Valuation metrics favoured by digital economy firms going public need a long, hard look
Add BT as a preferred source
DIGITAL services platform Grab released a set of earnings last week with particular focus on gross merchandise value (GMV), one of the ways it assures investors its business has been growing well despite the Covid-19 pandemic. GMV measures the total dollar value of transactions from Grab's services, such as ride hailing and food delivery.
Grab's GMV in the third quarter increased 32 per cent year on year to reach a quarterly record of US$4.0 billion - but even this growing GMV number carries some caveats with its interpretation.
Grab's revenue for the latest quarter was 3.9 per cent of GMV, down from 5.6 per cent a year ago and 4.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2021. This means that for every dollar transacted on its platform, the company got to keep less for itself.
TRENDING NOW
When every phone becomes a satellite phone, what happens to Asia’s telcos?
Koh Brothers Eco Engineering faces up to S$57.6 million in potential liabilities from legal disputes
Too little, too late? Manila’s billion-dollar bid to ignite its sputtering EV industry
DayOne secures S$530 million green loan from DBS, OCBC and UOB for Singapore data centre
