Posted on

Vietnam startups to receive US$425M investments from multiple VCs

Over the next three years, venture capitals like 500 Startups and Golden Gate Ventures among others have pledged to invest into Vietnamese startups

Golden Gate Ventures, Access Ventures, Burda Principal Investments, 500 Startups, Jungle Ventures, and Cyberagent Ventures, among others, have signed an agreement with Vietnamese government to commit VND10 trillion (US$425 million) investment in Vietnamese startups for the next three years, as reported by DealStreetAsia.

The agreement took place at the Vietnam Venture Summit, a collaboration initiated by Vietnam’s ministries of investment and technology and science, with Golden Gate Ventures on Monday, June 10, 2019.

Vietnam Venture Summit seeks to connect investors to work together. During the event, it’s reported that there were several other partnerships being signed off, including an MoU between the Ministry of Investment and Planning and Golden Gate Ventures to support the growth of Vietnamese startups, followed by another tie-up between the ministry and SGInnovate to develop deep tech companies in the country.

At the summit, Vina Capital also has entered into an agreement with US$1 billion-worth Mirae-Naver Asia Growth Fund, in which Mirae Asset invests an undisclosed amount in VinaCapital Ventures and Naver to provide access to its portfolio companies to facilitate their expansion plans.

The summit also witnessed a US$1.4 million investment made by South Korean venture firm DTNI into Insignia Ventures-backed real estate platform Propzy.

Also Read: Dropee partners Grab financial for SME business financing product

“Vietnam is getting more attention from international investors and we believe there will be enough opportunities for them to deploy the committed capital,” said Pham Hong Quat, director of the Ministry of Science and Technology’s market development division.

In 2012, Vietnam had about 400 startups, and last year, it’s recorded that the number had reached around 3,000 with US$890 million funding happened in 2018.

Vinnie Lauria, the founding partner of Golden Gate Ventures, highlighted that although the country still presents challenges in the investment procedures, the number of VCs willing to commit investments into the country is a testament that Vietnam has become one of the key strategic markets in the region.

The post Vietnam startups to receive US$425M investments from multiple VCs appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Vietnam payment startups Vimo and mPOS merge, rebranded as NextPay

The two Vietnamese startups plan to raise US$30 Million and expand to Myanmar and Indonesia next year

Two payment startups based in Vietnam, Vimo and mPOS, have agreed to merge in an effort to scale. The company will rebranded as NextPay, as reported by Bloomberg.

Vimo Technology is a mobile wallet provider, while Vietnam mPOS Technology develops portable point-of-sale technology. Together the two will be combined and rebranded as NextPay Holdings.

NextPay Holdings will have Nguyen Huu Tuat, who is the CEO of mPOS, as its CEO. Nguyen Hoa Binh, who founded the two Hanoi-based startups, will be NextPay’s chairman.

In addition to the rebranding, NextPay is said to be in talks with investors to raise about US$30 million and anticipates closing the round soon. The capital will be a boost for the company as it plans an expansion into Myanmar and Indonesia in 2020.

“MPOS’s business model is quite similar to Square in the U.S., in that any merchant can accept payments easily, and Vimo is a mobile wallet similar to Alipay,’’ Tuat said as quoted by Bloomberg.

“By merging these two businesses, we provide a one-stop payment solution for merchants.’’

Also Read: Dropee partners Grab financial for SME business financing product

The combined company is going to have a presence in 11 cities across Vietnam, with more than 35,000 acceptance points that are comprised of 70 per cent tech-savvy, smartphone users population.

The post Vietnam payment startups Vimo and mPOS merge, rebranded as NextPay appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Cambodia’s Meal Temple Group invests in Myanmar’s food delivery startup Freshgora

Meal Temple is looking to address more than 100M people in frontier markets by the end of the year, and grow its tech to a super app model

Meal Temple Group, a Cambodia-based food delivery and logistics company with operations in Laos, has announced a strategic equity investment into Freshgora.com, an on-demand food and grocery delivery startup in Myanmar.

As per the deal, both companies will address the market in Myanmar and expand operations nationally.  In the long run, the companies will add more services and work together for an on-demand super app for frontier markets.

Meal Temple Group is looking to address more than 100 million people in frontier markets of Asia by the end of the year, and grow its technology to a super app model.

“Instead of going on our own in Myanmar, a slightly more mature market than Cambodia and Laos, and much bigger, we decided to invest for equity for an undisclosed amount (6 figures),” Meal Temple’s Founder Maxime Rosburger told e27. “We have also agreed to invest in technology, with our new version coming, as well as in operations, leveraging on our teams, knowledge and understanding on similar markets as well as with our regional network.”

Also Read: Cambodia’s Meal Temple raises 6-figure round to grow food and delivery platforms

Meal Temple’s operations in Cambodia and Laos are breakeven, he claims. The company is looking to emulate the same model in other frontier Asian markets. “We are looking to make those frontier Asian cities greener by changing fleets to electric vehicles only, and leading a trend to zero emission on-demand apps, as we are doing now in Cambodia.”

Started less than a year ago, Yangon-based Freshgora.com offers food and grocery deliveries from restaurants and local markets in less than one hour through its own fleet of drivers. It clocks more than 100 deliveries a day in the city.

With more than 55 million people, including more than 6 million in the Yangon metropolitan area, Myanmar is one of the fastest growing markets in Southeast Asia.

Daniel Htut, Founder of Freshgora, said: “We are really excited to partner with Meal Temple Group and offer our customers in Myanmar more services, support and perks, and be guided by Maxime Rosburger and his team on how to sustain our growth in the market. After only eight months, we are already tackling the largest local players, with a clean approach on technology, user experience and interface as well as customer service. We are also really inspired by Meal Temple Group’s vision on electric vehicles and social impact ambition.”

Founded in 2013, Meal Temple Group was launched in the early days of Cambodia’s tech ecosystem. Today, its delivery services collectively makes 10,000 monthly trips in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville. Last October, the company raised a six-digit sum from private investors in Australia and Europe.

In February this year, Meal Temple acquired Laos-based food delivery platform MyDelivery.

The post Cambodia’s Meal Temple Group invests in Myanmar’s food delivery startup Freshgora appeared first on e27.

Posted on

7 startup events in June that you would hate to miss

June is filled with exciting startup events covering all sort of topics –from blockchain to drones

Looking for an opportunity to network with like-minded individuals, or to sharpen your skills? Head over to the e27 Events page to discover the latest events in Asian tech community.

Here are some of the most exciting ones that we can compile for you:

startup_events_june

Featured Event: ORIGIN by TechNode @ Malaysia Tech Week 2019

When: June 21, 2019
Where: BLACK BOX @ Publika,Jalan Dutamas 1 Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 50480 Malaysia

Held in conjunction with Malaysia Tech Week 2019, ORIGIN is a premier international content track about the latest developments in ASEAN-China’s tech and startup scene, hosted by China-based tech media TechNode. It was held under the belief that as China globalises, education about Chinese companies, their philosophies, insights and contributions should be kept up to par with the attention that China is receiving.

The event brought together international industry leaders and global tech-changers to different cities in Southeast Asia, as part of its goal to facilitate more interaction and cross-pollination between China and Southeast Asia’s sharing economy. It will uncover insights on the latest trends and developments in China’s vibrant tech scene and SEA’s rapid growth landscape.

Admission is free. For more information about the event click here.

Get your tickets here

Other events you can join this month:

FastFwd Festival: Creating a Sustainable Future
June 15, 2019
6 Raffles Boulevard, #03-308, JustCo, Marina Square, Singapore
Register Here

MyDroneX
June 17, 2019
Futurise, Cyberjaya, Malaysia
Register Here

Information & Communication Technologies Business Mission
June 18, 2019 – June 20, 2019
Level 5 Grand Ballroom, Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Singapore
Register Here

World Blockchain Forum · Singapore & World Blockchain Award · Asia
June 22, 2019 – June 23, 2019
Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
Register Here

WomenChangemakers #9
June 26, 2019
81 Des Voeux Rd Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
Register Here

Seamless Asia 2019
June 26, 2019 – June 27, 2019
Level 4 Suntec Convention Centre, Singapore
Register Here

Have an event happening soon? Get it on the e27 platform.

The post 7 startup events in June that you would hate to miss appeared first on e27.

Posted on

How startups can defeat challenges in customer satisfaction

A satisfied customer can come up with roses for your startup; therefore come across situations that challenge his satisfaction

“There’s only one thing that matters, customer satisfaction”

Entrepreneurs who make a debut often turn blindfold to the fact underlying this statement. They often skip attending the voice of the customers. Being left unheard, the inflicted customers often make up their mind not to return to you again.

It’s a massive loss. Your business journey may come to a bad end even before branding. Drill into your head that the first impression is the last impression. Underestimating customer satisfaction for a startup can lead you up a blind alley. So, it’s always recommended to follow the footprints of an experienced player.

So you should research the ways to determine how an outsourcing back office delivers better user experience. A satisfied customer can come up with roses for your startup. Therefore, come across situations that challenge his/her satisfaction.

Here are five scenarios that can assist you to come up trumps in the business innings:

1. When your customer is angry

Scenario: The customer is very annoyed from being delivered a wrong product. However, this situation specifically deals with a faulty delivery by an inexperienced merchant.

But there are some diverse situations, which are critical. It can be annoyance due to confusion. And there are some weird cases, wherein customers are angry simply because of having a bad day.

Customer support tips: 

  • Rather than being matched the customer’s emotions, stick around ideas to calm him down.
  • Follow H (Hear) E (Empathise) A (Apologise) R (Resolve) D (Diagnose) technique by Disney:
  1. Patiently and uninterruptedly, hear the story of your customer,
  2. By saying “I understand your frustration”, underscore that you completely understand his/her problem,
  3. Genuinely apologise even if you’re not responsible for the inconvenience,
  4. Resolve the grievances as soon as possible,
  5. Determine the deep-rooted cause of the customer’s dissatisfaction to ensure no repetition of the same mistake.

2. When communication crisis shoots

Nothing could be scarier than that of falling from the grace. You should be aware that your client has already gambled while investing in a startup. A communication crisis can cost you losing his trust.

Scenario: The customer rings the helpdesk and he/she even attempted to shoot an email. But his/her call was left unattended, and the email showed ‘failed delivery’.

Customer support tips:

  • Be ready with a ‘crisis communications plan’ — an excellent plan to respond promptly, accurately and confidently during an emergency,
  • Console the customer with the magic word ‘sorry’,
  • Update him/her about every step of corrections,
  • Constantly shoot emails stating to what extent is the problem fixed,

Assure him that the fixing is being done.

3. When the customer presses for discount you can’t give

Rewarding a discount is a promotional technique, as Flipkart does by initiating Re 1 sale in grocery every weekend. It’s an out-of-the-box upselling trick to invite new customers. Being a startup, you cannot offer discounts.

Scenario: The prospective customers ask for discount to invest in your products/services.

Customer support tips:

  • Do not straightly reject their request,
  • Try to convey why offering a discount is not possible,
  • Put the best features up front while reinforcing the value of your products and services,

Send an email, describing your products’/services’ value to your customers.

4. When you do not have answers to client’s request

Being a newbie, you might have limited resources. Possibly, you do not have all such features that your competitors provide with. However, they are a part of your projections to be integrated in the future. But for now, it’s not possible.

Scenario: Your prospective client is asking for an Android phone with a pop up 20 MP front camera, as one of your competitors offer. But you cannot embed that technology due to limited resources.

Customer support tips:

  • Avoid saying ‘no’
  • Appreciate his/her attempt to call for the support,
  • Convey the prospective plan confidently,
  • If there is a workaround to launch the bespoke solution, provide it. Otherwise, apologise,

If your product has some extra-ordinary features, spotlight them to convert him.

5. When you have a backlog of complaints

It’s a common situation. The communication crisis can worsen this situation. Perhaps your mailing package is full and your all emails remain unsent. The request to extend your mailing plan can be made, but only the next day. In the meantime, the customers will go impulsive. A briefing about your system error could fix the emotional oddity.

Scenario: The customer is waiting for the refund. But the support team is unable to respond due to downtime caused by server maintenance.

Customer support tips:

  • Not every customer does not take your response as a solution.
  • A small notice about being fixed can soothe their pain,Update shortly after the fixing of internal or system errors,
  • Try to respond with 24 hours,Laser focus on responding rather than providing solutions,
  • Personalise support to let them feel that you care for them.

Photo by: Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

The post How startups can defeat challenges in customer satisfaction appeared first on e27.