Carousell Acquires Indonesian Laku6 to Bolster Regional Expansion

A secondhand e-commerce (re-commerce) startup from Singapore, Carousell Group, made a fresh investment of US$25 million or Rp 375 billion into Laku6, an Indonesia-based smartphone re-commerce platform. The investment is a part of the Laku6 acquisition deal by Carousell. The acquisition and injection of Laku6 funds were supported by Carousell's investors, Heliconia Capital Management, the investment unit of Temasek Holdings.

Heliconia made its first investment in Carousell in October 2021. In its official statement, the acquisition of Laku6 follows a similar action by Carousell, which acquired the authentic streetwear marketplace Ox Street and the retailer’s re-commerce platform Refash. Carousell Co-founder and CEO Quek Siu Rui said the re-commerce market has many benefits, like allowing users to have like-new devices, more environmentally friendly, and have growth potential of more than 2.5 times.

According to a report by ReedSeer Strategy Consultant, the re-commerce market for electronics in Southeast Asia is predicted to reach US$18.6 billion by 2026. "This partnership is a strong combination to lead the electronics re-commerce market in Southeast Asia. We are supported by the AI-based remote diagnostic technology of Laku6, Carousell's user base of 10 million in Southeast Asia, and one of the strongest investment injections into the electronics re-commerce sector,” Quek said in a press release.