Gojek & Tokopedia

1 Peter 5:6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” In 2016 I led an investment into Tokopedia and joined the company as a Board Observer. The leadup to closing was perhaps the most dramatic journey I’ve ever been through at our venture firm Amasia. I’ll save the details for another post, but suffice it to say that I hoped that we could get some credit for the tortuous path we had tread until that point. Unfortunately, because the investors who backed us on the deal wanted to keep a low profile, we never announced the round. Since then, there have been various stories that were leaked to the media about the company. Only one of them mentioned Amasia, and they spelled our name wrong! The prevalence of the leaks led to an understandable desire to limit exposure. After a couple years we added the company to our website. A couple years later I added the company on my LinkedIn profile. At each juncture I was careful to align with stakeholders. Though happy to tow the party line, part of me of course wanted to get some credit for all the hard work. I’ve had similar experiences with many other portfolio companies. It particularly irks me when other firms get more credit despite perhaps having done less. But in each of those instances, I just take it to God and He always tells me the same thing. “Humble yourself. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? It is in loving those who hate you… in doing work when you gain no credit, that I exalt you.” Then I’ll usually belt out a few worship songs and my heart will align with what my mind already knows. I serve a good God who always has the best in store. If I’m not getting credit now, I’m storing up my treasure in heaven. Well this morning I was asked to speak about the Gojek-Tokopedia merger on Channel News Asia. I used to have a weekly segment on CNA, but finally having the greenlight from stakeholders to talk about this investment in public makes this appearance somehow feel particularly special. Lord, you’re so good. Your mercy endures forever. Help me to have an eternal view today. You’re never late… you’re always on time. Thank you for loving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.