BFM 89.9

HIGHLIGHTS 
Podcast  >  Enterprise  >  Open For Business  >  18 Years of Easybook: From Pet Project to RM300 Million Business

18 Years of Easybook: From Pet Project to RM300 Million Business

William Lee, Founder and CEO, Easybook

25-Apr-24 10:00

18 Years of Easybook: From Pet Project to RM300 Million Business

Founded in 2006, Easybook.com started off as a platform that sold bus tickets in Malaysia and Singapore but has since grown operations regionally. Last year it made RM300 million in revenue and RM10 million in net profit, with aims to hit RM500 million in revenue and RM30 million in profit this year.

The company has raised a total fund of USD$8.5 million over 3 rounds. The first was a $500,000 round, followed by a USD$3 million round. Then in 2021, the company raised US$ 5 million Series C round from Malaysia boutique investment firm, Emissary Capital and utilised the new funds to invest in the business but also to get through the pandemic.

Easybook is focused on maintaining its first mover advantage in this space with continued expansion into Indonesia and Vietnam, and is also preparing itself for an IPO - with the company scouting for listing locations that will provide it the best valuation.

In this episode of Open For Business, dive into Easybook's origins as a pet project back in 2006 and the 18 year journey that William has been on, how the business has changed as the internet economy grew, its competitive advantage in this space, the underlying business itself, and IPO thoughts.

Produced by: Roshan Kanesan

Presented by: Roshan Kanesan


This and more than 60,000 other podcasts in your hand. Download the all new BFM mobile app.

Categories:  marketsCorporatesmanagingentrepreneurstravel

Tags:  easybookbus ticketstravelentrepreneurship





Play / Pause

Listen now : The 6AM Stretch: Thought-provoking discussions on ideas, people and events shaping our...

Today’s Shows



6:00 AM

The 6AM Stretch

Thought-provoking discussions on ideas, people and events shaping our lives.

7:00 AM

World Market Watch

Joe Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist, US Trust-BOA Private Wealth Management, tells us where international markets are heading.

7:15 AM

Morning Brief

We recap global and local headlines from today's papers and portals.

7:30 AM

Morning Brief

Lionel Priyadi, Head of Research, PT Mega Capital Sekuritas analyzes whether Indonesia’s plans like mass housing and free school meals can revive growth and investor confidence

7:45 AM

Morning Brief

Selena Ling, Chief Economist, OCBC Bank gives us an outlook of Singapore's economy in the second half of 2025.

8:00 AM

The Breakfast Grille

Datuk Chow Pui Hee, Group Managing Director, Samaiden Group Bhd discusses how the company is navigating government programmes.

8:30 AM

Morning Brief

Ariff Adi Putera Anwar of the Institute for Development Studies (Sabah) discusses ongoing efforts to strengthen Sabah’s economic landscape.

8:45 AM

Morning Brief

Meenakshi Raman, President of Sahabat Alam Malaysia, on the potential conflict between environmental protection and plantation industry priorities

9:00 AM

Opening Bell

(REPEAT) Joe Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist, US Trust-BOA Private Wealth Management, tells us where international markets are heading.

9:15 AM

Opening Bell

(REPEAT) We take a look at the FBM KLCI as well as regional capital markets.

9:35 AM

People, Planet, Profit

: Dr. Joanne Khew, Head of Sustainability at Eastspring Investments, explains how capital can drive the climate transition.

10:05 AM

Open For Business

Peter Phang, Executive Director of SynVista Energy Malaysia, about why they chose Malaysia, and how energy storage will shape the nation’s clean energy future.

11:00 AM

Marketing Mojo

Yubin Ng, Co-Founder of MantaYaY, shares best practices for TikTok paid marketing, on what works, what doesn’t, and how SMEs can turn small ad spends into big returns.

12:00 PM

Enterprise Explores

Is the "always-on" work culture sustainable? Prof. Kenneth Cafferkey discusses the line between high performance and burnout.

1:00 PM

The Breakfast Grille Repeat

Datuk Chow Pui Hee, Group Managing Director, Samaiden Group Bhd discusses how the company is navigating government programmes.

2:05 PM

Discovery Hour

3:05 PM

Beyond the Ballot Box

We unpack an important new report by IMAN Research, detailing the political views of the Malay youth -- what they're worried about, how they feel about multiculturalism and Islam in politics -- and how we can build stronger inter-ethnic relationships.

4:05 PM

Health & Living

People in low-cost housing are struggling to achieve basic quality of life. How can public housing transformation and community empowerment programmes improve public health outcomes?

5:00 PM

Top 5 at 5

6:00 PM

Talkback Tuesday

8:00 PM

BBC World Service