Sea's Shopee Downsizes Global, SE Asian workforce; to Shutter Operations in Spain

DealStreetAsia2022-06-14

SINGAPORE -- Sea Group's e-commerce arm Shopee is laying off staff across multiple markets as it seeks to rationalize its e-commerce business, DealStreetAsia has learned.

The layoffs have affected employees across several of the company's Southeast Asian markets including Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, sources told DealStreetAsia. The company is said to have emailed employees affected by the layoffs, the sources added.

Shopee's payments arm ShopeePay and food delivery business ShopeeFood are also said to be facing cuts. A general meeting was also reportedly held on Monday to address the job cuts with Shopee employees.

The extent of the job cuts and the number of employees affected could not be confirmed at the time of publishing. DealStreetAsia has reached out to Shopee for comment.

Two sources aware of the matter said nearly half of Shopee Thailand's payment and food delivery teams have been affected by the downsizing. One of the sources noted that the email was said to have been managed in an off-handed manner, with the company asking staff members to return home and await further notice of termination.

A separate source told DealStreetAsia that Shopee has stopped hiring, with several job offers for regional roles rescinded.

While Sea Group's business continues to show signs of improvement in overall profitability, most of its revenue continues to come from its gaming arm Garena.

Sea Group's first-quarter 2022 financials reflected a 64.4% year-on-year increase in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles revenue at $2.9 billion, with gross profits soaring 81.3% to $1.2 billion over the same period.

Shopee's business, while still losing money, has also reflected improvements, with a 71.3% year-on-year increase in orders to $1.9 billion in the first quarter of 2022 while gross merchandise value rose 38.7% to $17.4 billion. Importantly, Shopee's gross profit margin for e-commerce increased year on year, with faster growth in transaction-based fees and advertising income generating higher margins versus other value-added services.

Shopee, however, continues to face several macro headwinds, including rising inflation and interest rates, that may dampen retail and consumption sectors.

The company also appears to be facing setbacks on some of its ambitious internationalization plans, including its forays into Europe and Latin America. Shopee, which has operations in Poland and Spain, decided to pull out of France after only five months as it was not meeting expectations.

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Comments

  • blessed_1
    2022-06-14
    blessed_1
    Monitor and add on drop
  • VivianChua
    2022-06-14
    VivianChua
    Hope is fine💚
  • Maky
    2022-06-14
    Maky
    Cut costs not bad news for the company.  Job loss is bad news for staff.  Hopefully those affected by job cuts get employment elsewhere soon 
  • Bi Han
    2022-06-14
    Bi Han
    Bad news after bad news 
  • BenjiFuji
    2022-06-14
    BenjiFuji
    Good news or bad news? Why? [Thinking] 
  • hphoa
    2022-06-14
    hphoa
    Hmmm.... 
Leave a comment
17