Shopee was launched in 2015 by Sea Limited (then known as Garena) as a mobile-first e-commerce platform targeting Southeast Asian consumers. The platform was designed specifically for mobile commerce, recognizing that many Southeast Asian consumers access the internet primarily through smartphones.
Shopee launched simultaneously in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The platform's mobile-first approach, combined with aggressive marketing and seller incentives, helped it gain market share rapidly against established competitors including Lazada (owned by Alibaba) and Tokopedia.
Shopee introduced ShopeePay, its digital wallet and payment service, to reduce friction in the purchasing process and capture payment revenue. The company also launched ShopeeExpress, its logistics arm, to improve delivery reliability and reduce costs.
Sea Limited rebranded from Garena to Sea Limited in 2017 and went public on the New York Stock Exchange in October 2017, raising approximately $884 million in its IPO.
Shopee grew explosively during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, as lockdowns drove consumers to online shopping. Sea Limited's revenue grew from approximately $2.2 billion in 2019 to approximately $10 billion in 2021.
Following the pandemic-driven growth surge, Sea Limited faced a significant slowdown in 2022. The company undertook cost-cutting measures, including workforce reductions and the withdrawal from several markets including India, France, Spain, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, and Argentina.
Shopee refocused on its core Southeast Asian and Taiwanese markets. For fiscal year 2024, Sea Limited reported revenue of approximately $16 billion.