GoTo shares plunge after stock exchange removes price floor

GoTo Group shares experienced a significant drop of 14%, settling at 43 rupiah, after Indonesia's stock exchange removed the 50-rupiah price floor. The ride-hailing and food-delivery platform had been held at 50 rupiah or less than one US cent for approximately four months due to the price floor, which was established over a decade ago to shield investors from abrupt price declines.

This move by the exchange was in response to regulatory efforts aimed at enhancing liquidity in Indonesia's stock market, following MSCI's warning in January about a potential downgrade to frontier status due to concerns about investability. Currently, over a hundred stocks within the Jakarta Composite Index are trading at or below the 50-rupiah level, with some shares trading below this threshold if they are part of the full call auction.

GoTo, which is backed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., was once one of Indonesia's most valuable companies, boasting a market capitalization of more than US$32 billion shortly after its listing in April 2022. However, persistent heavy losses due to intense competition from major rivals like Grab Holdings have adversely impacted investor sentiment.

Although GoTo managed to post its second consecutive quarterly profit in July after several restructuring efforts and leadership changes, these measures have not been sufficient to reignite investor enthusiasm. MSCI removed GoTo from its stock indexes in its latest quarterly review due to the company's failure to meet the necessary liquidity requirements.