Grab Stock Slides 7.8% in Morning Trading

Grab stock slides 7.8% in morning trading.

Singapore-based ride-hailing company Ryde is seeking to list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

In a preliminary prospectus lodged on Aug 31, the home-grown startup indicated it intended to raise up to US$17 million in an initial public offering (IPO), with no pricing terms disclosed. New York-based investment bank Maxim Group is the sole bookrunner on the deal.

Founded in 2014, the ride-hailing platform differentiated itself by focusing on its carpooling service. It also envisioned becoming a “super mobility app”, offering multiple mobility tools through a single app, according to the prospectus.

About three-quarters of its 2022 revenue of S$8.8 million came from carpooling and ride-hailing services. Ryde also makes money from advertising and its Ryde+ membership. The two segments brought in total revenue of S$2.2 million last year.

The startup, however, registered recurring losses and sustained net losses of S$5 million in 2022, and S$1.2 million in 2021, according to the financials disclosed.

Its accounting firm raised “doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern” in the prospectus, as its working capital stood at negative S$3.2 million, and its shareholders’ deficiency was negative S$7.7 million as at the end of 2022.

The company responded by saying that its management has commenced a strategy to raise debt and equity, including raising funds through the IPO.

As at the IPO filing, Ryde had obtained S$5.8 million in funding from venture capital companies.

The ride-hailing platform in 2021 said that it planned to list on the Singapore Exchange’s Catalist board in March 2022 with a targeted valuation of S$200 million. However, no prospectus was lodged. It also said at the time that it planned to recruit 100 more staff between 2021 and 2024. According to the prospectus filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, its total number of employees stood at 31 as at March 2023.

The company is also expanding to the quick commerce industry. It acquired Meili Technology, a last-mile on-demand logistics service provider in Singapore, earlier this year.