Navigating the bumpy Covid road

Good Morning Dear Reader,   It looks like the pandemic has really gutted the transport sector. In Manila, where I'm based, a strict lockdown policy suspended public transport for months.   I don't think demand will return anytime soon, even though the economy has begun to open up. Many companies have adopted a work-from-home setup. And those who work in offices have resorted to taking their cars or motorcycles to work. Safety protocols have also limited the number of people a public vehicle can carry.   For taxi companies, however, there's a silver lining. The pandemic has been a leveller of sorts, as my colleague Ben wrote this week. Ride-hailing firms such as Grab and Gojek had stolen not only commuters but also drivers away from taxis. Taxis were losing their fighting chance—until the pandemic hit. Both Grab and Gojek's businesses were severely affected, prompting them to let go of hundreds of staff. In Singapore, loss-making Grab attempted to retool its incentive scheme for drivers, resulting in a backlash. Whereas ComfortDelGro, the city-state's largest taxi operator—and profitable at that—went the extra mile to provide relief to its drivers.   ComfortDelGro has also adjusted to the changing times. It launched a food delivery service as takeaways became the norm. And it tied up with an online grocer to deliver groceries using its fleet. It's now the one giving Grab a run for its money.   Like Grab and Gojek, India's Ola was thrown into chaos as well. As Pranav detailed in our shared story from India this week, Ola stopped its ride-sharing feature altogether, axed more than a thousand people, and rejigged its management and teams. It's now focusing on its electric vehicle business and doubling down on its cloud kitchen and fintech divisions. But it won't be an easy transition. The EV business, specifically, requires a dizzying array of skill sets.   This week, we also wrote about other companies that are either struggling or in a sticky spot—although their case isn't entirely connected to the pandemic.   After spending 17 months on Nasdaq, Southeast Asia's luxury online marketplace pioneer Reebonz was delisted by the American stock exchange in July. While its business model has seen a lot of success in places like Europe, Reebonz has not found product-market fit in Southeast Asia just yet, according to Kay's story. An investment executive suggested that Reebonz might have been "ahead of its time".   Meanwhile, Jon looked into Singapore-based fintech firm M-DAQ, which was said to have had a falling out with its investor, Ant Group, owned by Chinese tech giant Alibaba. M-DAQ's technology, which enables sites to offer local currency pricing and payments, is being used by Alibaba's e-commerce platforms. Ant took a large stake in M-DAQ in 2009, with a plan to take majority ownership in succeeding years. But not only did the talks fall through, Ant supposedly developed its own technology to wean itself off M-DAQ.   Finally, our Friday newsletter Strait Up zoomed in on the financial services sector, specifically the potential losers once digital bank licences are doled out in Singapore. We also wrote about how card networks are playing the loyalty game, and TransferWise's interesting move that led it to profitability.   That's all from The Ken Southeast Asia, for now. We'll be back on Monday with more stories.   Until then, stay safe, wear a mask, and follow social distancing measures when you step out of the house or commute to work.   Best, Jum jum@the-ken.com What you just read is The Ken's weekly recap of its stories. Written by a different person each week. Often insightful, sometimes witty, and very rarely boring. Someone sent this to you? Sign up for free. Don't like these? You can unsubscribe. Want to manage your emails? Click here.