Top Blogs of 2012: International News: J.P. Morgan Invests in Lazada

Southeast Asia’s “Amazon” Shows No Signs of Slowing Down

The Samwer brothers’ methods have proved successful yet again. Marc, Oliver, and Alexander Samwer, founders of German Rocket Internet, “the leading global online venture incubator”, are well-known for their global startups that have earned much attention because of both their striking similarities to American startups (Pinterest, eBay, Amazon, Groupon, etc.) and also because of their success. Rocket Internet recently launched Lazada, an online department store based much off of Amazon, in Southeast Asia. The countries where it is currently available (Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam) with a population of over 600 million people, seem to have the perfect market for the site; younger consumers who are readily willing and eager to embrace the age of eCommerce.

Launched just months ago, Lazada has already surpassed many of its competitors in the market and become the fastest growing online store in Southeast Asia. This rapid success shows clear signs of future growth and has not gone unnoticed. Although many details have not been revealed, J.P. Morgan Asset Management has confirmed that they have invested in Lazada.

“We feel very honoured to welcome J.P. Morgan to our investor group and are particularly excited to be joined by an investor that shares our vision and belief in the huge potential of this populous region replicating online shopping behaviours in developed countries”, regional CEO Maximilian Bittner commented. “This will further support our growth as we strive to offer all of our customers fast, convenient and secure online shopping experiences”.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management Portfolio Manager Robert Cousin confirmed the transaction saying, “We are excited to partner with LAZADA as it continues to expand its eCommerce presence in Southeast Asia.”

By Sadaf Syed

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