The company’s official statement notes that the funding will be primarily used to drive growth in its key markets

The global venture firm GGV Capital has led a US$10 million Series A funding of Thunes, global payment network aimed at emerging economies.

The company said that the funding will be used to expand and improve its service offering as well as its platform, and accelerate growth across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It plans to build more strategic partnerships to help bring improved payment solutions to businesses and consumers in emerging economies.

Thunes states its mission as seeking to “make financial services global and accessible to everyone, including the 1.7 billion adults in emerging markets that are excluded from the global economy because they lack access to any financial services”.

Thunes’ network operates on interconnecting financial institutions and digital financial service providers, enabling the movement of funds to and from emerging economies.

Thunes offers four key payment solutions – P2P remittance processing, corporate mass payouts, B2B payments, and digital payment services.

Also Read: Indonesian trucking platform Ritase secures Series A funding

The team will also open up new offices in San Francisco, USA, Dubai, UAE, and Paris to enable closer interaction with the customer and partner base.

In addition to the funding, Thunes Executive Chairman, Peter De Caluwe said that they have appointed a CEO. “We’ve hired Steve Vickers, to lead Thunes’ global expansion and take the business to the next level. This funding allows us to accelerate our company mission,” said De Caluwe.

To date, the company claims to have a global network that reaches over 80 countries with more than 9,000 interconnected payout partners. On a daily basis, it says that it can complete more than 300,000 transactions, and processes in excess of US$3 billion USD principal per annum.

“We were attracted by Thunes because we are aligned with their mission and see a lot of growth potential in this business,” said Jenny Lee, Managing Partner at GGV Capital.

GGV Capital is a global venture capital firm that invests in local founders that focusses on seed-to-growth stage investments across Consumer/New Retail, Social/Digital & Internet, Enterprise/Cloud, and Frontier Tech sectors. The firm was founded in 2000 and manages US$6.2 billion in capital across 13 funds boasting portfolio companies include Airbnb, Alibaba, ByteDance (Toutiao), and Grab.

Also Read: Bruneian agritech startup secures pre-Series A funding from Cerana Capital

Just recently, Thunes announced that it has collaborated with Western Union to expand payout capabilities to mobile wallets. Thunes partnered with PayPal and M-PESA to deliver alternative payment solutions that allow its Kenyan consumers and businesses to take full advantage of global e-commerce.

Thunes has also collaborated with Grab to enable real-time mass salary payouts for their drivers.
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Currently GoHive manages more than 1,100 seats with further plans to reach 2500-plus in Delhi, Gurgaon, and Bangalore by the end of 2019

GoHive is a co-working space based in Delhi National Capital Region that provides a collaborative work environment to startups, young enterprises and innovation labs.

The company was incepted in 2016 with its first centre at Sohna Road in Delhi, and it soon established three more centres in the city.

The company strives to provide spaces to startups with functional design and support to enrich the experience of their members.

Currently, GoHive manages more than 1,100 seats with further plans to reach 2500-plus in Delhi, Gurgaon, and Bangalore by the end of 2019.

It has a strong digital presence and works on organic growth within Google Search Engine to spread awareness about the brand and community development initiatives.

Mishu Ahluwalia is Founder and CEO of GoHive. He heads the strategy and operations for the company.

He has more than 12 years of experience in real estate. He has founded/co-founded three ventures in the past.

A few ventures he has to his name, aside from GoHive, include Chattels & Manor, and Winspire Consulting (a boutique real estate brokerage firm).

Pic courtesy: GoHive

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Launched in partnership with Enterprise Singapore, The BlueChili HealthTech Accelerator is looking for healthtech startups from the Southeast Asian region

Australia-based venture studio and innovation group BlueChili today announced its partnership with Enterprise Singapore to launch a Singapore-based healthtech accelerator.

The BlueChilli HealthTech Accelerator aims to build and develop startups that address health challenges and opportunities in Southeast Asia.

“All startups who enter BlueChilli’s boot camp will receive free training and support through our online academy, startupu.io – so we want as many participants as possible! From there, BlueChilli will be selecting up to 15 startups to receive tech development through our accelerator this year,” a BlueChili spokesperson wrote in an email to e27.

Selected founders will get access to tech development services at no cost, startup training, seed funding, and a global network of advisors and mentors.

“We’re looking for people who are passionate about solving problems in the health sector using technology. No startup or tech experience is required for those who are interested in the program. BlueChilli will provide a world class team of experts to selected founders to build their products, gain market traction, secure investment and establish their first team,” the spokesperson further explained.

Also Read: A comparison of the fintech climates in Australia and Singapore: same same but different

With the support from Enterprise Singapore, BlueChili has also included CSIRO and Galen Growth Asia as health and innovation partners for the programme.

They are also set to announce more partners that include local healthcare providers.

“Our mission is to help people anywhere solve society’s greatest challenges with technology, so we are excited to extend our reach further into Southeast Asia,” said BlueChili Founder and CEO Sebastien Eckersley-Maslin in a press statement.

“By removing the barriers of access to technology and capital, we can help a more diverse range of entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia bring their unique experiences and novel ideas to the global innovation ecosystem,” he continued.

Founded in 2011, BlueChili has launched 132 startups that have collectively raised over US$170 million.

Its portfolio companies are operating in the Americas, Europe, Australia, and Southeast Asia.

The company first expanded to Singapore in early 2018, through a partnership with Hatcher+ to co-invest in 240 global tech startups.

In Indonesia, BlueChili has also launched an innovation centre in partnership with Coca-Cola Amatil last month.

Also Read: IIX receives US$887K grant from Australian government for gender lens investing

BlueChili’s portfolio companies in the healthtech sector are hardware startups BindiMaps and Talkiplay, mammography AI diagnostics service Alixir.ai, telemedicine platform VetChat and out-of-home patient care platform CTARS.

The Asia Pacific healthtech sector itself is the second largest in the world for investment funds raised, according to a press statement by the company.

Last year, US$6.3 billion was deployed into healthtech startups in the region and this investment significantly exceeded the 2017 number and doubled the 2016 number.

The Southeast Asian healthtech ecosystem is still emerging within the region and is said to be poised for growth, with Singapore and Indonesia contributing to “most of its notable deals” in 2018.

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Image Credit: BlueChili

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Kargo is looking forward to begin its international expansion next year

Myanmar-based logistics startup Kargo today announced a US$800,000 pre-Series A funding round led by Singapore-based early stage venture capital fund Cocoon Capital, alongside two angel investors.

The company also announced that Cocoon Capital Managing Partner Michael Blakey has joined its board of directors.

In a press statement, Kargo said that it plans to use the new funding to further develop its platform and expand to markets outside of Myanmar in the next 12 months.

“Kargo is focused on Myanmar and the cross border B2B trucking logistics corridors from Thailand to Vietnam. The focus is to build out our presence through these markets with our existing and future B2B clients by streamlining their needs for transport of goods along these Mekong corridors. At this point, and as we have done in Myanmar, we will work closely with the local trucking suppliers and logistics companies to connect them to large enterprise businesses for transparent, reliable, and cost-efficient trucking logistics,” the company explained in an email to e27.

Founded in 2016 by Alexander Wicks, Kargo digitise the ordering and matching process inter-city and intra-city B2B trucking logistics.

Also Read: Indonesian logistics startup Kargo raises US$7.6M in seed funding round

The Kargo platform aims to improve transparency, availability, and accountability across the trucking industry.

The startup received the GSM Association Ecosystem Accelerator Fund grant and won the Seedstars
Yangon 2017, representing Myanmar at the Seedstars Summit 2018 in Lausanne.

It had also been named ‘Best Logistics & Supply Chain Startup’ at the Echelon Top100 competition in Singapore in 2018.

In March, Kargo announced that it has inked an unsecured small business financing agreement with Myanmar’s leading commercial bank Yoma Bank.

Through the partnership, the startup received an initial loan of approximately US$130,000.

Also Read: Delivered: B2B logistics startup Kargo gets seed funding from East Ventures, angel investor

“This agreement allows Kargo to solve the timing issue of having to pay its drivers before receiving payment for invoices from clients and this frees up Kargo’s investment capital to be used for its primary purpose: product expansion and business growth,” the company further explained.

“Myanmar remains a challenging climate in which to operate a business, especially a startup, and working with institutions such as Yoma Bank to create alternative financing options remains key to future success,” it stressed.

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Image Credit: Kargo

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The Indonesian company targeting millennials plan to stay focused on its original mission

Indonesia-based stock investing app for millennials Stockbit announced that it has received an undisclosed amount of Series A funding led by East Ventures. The round is joined by Convergence Ventures, FreakOut, angel investors, and existing investors that participated again including 500 Startups, Ideosource, and Braavos Ventures.

The company stated that with the investment, they look at accelerating its mission to democratise capital market investment in Indonesia.

Stockbit was founded in 2013 as a social network for stock investors, before gradually changing into an app that integrates stock trading, information aggregation, and social networking.

Stockbit recently launched Bibit, a robo-advisor app that helps people build a personalised portfolio to invest starting from as low as $1.

“Despite its lucrative return, first-time traders in Indonesia are still somehow intimidated to make an investment in the capital market due to lack of knowledge, lack of access to high-quality wealth managers, and high fees of professional advisory services. They often faced difficulties to navigate around the fast-changing nature of the stock market. With Stockbit, we aim to make investment easy and optimal for everyone,” said Wellson Lo, Stockbit CEO.

Also Read: Australia’s BlueChili launches healthtech accelerator in Singapore

Sigit Kouwagam, Stockbit COO added: “As Indonesians improve their income and financial literacy, making the right investment has become increasingly important to reach their financial goal. Hence, reliable guidance and information become key for their investing journey, and our product works for investors like a GPS/Google Maps for travelers.”

According to IDX data, the number of retail investors in Indonesia has grown in 2018, contributed mainly by the millennials where 70 per cent of the new investors in 2018 came from 21s-40s age group. Despite this rapid growth, only less than 1 per cent of Indonesians has participated in the stock market so far.

“With our technology, we intend to provide financial products and services to everyone, no matter where they are or how much they make so that not only the top 1 per cent can have access to good financial services with better transparency and convenience for smart investing,” said Johny Susanto, Stockbit CTO.

According to Melisa Irene, Partner of East Ventures, Stockbit has successfully established its position as an important player in the capital market industry by creating a platform that consolidates important information required for investment decision making.

Also Read: Payment network Thunes closes US$10M Series A led by GGV Capital

“By doing so, Stockbit helps to reduce the information asymmetry between the market, professional traders and also newcomers,” added Irene.
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