Barely two months after talks about going public, Temasek-backed aquaculture startup eFishery is undergoing a leadership reshuffle amid a probe into alleged embezzlement by its co-founders Gibran Huzaifah and Chrisna Aditya.
To continue reading, subscribe to Eco‑Business.
There's something for everyone. We offer a range of subscription plans.
- Access our stories and receive our Insights Weekly newsletter with the free EB Member plan.
- Unlock unlimited access to our content and archive with EB Circle.
- Publish your content with EB Premium.
As of 16 December, eFishery has confirmed media reports that both Huzaifah and Aditya – who have helmed the company since it was established in 2013 in Indonesia – have been suspended from their respective positions as chief executive officer and chief product officer.
In the meantime, the firm’s former chief financial officer Adhy Wibisono has stepped in as interim CEO, while Albertus Sasmitra, who is also a director at Singapore-based private equity fund Northstar Group – an early investor in eFishery – has taken on the role of interim CFO.
“This decision, reached in unison with our shareholders, showcases our commitment to improving the company’s governance,” the company said in a press statement. It added that investors and shareholders have been notified about the ongoing investigation over financial irregularities.
This marks the startup’s second C-suite shake-up this year. In April, Dhianendra Laksmana resigned from his role as CFO citing personal reasons. A month later, the company laid off an undisclosed portion of its workforce as part of its business restructuring effort.
Apart from Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek and Northstar, other high-profile institutional investors into eFishery include Japan’s Softbank, Malaysia’s largest pension fund Kumpulan Wang Persaraan, HSBC Indonesia and regional venture capital firm Wavemaker Partners.
Following a successful funding round led by Abu Dhabi’s 42XFund last July, the startup’s value crossed the billion-dollar mark, spawning Southeast Asia’s first agritech unicorn – a feat that was acknowledged by the New York Stock Exchange.
The profitable startup was an outlier during the 2023 plunge in agritech funding, after the hype from preceding years – driven in part by sustainability and food security concerns amid Covid-19 – died down and led to closures and mergers of cultivated meat companies and high-tech vertical farms.
Post-funding, the individual stakes of Huzaifah and Aditya – who each hold about 9 per cent of the company’s shares – were worth over US$100 million.
According to Gibran then, the funds would be used to expand in Indonesia and India as well as to make the export of shrimp products fully traceable and chemical-free to the international market, before pursuing an initial public offering.
In January, the firm launched its commercial operations in India ahead of schedule, which reported positive earnings in its debut year, with revenue exceeding US$5 billion. It also expanded its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities with the acquisition of Indonesian internet of things startup DycodeX in March.
Currently, eFishery uses AI to detect the hunger levels of fish and shrimp through their movements, in order to automate and optimise their feeding. The company claims to have cut feed costs – which typically account for 70 to 90 per cent of total production costs for farmers in Indonesia – through its solutions, while lowering carbon footprint and improving fish health.
Beyond feeder units, it offers financial access for farmers to scale their businesses, disease monitoring solutions and a marketplace for seafood farmers to sell their harvest.
To date, the company’s products have been used by over 200,000 farmers in Indonesia. It plans to reach one million farmers by 2025.
In September, eFishery’s founding CEO admitted to internal fraud, but told local media that it accounted for less than 0.5 per cent of its revenue and “won’t kill the company”. Firm action would be taken against anyone found to commit fraud within the company, he added.
Its vice president of governance, risk and compliance Mazlan Hashim previously said that eFishery’s corporate governance has been designed in accordance with established global standards.
Eco-Business has reached out to eFishery to get more clarity over the latest allegations and whether they are linked to earlier investigations into internal fraud.
