Snap is channeling Asia’s messaging giants with its move into gaming
Snap is taking a leaf out of the Asian messaging app playbook as its social messaging service enters a new era. The company unveiled a series of new strategies that… Read more »
Category: Southeast Asia
Google reshuffles its leadership in Asia Pacific
There’s a changing of the guard within Google’s Asia Pacific business. In recent weeks, personnel changes within two of its most important roles show the search giant is entering a… Read more »
Jio Health combines online and offline healthcare in Southeast Asia, starting in Vietnam
The internet is often lauded for the potential to increase the impact of a range of primary services in emerging markets, including education, commerce, banking and healthcare. While many of… Read more »
Grab is talking to Ant Financial and PayPal about spinning out its financial services business
Grab, the $16 billion-valued ride-hailing firm that acquired Uber’s Southeast Asia business last year, is in talks with Alibaba’s Ant Financial and PayPal as it considers spinning out of its… Read more »
Asia’s AnyMind pulls in another $8M and expands into outdoor advertising
Asia-focused marketing startup AnyMind Group has landed a further $8 million in funding to close out its Series B round and expand into new verticals. The company announced a $13.4… Read more »
Razer hooks up with Tencent to focus on mobile gaming
Razer is summoning a big gun as it bids to develop its mobile gaming strategy. The Hong Kong-listed company — which sells laptops, smartphones and gaming peripherals — said today… Read more »
Grab launches SME loans and micro-insurance in Southeast Asia
In its latest move beyond ride-hailing, Southeast Asia’s Grab has started to offer financing to SMEs and micro-insurance to its drivers. The launch comes just weeks after Grab raised $1.5… Read more »
Shiok Meats takes the cultured meat revolution to the seafood aisle with plans for cultured shrimp
Rising consumer interest in alternative proteins and meat replacements has brought hundreds of millions of dollars to companies trying to grow or replace beef or chicken, but few companies have… Read more »
CXA, a health-focused digital insurance startup, raises $25M
CXA Group, a Singapore-based startup that helps make insurance more accessible and affordable, has raised $25 million for expansion in Asia and later into Europe and North America. The startup… Read more »
The Khashoggi murder isn’t stopping SoftBank’s Vision Fund
Money talks in the startup community, especially when SoftBank comes knocking with the megabucks of its Vision Fund. Despite the public outcry around the firm’s dependence on money from Saudi… Read more »
Sea is raising up to $1.5B for its Shopee e-commerce business in Southeast Asia
Alibaba is about to get a jolt from its largest rival in Southeast Asia. Sea, the Nasdaq-listed business, is raising as much as $1.5 billion from a new share offering… Read more »
Go-Jek pulls in $100M more for its massive Series F round
U.S. ride-hailing giants Lyft and Uber are going public in the U.S. imminently, but over in Southeast Asia, the two largest on-demand companies are still madly fueling up on investment… Read more »
On-demand logistics startup Lalamove raises $300M for Asia growth and becomes a unicorn
Lalamove, a Hong Kong-based on-demand logistics startup, has closed a $300 million Series D round as it seeks expansion across Asia. In doing so, the company has officially entered the… Read more »
E-commerce startup Zilingo raises $226M to digitize Asia’s fashion supply chain
If you’re looking for the next unicorn in Southeast Asia, Zilingo might just be it. The 3.5-year-old e-commerce company announced today that it has raised a Series D round worth… Read more »
Ambitious Singapore startup Delegate wants to bring its event booking platform to the US
It’s not often that you hear about a startup from Singapore with ambitions to expand to the U.S, but that’s exactly the goal for event booking service Delegate. Founded in August… Read more »
First China, now Starbucks gets an ambitious VC-funded rival in Indonesia
Asia’s venture capital-backed startups are gunning for Starbucks . In China, the U.S. coffee giant is being pushed by Luckin Coffee, a $2.2 billion challenger surfing China’s on-demand wave, and… Read more »
Facebook removes hundreds of accounts linked to fake news group in Indonesia
Facebook said today it has removed hundreds of Facebook and Instagram counts with links to an organization that peddled fake news. The world’s fourth largest country with a population of… Read more »
Grab raises $200M from Thailand-based retail conglomerate Central Group
Grab’s fundraising push continues unabated after the Southeast Asian ride-hailing firm announced that it has raised $200 million from Central Group, a retail conglomerate based in Thailand. Central’s business covers restaurants, hotels… Read more »
Go-Jek makes first close of $2 billion round at $9.5 billion valuation
Southeast Asia-based ride-sharing firm Go-Jek is making progress with its plan to raise up to $2 billion in fresh capital to fund its battle with close rival Grab . Indonesia-headquartered… Read more »
Warung Pintar raises $27.5M to digitize Indonesia’s street vendors
The digital revolution in Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, continues to attract big money from investors. Hot on the heels of a $50 million round for Bukalapak, a billion-dollar company… Read more »
Momo, Vietnam’s top payment app, lands big Series C investment led by Warburg Pincus
Fintech in Southeast Asia continues to pique the attention of global investors. Alibaba, Tencent and others have jumped into the region and deployed hundreds of millions of dollars, and now Warburg… Read more »
Indonesian e-commerce unicorn Bukalapak raises $50M
The chances are you may be familiar with Tokopedia, especially after it commanded a $7 billion valuation last November when it raised $1.1 billion from investors like Alibaba and SoftBank’s… Read more »
Grab moves to offer digital insurance services in Southeast Asia
Grab is Southeast Asia’s top ride-hailing firm, thanks in no small part to its acquisition of Uber’s local business last year, but the company also houses an ambitious fintech arm,… Read more »
BasisAI, a Singapore startup from Bay Area returnees, comes out of stealth with impressive creds
An intriguing new startup is out from under the radar in Southeast Asia after BasisAI, a Singapore-based company, revealed itself this week. The startup disclosed a seed investment from two prestigious… Read more »
LetsTransport raises $13.5M to digitize and improve last mile logistics in India
India’s B2B supply chain is slowly shifting into the digital era. Following a $23 million investment for Moglix, which helps bring business and manufacturing procurement online, LetsTransport, a startup that… Read more »
SoftBank’s Vision Fund is preparing to invest $1 billion in Grab
SoftBank’s Vision Fund is set to continue its recent spree of investments in Asian tech unicorns. The mega fund — which is targeted at $100 billion — is planning to invest… Read more »
Grab is messing up the world’s largest mapping community’s data in Southeast Asia
Grab, Southeast Asia’s top ride-hailing company, has hit a roadblock in its efforts to improve its mapping and routing service after running into trouble with OpenStreetMap, the world’s largest collaborative… Read more »
Jack Dorsey and Twitter ignored opportunity to meet with civic group on Myanmar issues
Responding to criticism from his recent trip to Myanmar, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said he’s keen to learn about the country’s racial tension and human rights atrocities, but it has… Read more »
TNB Aura closes $22.7M fund to bring PE-style investing to Southeast Asia’s startups
TNB Aura, a recent arrival to Southeast Asia’s VC scene, announced today that it has closed a maiden fund at SG$31.1million, or around US$22.65 million, to bring a more private equity-like… Read more »
China’s JD.com teams up with Intel to develop ‘smart’ retail experiences
Months after it landed a major $550 million investment from Google, China’s JD.com — the country’s second highest-profile investor behind Alibaba — has teamed up with another U.S. tech giant:… Read more »