By Fanny Potkin
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Incoming GoTo CEO Patrick Walujo is planning to head the Indonesian technology company only temporarily and resign after improving profitability, as he splits his time between it and a private equity firm he co-founded, according to sources.
The prominent Indonesian dealmaker, whose private equity firm Northstar Group was one of the earliest backers of GoTo’s ride hailing business Gojek, was named as the CEO of GoTo last week. GoTo was created in 2021 through a merger of Gojek and e-commerce firm Tokopedia.
Walujo, who will continue to manage Northstar, does not plan to stay for a full three-year term as GoTo CEO, said three sources, including people briefed by him and company investors.
They declined to be identified as they are not authorised to speak to the media.
GoTo said it does not comment on market rumours and speculation.
“His initial term will be set at three years and will commence on June 30, subject to shareholder approval,” the company said in a statement.
Northstar declined to comment.
The sources said the timing of Walujo’s tenure was likely to depend on how quickly he can trim spending and improve profits.
One source told Reuters he had been told by Walujo that his tenure as CEO could be as short as several months, but could practically last until the end of 2024 or longer.
The banker, who started his career at Goldman Sachs, has no plans to step down from his role at Northstar, which manages more than $2.5 billion in equity capital, the sources said.
GoTo, which offers ride-hailing, e-commerce and financial services, went public last year and has since seen its shares fall over 60% due to fierce competition from rivals including Sea, Grab, and Alibaba’s Southeast Asian arm Lazada.
The Jakarta-headquartered group has undergone stiff cost-cutting, slashing more than 12% of its workforce in 2022, then laying off another 600 people in March this year. It announced before the market downturn it planned to do a dual listing in the U.S.
Walujo said he would focus on growth and how to “optimize the company’s profitability strategy,” when his appointment was announced, which sent GoTo shares up 8%.
(Reporting by Fanny Potkin in Singapore; Editing by Miyoung Kim, Robert Birsel)
