GoTo CEO Patrick Walujo steps down amid leadership reset; job goes to COO Patuwo

[JAKARTA] GoTo Group chief executive officer Patrick Walujo will step down after two and a half years at the helm, Indonesia’s largest digital ecosystem company announced on Monday (Nov 24), marking the most significant leadership change since its post-merger restructuring.

GoTo said it has nominated chief operating officer (COO) Hans Patuwo to replace Walujo, with the appointment to be confirmed at an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting on Dec 17, 2025.

The transition follows what the board described as a “rigorous succession process” to ensure continuity as the company pushes towards sustained profitability.

Walujo, who took over in June 2023, has overseen an aggressive turnaround aimed at cutting losses, sharpening operational focus and stabilising the group after a turbulent post-IPO period.

Walujo, 50, said he was “deeply proud” of the team’s efforts over the past two years, noting that GoTo is now in “a position of strength”.

The outgoing CEO endorsed Patuwo as the right successor, highlighting his decade-long involvement with Gojek, GoPay and GoTo.

“His comprehensive understanding of the company’s operations and proven leadership capability make him the right person to lead GoTo into its next phase,” he said.

The change comes amid speculation that GoTo seeks to finalise a major deal with Singapore’s Grab. Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund Danantara is reported to join the planned merger, after having explored taking a minority stake in the combined entity earlier this year.

Who is Patuwo?

Patuwo, currently COO and president of on-demand services at GoTo, joined Gojek in 2018 and has held key roles across driver operations, transport, and GoTo Financial.

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In these roles, he played a strategic part in managing driver-partners, expanding operations to hundreds of cities, and strengthening merchant networks. He also served as president of GoTo Financial in 2023 and previously led the payments and financial services division from 2021 to 2022.

Before entering the tech industry, Patuwo was COO at pulp producer Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper, part of the Sinarmas Group, from 2015 to 2017.

Earlier in his career, he was a partner at McKinsey, working across the US, China, and Singapore from 2008 to 2014.

Macquarie analysts Ari Jahja and Foo Zhiwei said Patuwo’s experience as COO, along with his prior leadership of on-demand services and financial operations, makes him a valuable asset for GoTo.

Among other leadership changes, Andre Soelistyo, GoTo’s former CEO who oversaw the Gojek-Tokopedia merger, has been nominated as a board commissioner.

“The changes are positioned as part of a broader strategy to strengthen operational execution and sustainable profitability,” said Macquarie in its note.

The management reshuffle would mark the most significant leadership update since the Gojek-Tokopedia merger in 2021.

The firm said it seeks to strengthen its core on-demand, e-commerce and financial services businesses while maintaining cost discipline after years of heavy cash burn.

The company said in the statement that it is entering a new phase focused on “sustainable growth and profitability”, following several quarters of narrowing losses.

Sharp turn

The leadership change marks a sharp turn from Walujo’s comments earlier this year, when he said he planned to stay on as GoTo’s CEO until 2029.

Analysts said the succession is being read by the market as a sign that major investors may be preparing strategic moves, including a potential merger.

Bloomberg earlier reported that several major investors, including SoftBank, Provident Capital Partners and Peak XV, had been pushing to replace Walujo after GoTo’s market value plunged more than 40 per cent during his leadership.

Liza Suryanata, head of research at Kiwoom Sekuritas, said the shift likely reflects mounting pressure from GoTo’s heavyweight shareholders, particularly SoftBank, as they work to clear the path for a possible tie-up with Grab.

Such transitions, she added, often signal a recalibration of strategy driven by shareholder priorities.

“Patuwo is an operator, not a deal-maker like Walujo. Usually, when an operator is elevated to the top job, it’s a sign that the big strategic decisions have likely already been settled behind the scenes by the board and major shareholders,” Suryanata said.

Given GoTo’s current push for sustainable profitability, she said the market tends to view any strategic merger or partnership as a positive.

A merger would generally benefit GoTo, improving cost efficiency, strengthening margins, and boosting competitiveness across both on-demand and e-commerce segments.