Alternative e-commerce gains traction led by business messaging

They accounted for around 25% of online spending in Thailand and the Philippines.

The use of alternative e-commerce for digital shopping is accelerating in Southeast Asia, with Thailand and the Philippines leading the adoption with the highest level of penetration, accounting for 25% of online spending in both markets.

In a report, Meta and Bain & Company said alternative e-commerce is also gaining pace in Indonesia and Vietnam with 23% and 22%, respectively, whilst the level of penetration in Malaysia and Singapore were at 18% and 17%.

Amongst the kinds of alternative e-commerce such as live-buying, group buying, and classified, business messaging is becoming the most popular channel, accounting for 63% of the respondents, due to its convenience and ease of communication.

READ MORE: E-commerce GMV growth in Southeast Asia slows but remains ‘healthy’

Meta and Bain said business messaging is more widely used in Indonesia with 77% of the respondents have used business messaging tools.

Its penetration is also high in the other markets with Vietnam at 64%, Malaysia at 61%, the Philippines at 59%, and Thailand at 51%.

The use of business messaging in Singapore, however, is slightly lower at 46%.