Digital Sales in South-East Asia Projected to Hit $368 Billion by 2026
A report forecasts a significant rise in digital sales in South-East Asia, driven by robust growth and large investments in data centers.
Forecast for Digital Sales Growth
According to the latest e-Conomy SEA 2026 report, digital sales in South-East Asia are anticipated to grow by 17% to reach a staggering US$368 billion by 2026. This report was jointly released by Google, Bain & Company, and the state investor Temasek.
Long-Term Growth Projections
The report forecasts that the overall gross merchandise value of goods and services sold digitally will see a consistent annual growth rate of 13%, pushing the total to approximately US$1.14 trillion by 2035. There remains significant growth potential for the market.
Funding Trends in the Digital Economy
In 2025, there were 421 private financing agreements within the digital sector in South-East Asia, marking a decline of 28.4% compared to the previous year. Despite this downturn, the first half of 2026 saw the digital economy attract US$21 billion in funding, a notable improvement from the US$11 billion raised throughout all of 2025.
This resurgence in funding can largely be attributed to two major data center agreements: an US$11 billion partnership involving STT GDC, and a separate US$5 billion agreement with DayOne. These developments have contributed to an increase in data center capacity, which rose to 5.8 gigawatts in the first half of 2026, up from 4 gigawatts at the end of 2025.
Global Comparisons in AI Adoption
The report also highlights that South-East Asia has been slow to adopt artificial intelligence compared to global standards. With only five million AI tokens consumed per capita, it lags far behind the US, where the consumption rate is 60 million per capita, and Europe, which stands at 14 million.
Growth in IPOs and Market Activity
As for the activity in initial public offerings (IPOs), South-East Asia observed a remarkable increase in proceeds, climbing to US$8.5 billion in the twelve months leading up to June 30. This is more than double the US$3.6 billion recorded in the previous year, mainly driven by vibrant listing activity in both Singapore and Malaysia.
