome, and Moladin survive – and thrive – as the giants move in?

Shopee’s office in Jakarta / Photo credit: jafriyalbule / Shutterstock

SEA’s tech giants revel in lending boom, but major test looms

NANDA Sekar, a homemaker from the Indonesian city of Bogor, is a frequent user of buy now, pay later (BNPL) services...

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