Gojek CEO quits to join Indonesian cabinet

FE Team | Published: October 21, 2019 23:23:39

Nadiem Makarim

JAKARTA, Oct 21 (Reuters): Gojek CEO and co-founder Nadiem Makarim said on Monday he had resigned to join Indonesia's new cabinet, and the ride-hailing and payments company said two senior executives would jointly take over running operations of the $10 billion firm.
President Andre Soelistyo and the other co-founder Kevin Aluwi would be the joint CEOs, Gojek said. It noted in a statement it had "planned for this possibility and there would no disruption to our business."
Makarim (35) and a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Business School, told reporters at the presidential palace in Jakarta it was a "a big honor to be able to join the cabinet." He said his specific role would be announced by President Joko Widodo later in the week.
Some economic analysts said they were surprised by Makarim's departure, which comes in the heat of Gojek's battle with Singapore-based rival Grab. Its biggest shareholder Softbank said in July it will invest $2 billion in Indonesia through Grab, taking on Gojek in its home market.
Having evolved from a ride-hailing service founded in 2010 to a one-stop app via which users can make online payments and order food and services such as massages, Gojek is now targeting a larger slice of the Southeast Asian market, where Grab currently dominates ride-sharing.