Singapore’s Sea Ltd has reclaimed its title as Southeast Asia’s most valuable publicly traded company, surpassing DBS Group Holdings Ltd after a 300% comeback rally powered by its e-commerce arm Shopee.
Shares of the internet company rose 1.1% in New York for a market capitalisation of US$111 billion (RM468.1 billion). Hours later, regional banking giant DBS finished Tuesday 0.6% lower in Singapore for a valuation of US$110.3 billion — officially ceding the top spot to Sea.
Sea’s e-commerce arm Shopee has cemented its leadership in Southeast Asia where more consumers are going online to buy anything from iPhones to daily groceries. In August, Sea reported record sales that topped estimates, signalling it’s succeeding in fending off hard-charging rivals including ByteDance Ltd’s TikTok and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s Lazada. Shares of Sea have more than quadrupled since the start of last year as investors grew more convinced of its strength in the region.
Years of investment in its online offerings and delivery operations has helped Sea retain its popularity, even as TikTok and Lazada as well as newer entrants like Temu target the region of more than 675 million people. Meanwhile, a brutal cost-cutting drive has helped chief executive officer Forrest Li bring the company to profitability.
Sea is also betting on new initiatives such as digital finance to convince investors of its long-term earnings potential. A key secret weapon is its little-known logistics operation, called SPX Express, which is powered by an army of homemakers, students and retirees making regular and reliable deliveries in markets such as Singapore.
Meanwhile, shares of DBS have gained 65% since the start of last year to reach record levels. Singapore’s largest lender pledged to return billions of dollars to investors via a dividend boost and share buybacks with cancellation after solid earnings driven by both lending and wealth-management income.
Source: Bloomberg