With food delivery apps installed on a smartphone, why leave the comfort of home? Fine-dining or fast food, Mexican or Italian, you can get almost any cuisine imaginable with mere swipes of your fingertips.

Cravings and hunger pangs are conveniently satisfied. Then… you tap make payment and the app freezes.

You wait in anticipation, but nothing happens. What now? Refresh, reload, re-enter your order all over again? We’ve all been there.

In fact, 55 per cent of consumers admit that problems with digital services affect them more or for longer than they would like, and confess to becoming irritable towards others, even throwing their devices in a fit of rage.

From work to play

Apps are a dominant presence in every part of our lives. First thing in the morning, we reach for phones to turn off alarms and respond to texts. Checking emails automatically follows, as does reading the news and hailing a ride to work. As the day progresses, different apps are opened, closed and reopened without a second thought.

As consumers shift more parts of their lives online, it is only natural that they increasingly interact with businesses digitally. Digital services have become so intrinsic in daily life that 71 per cent of the consumers surveyed in the 2019 edition of AppDynamics’ App Attention Index don’t realize just how much they rely on apps.

As a result, many have started to attach equal or even greater importance to digital experiences than face-to-face interactions.

With the global pandemic forcing entire countries into lockdown and online, consumer reliance on apps has never been higher than now. Singapore too has implemented ‘circuit breaker’ measures that restrict travel and limit physical interactions.

Also read: 8 things to consider when choosing a mobile app development platform

Even before the current situation, Singaporeans had already shown significant reliance on apps with an average of 115 installed apps coupled with high app use. No wonder then that from shopping to banking and everything in between, apps have naturally stepped up to fill in the gaps.

Video conferencing apps like Webex allow businesses to continue functioning while Grab and Lazada meet food delivery and e-commerce needs.

For businesses, this is a chance for growth, but it comes with great risk. Disruptions to app services may result in severe repercussions, namely unforgiving, lost customers.

Apps today are not just a complementary element but a key differentiating factor. Consumers are no longer loyal to brands, but instead to apps, and businesses must prioritise elevated consumer expectations and ensure smooth experiences to grow their customer bases.

How then should businesses ensure apps are competitive and boost revenue in the business of apps?

Focus on the customer experience

While product offerings can be easily matched by competitors, the customer experience is not easily replicable. Customer journeys in every channel of interaction, be it through an app, a webpage, or even in brick-and-mortar are critical, even more so than metrics such as a product’s price. Singaporeans rated companies with good digital experiences higher than their competitors in KPMG’s 2019 Customer Experience Excellence Report, proving that each interaction, including digital ones have the potential to create long-lasting impressions.

Critically, as personalisation is also a key facet of customer experience, brands that utilise data with the right algorithms will be able to obtain precious insights and tailor product offerings – creating the best possible digital experience according to individual needs and preferences.

First impressions are made online and – particularly evident during the height of the pandemic – entire transactions are completed without physical visits. From research to comparison to purchase, a seamless digital experience can make all the difference. While brands understand the importance of physical interactions and service, the same can’t be said for their digital customer experience.

Interruptions and issues with apps can lead to negative emotions of stress and anger. And akin to a rude retail assistant or faulty POS system, poor digital experiences can have far-reaching consequences that extend beyond one lost sale, with 66% of consumers claiming they would avoid a brand known for providing poor digital experiences.

Push ahead with digital transformation

Digital transformation is not a new phenomenon and its importance will only increase as yet more consumers move online. Businesses should embrace going digital to enjoy benefits that are not limited to just improving organisational efficiency.

Tools like apps present businesses with opportunities to reach new customers, while also reinforcing relationships with existing ones.

Apart from being a platform on which to make products available, digital tools and apps are valuable channels for customer engagement.

Also read: How do you optimise the customer experience during a festive rush?

The omni-channel customer experience is in vogue, and businesses must adapt. When buying a product, Singaporeans call retail outlets, check out the brand’s web store, and then proceed to search for deals on Shopee, Lazada and maybe Qoo10 – and brands are expected to have a presence on many different platforms.

With the multitude of new channels available to consumers, brands must go where the eyeballs go in order to reach out to their target audiences – digital.

Ensure that data and insights are acted on

Because consumers depend heavily on and use applications in daily life, companies cannot treat digital experiences as separate to the business. Going digital also means that businesses have access to huge amounts of data and should utilise it.

By correlating different aspects of an app interface to goals such as customer acquisition, or analysing usage patterns, brands can improve and incorporate effective changes to the digital experiences they provide.

Brands that will stand out from the competition and secure growth will be those that can align digital performance to business outcomes.

In response to these changing digital habits, maintaining visibility of the entire tech stack, monitoring performance and resolving digital problems should be a priority for all businesses. This begs the question – is it possible for IT teams to reduce mean time to detect (MTTD), and mean time to resolution (MTTR) if errors occur, and can they prevent such problems to begin with?

APM solutions such as AppDynamics are capable of using AI to identify where gaps in performance occur in real-time, and potentially resolve these errors.

Businesses should not underestimate the impact of digital experiences on business outcomes. Customer satisfaction is evidently integral to revenue and loyalty and it is clear that every aspect in the customer journey including app performance must be consistently smooth and seamless.

As consumers become more demanding and less forgiving, brands must respond accordingly to meet and exceed their expectations – after all, customer satisfaction can and will directly affect the bottom line.

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Indonesia-based accommodation startup Bobobox has secured US$11.5 million in Series A funding round of funding, led by Horizons Ventures and Alpha JWC Ventures.

Kakao Investments, Sequoia Surge, and Mallorca Investments also joined the round.

The Bandung-headquartered startup will use the money to accelerate its product improvement and location expansion. It wants to enhance ‘Pods’ features and overall experience by growing its tech team and strengthening its manufacturing and operating models.

Founded in 2017, Bobobox is a capsule network with a vision to be the recharging facilities for everyone to get quality rest. Its capsule rooms, or ‘Pods’, are equipped with app-controlled secured door access, customisable lights, Bluetooth speaker, king-size and single-size bed, compact working space, and personal air conditioner. The prices start from US$10 per night.

Surviving COVID-19

Pre-COVID-19, Bobobox operated eight buildings with more than 500 pods in total and an average occupancy rate of 80-90 per cent. Amidst the crisis, its occupancy rate in March dropped to 50-60 per cent whilst other hotels were already at single digit and many had shut down.

“Despite the turbulence due to the pandemic, we are grateful that we can still lock in investment from global investors,” said Bobobox Co-founder and CEO Indra Gunawan.

The pandemic also opens new opportunities to Bobobox as local users become new regulars of the pods instead of the usual foreign tourists.

Also Read: Indonesian capsule hotel startup Bobobox raises pre-Series A funding round

To cater to the demand while keeping both its team and customers safe, Bobobox has applied extra preventive measures, including limiting numbers of guests and closing common areas. The company has made no changes to  the cancellation fees to maintain customer trust.

“With extended preventive measures in place, many locals have relocated to our pods to improve their work-from-home experience. Some would choose Bobobox with the closest distance to their workplace to avoid long commutes to work, limiting their exposure to crowded public facilities,” said Bobobox Co-founder and President Antonius Bong.

Bong continued that the situation also has allowed the startup to show more use cases of its sleeping pods. “With little modifications, we have installed more than 100 pods in hospitals as comfortable shelters for doctors and health workers so they can rest better while remaining close to their patients. We have been getting great feedback from the medics and local governments on these facilities.”

Since its funding announcement last year, Bobobox added six new locations in three cities: Bandung, Jakarta, and Semarang.

Bobobox also has four new locations in three cities ready to launch subject to COVID-19 circumstances.

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Picture Credit: Bobobox

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ADQ’s US$300M fund Alpha Wave Incubation to invest in India, SEA startups

Abu Dhabi’s non-oil sector holding company ADQ has launched a US$300 million VC fund, which will back early-stage companies in India and Southeast Asia.

The fund, named Alpha Wave Incubation (AWI) Fund, will be located at Abu Dhabi Global Market and managed by New York-based Falcon Edge Capital, according to a report by The Economic Times.

Mohammed Hassan Al Suwaidi, CEO of ADQ, said that the fund will also assist its portfolio companies in setting up their global or regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City.

This will allow them to utilise the digital infrastructure in place, along with market access to the UAE and the broader Middle East and North Africa region, as well as other research and development.

ADQ is a public joint stock holding company that was formed in 2018. Formerly known as Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company, it manages a portfolio of companies in sectors, including healthcare, tourism and hospitality, logistics, manufacturing, utilities, media, agri-business, and real estate, among others.

Cambodian bank Wing, Techo Startup Centre collaborate to support the country’s digital economy

Wing (Cambodia) Specialised Bank and the Techo Startup Centre have announced a partnership to facilitate the growth of startups and small and medium-sized enterprises in the country.

With Wing, the Techo Startup Centre and its members plan to use the digital payment platform to find new opportunities for innovation.

Dr. Nguonly Taing, Executive Director of the Techo Startup Centre, said: “Our startup members will also be able to connect and learn from an innovative company such as Wing and reap the benefit from technical expertise, advice as well as digital payment solutions of Wing.”

Also Read: Grab launches ride-hailing service in Cambodia; partners with mobile payments firm Wing Money

According to Khmer Times, Techo Startup Centre was founded in April 2018 with the mission to help the country develop a well-rounded digital economy. It seeks to support entrepreneurs and build on official plans to transform and diversify the economy.

APAC arm of Japan’s recruitment firm Persol invests in SEA-focussed HR-tech startup Freecacy

Persol Asia Pacific, a subsidiary of Japanese recruitment firm Persol, has invested in Southeast Asia-operated HR-technology startup Freecacy.

The investment also signals both parties’ partnership that seeks to “replace AI recruitment in Southeast Asia by using AI that has learned a mixture of job seeker behaviour history, résumé information, and agent selection criteria.”

According to a Staffing Industry report, Freecacy operates ‘freeC’, a platform that supports AI research in Southeast Asia.

Takayuki Yamazaki, Chairman at PersolKelly and Head (APAC) at Persol, said: “The HR market in the APAC region is undergoing rapid changes daily, centred on the evolution of technology. This time, the business alliance with HR technology startup Freecracy is making a leap forward in Vietnam.”

Indian telco Reliance Jio raises US$1.5B more from KKR for a 2.32% stake

Indian telecom operator Reliance Jio Platforms have reportedly agreed to sell 2.32 per cent of its stake to US equity firm KKR, making it the fifth major deal the business group has sealed in the past weeks, TechCrunch reported.

Jio is the subsidiary of Reliance Industries, a business firm owned by Mukesh Ambani.

KKR has announced it plans to invest US$1.5 billion in the startup. When the deal is done, the equity firm will be joining a host of Jio’s other investors, such as Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, and General Atlantic

Also Read: Afternoon News Roundup: Bukalapak denies reports of user data breach

With the investment from KKR, Reliance Jio platforms will be valued at US$65 billion.

Last year, Ambani committed to get Reliance out of its US$21 billion debt by 2021. The fresh funding that goes to its startup Jio would also be helping its oil and petrochemicals companies, which experienced 37 per cent tumble in net profit in the last quarter.
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NEXEA, MDEC launch Entrepreneurs Programme to help Malaysian companies explore business opportunities

Malaysia-based NEXEA Angels has partnered with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) to launch a programme called “Entrepreneurs Programme”, according to DigitalNewsAsia.

The goal of the programme is to offer peer-to-peer learning for CEOs of local startups to find a solution to their business issues. It will include mentoring support from experienced individuals in the business industry as part of its monthly full-day meetings.

“In the Entrepreneurs Programme, we have seasoned entrepreneurs with successful track records, as mentors, to provide guidance and other support to programme participants,” said NEXEA Managing Partner Ben Lim.

The programme has 20 startup CEOs enrolled and is looking to fill in more applicants.

Soft Space first joins Visa’s fintech programme in Malaysia

Soft Space is joining Visa’s Fintech Fast Track programme in Malaysia.

The programme allows fintech partners to build and deliver new commerce experiences on Visa’s payments network.

Kuala Lumpur-based Soft Space develops innovative payment services for the banking and financial industry.

As part of the programme, the two companies will work together to offer startups and technology companies the opportunity to work with Soft Space to launch Visa prepaid card products in Malaysia.

This solution is introduced through Soft Space’s subsidiary, Fasspay, which is an e-money license holder regulated by Malaysia’s central bank BNM.

Manila city, GCash partner to help taxis shift to cashless payments

The Department of Transportation Manila has partnered with GCash to help equip taxis with scan-to-pay systems to ramp up precautionary measures for COVID-19, according to ABS-CBN.

“Digital payments will limit direct physical contact between drivers and passengers thus reducing the chance of spreading COVID-19”, the department said.

Also Read: Bobobox raises US$11.5M funding when many of its peers in the hospitality sector are on the brink

G-cash is a Malaysian startup providing mobile payment services along with telecommunication services in the region.

Payment platforms like Squidpay, PayMaya and Beep, are also being considered for partnerships by the government.

“Cashless and contactless payment scheme will now be part of the ‘new normal’ in the public transportation system,” Transport Secretary Arthur Tugade said.

Filipino bank EastWest unveils digital banking arm 

The Philippines-based East West Banking Corp. has launched Komo, a fully-digital banking platform operating under the group’s rural banking arm, as per a report by The Inquirer

Offered through its fully-owned subsidiary, EastWest Rural Bank, Komo launched a digital savings deposit product carrying an interest rate of 3 percent per annum without any minimum balance.

Komo received approval from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to launch its digital bank services to the public last May 8

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Kollective Ventures (KV), a capital advisory and investment firm based in Singapore, announced today that it has completed the acquisition of Paktor Group from Taiwan-based M17 Entertainment.

The transaction details remain undisclosed.

Paktor is the umbrella that owns a few dating assets, including its namesake app available in Taiwan, Korea and Southeast Asia; and Goodnight, a voice- dating app.

This deal also marks KV’s foray into full buyouts, beyond minority equity investments, as per a press release.

Kheng Lian Ho, Managing Partner of KV, said: “Paktor is a rock solid asset with many high potential products under its wing. The dating industry in Asia has been growing rapidly in recent years. We look forward to announcing several growth initiatives in the near future.”

Also Read: Paktor CEO on why online dating is better than a school or workplace romance

Shn Juay, CEO of Paktor, said: “Paktor has firmly established itself as the leading dating group in the region and we believe with the support of Kheng Lian and her team, we will be able to push into high growth areas like video and voice dating. Global dating leaders have shown the immense size of these businesses but in Asia, the growth is only just starting.”

Founded in July 2013, Paktor Group’s other products include Down, Sweet, and Kickoff, In addition, it also runs offline matchmaking agency GaiGai and image and date coaching agency Fleek.

In 2016, Paktor raised US$32.5 million in a funding round, led by K2Global, with participation from existing investor, Indonesian conglomerate PT Media Nusantara Citra Tbk. This was preceded by a US$10 million from investors, including YJ Capital, Global Grand Leisure, Golden Equator Capital and Sebrina Holdings Venture Capital.

In April 2017, the group announced a merger with the Taiwanese startup to form a social entertainment company, called M17 Entertainment. This deal came almost four months after it acquired a big stake in live-streaming company 17 Media.

In March, TechInAsia reported that Paktor conducted multiple layoffs since 2018. Its headcount fell from about 250 to 190 between 2018 and 2019.

KV is a boutique advisory focused on capital raising, investments and mergers and acquisitions. It has raised funds for and/or invested in top technology companies and venture capital funds including SpaceX, M17 Group, Coffee Meets Bagel, Vertex Ventures and Monks Hill Ventures to name a few. We work with family offices, UHNWs, institutions and top founders.

The global dating market is fast growing and evolving, most recently to incorporate video and voice elements into its mix. Video and voice dating have proven its potential through many fast growing products globally. Paktor said it will capitalise on this trend with its push into the arena armed with additional capital from KV.

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Blockchain-powered fintech startup ShuttleOne raises US$500K to expand in Malaysia, Indonesia

Sirius Venture Capital has invested US$500,000 seed funding in ShuttleOne, a blockchain-powered fintech firm based in Singapore.

According to a DealStreetAsia report, German investor Andromeda GmbH and private investors from Singapore, Indonesia, and Europe co-invested in the round.

ShuttleOne CEO Lim Hong Zhuang stated that the company will use the fresh funding to expand the company’s operations in Malaysia and Indonesia and to launch its services in Thailand and the Philippines.

ShuttleOne’s security modules on the blockchain will also be improved along with its corporate governance, he added.

ShuttleOne’s services include remittance services to individuals and loans to e-commerce merchants via its Smart Contracts blockchain protocols and digital tokens.

Founded in 2019, ShuttleOne obtained a licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Also Read: Enterprise drones startup Aerodyne raises US$30M; claims to have inspected over 250K assets in 25 countries

Wantedly launched initiative to help laid-off tech employees

Japanese job-seeking platform Wantedly has published a new platform, called ‘GET IN TOUCH’, targeting job seekers in the tech industry who were laid off in recent times.

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic shutdown sees thousands of tech employees being laid off as coronavirus strains finances companies big and small.

Using the platform, tech jobseekers can brand themselves, boost their profiles, and find jobs within the tech industry.

Earlier this month, Wantedly also released a Hiring-Freeze Tracker for the Singapore and Hong Kong market aimed at helping users keep track of all companies hiring, freezing, or undergoing layoffs in the region, in aid of their employment search during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tech Data partners Dataiku to accelerate AI Adoption for enterprises

Tech Data announced today it has partnered with Dataiku, an enterprise AI and machine learning platform to enable the former’s partners in Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam to accelerate enterprise AI adoption by bringing together all the required business resources from data scientists, data engineers, business SMEs, and analytics users.

As a data-powered company, Dataiku provides a common ground for data experts and explorers, a repository of best practices, shortcuts to machine learning and AI deployment/management, and a centralised, controlled, and collaborative environment.

Also Read: Japanese social recruiting startup Wantedly set to IPO next month

Furthermore, partners in Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam can now leverage Dataiku’s collaborative end-to-end platform to deploy robotic process automation

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iDA’SG to launch retail, lifestyle-focussed job portal MyBRANDS Singapore

Retail solutions consultancy, iDA’SG will be launching MyBRANDS Singapore, a specialised job portal for retail fashion, beauty, and lifestyle companies. Based on its track record in Japan, iDA’SG seeks to utilise the platform as a medium to enhance skill matching in the retail industry in Singapore.

“With the launch of MyBRANDS.SG, we hope to help brands become more effective and efficient with managing all their hiring needs using a single touchpoint. Essentially, we want our clients to be able to fill a role in the shortest time possible, with quality candidates who have the right skill sets for the job. MyBRANDS will initially be launched in Singapore and we plan to expand the services across ASEAN and the rest of Asia Pacific region in the near future,” said Angeline Yap, Managing Director of iDA’SG.

For jobseekers, MyBRANDS.SG offers customisable resume templates that get their profile done in minutes. Accessible from a laptop or on mobile, applicants can stay updated while on the move. MyBRANDS.SG’s system is designed to successfully match candidates with job opportunities that best fit their skill sets.

As for businesses, they will be able to create a profile on MyBRANDS.SG tells their individual brand story using a customisable template for an interactive brand experience that will help build an emotional connection and engage with the right talent. MyBRANDS.SG’s algorithm then matches employers with the right candidates based on their job listing and skillsets required.

Indian digital ledger provider Khatabook secures US$60M Series B funding led by Eduardo Saverin’s VC firm

Indian startup that provides a digital ledger for MSMEs, Khatabook, which provides a digital ledger for small businesses, has secured US$60 million in Series B funding led by B Capital, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin’s VC firm.

Also Read: Why the fall of bitcoin will accelerate the development of distributed ledger technology

The company plans to use the funding to further support the digitisation of kiranas or small family-owned shops in India, one of the economic backbones that are hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aside from that, the company will also fund the development of its tech-enabled financial services and a merchant-focused distribution platform.

According to Tech In Asia, existing and new investors such as Sequoia India, partners at DST Global, Tencent, GGV Capital, RTP Global, Hummingbird Ventures, Falcon Edge Capital, Rocketship, and Unilever Ventures also participated in the round. Furthermore, Facebook’s Kevin Weil, Calm’s Alexander Will, and Cred’s Kunal Shah, as well as Snapdeal’s Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal also invested.

ASEAN Financial Innovation Network welcomes Sangeet Paul Choudary to Board Director, Steven Miller as Advisor

The ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN) announced the appointment of Sangeet Paul Choudary as an Independent Director, and Professor Steven Miller as an Advisor to its board, as stated in its official statement released today.

Choudary and Miller’s respective roles will contribute to the growth of AFIN and its fintech-targeted cloud-based platform, API Exchange (APIX).

Choudary is a recognised expert on platform business models, with past experiences advising the leadership of over 30 of the Fortune 500 firms on platform strategy. Miller is a founding Dean of the School of Information Systems (SIS) at Singapore Management University and previously Chief Architect Executive for the Business Consulting Services unit of IBM Global Services in the Asia Pacific.

APIX is a global cloud-based platform that enables financial institutions and fintech to discover one another on a curated global marketplace, design experiments collaboratively in the sandbox, and deploy solutions rapidly at a lower cost.

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Meet the Govt is a new series by e27 that focus on how government agencies in Southeast Asian countries work together with startups and other industry players to build a healthier and stronger ecosystem.

In an interview with e27, Edwin Chow, Assistant CEO, Innovation & Enterprise at Enterprise Singapore, reveals that there are two-and-a-half challenges faced by the startup ecosystem in the country.

The first challenge would be talent acquisition. Startups in the country are in need of a steady supply of global talents, from programmers to marketers to regulatory experts.

“These are the key individuals who can help startups grow from zero to one hundred. This is in short supply in Singapore and we are doing our best to help,” he says.

This is followed by the fact that Singapore is such a small market that startups need to figure out an international expansion strategy since Day One.

Last but not least, startups in Singapore, particularly those working in the deep tech sector, are struggling to raise funds. Unlike startups in the e-commerce sectors, according to Chow, deep tech startups require more time to generate revenue or gain traction.

Also Read: News Roundup: Facebook, Singapore Tourism Board, Enterprise SG to launch training for COVID-19-affected businesses

“VCs who are putting money into these deep tech startups must be very patient, and understand enough of the science behind the business, to accept that it will be a while until they start seeing any difference,” he explains.

But Chow dubbed this as “half a challenge” as the government has already taken steps to deal with this matter. Earlier this year, with the announcement of Budget 2020, the government sets aside S$300 million (US$215 million) additional funds to support startups in the deep tech sector.

“We hope this extra fund will help to grow VCs who are interested in the deep tech sector and crowd in new VCs from around the world to take a look at investing in the sector in Singapore,” he stresses.

Beyond home

To tackle these challenges, Chow reveals the agency’s main focus this year, which starts with a “deep dive” into the specific talent-related needs of startups.

“We want to match the startups to the appropriate talent pools in Singapore and around the world. It’s about how we put in place programmes and intervention to make it easier for entrepreneurs to come to Singapore, for startups that are growing, to find the right kind of talent to scale more quickly,” he elaborates.

Chow added that the agency is mindful that this will not happen overnight.

Also Read: Afternoon News Roundup: Funding Societies teams up with SGeBIZ to lower working capital barriers for SME’s

To tackle the challenge of helping startup expand to a new market, Chow speaks of an initiative to help startups scale up more quickly in relevant markets. Called Global Innovation Alliance, the programme is a network of partners in 13 cities across 1o countries that aim to help Singapore startups scale into their markets. It also aims to identify local startups from those markets that want to scale into Southeast Asia through Singapore.

The 13 cities participating in the programme include Bangkok, Beijing, Suzhou, Shanghai, Berlin and Munich in Germany; HCMC in Vietnam, Jakarta in Indonesia; Paris in France; Tokyo in Japan; San Francisco in the US; Bangalore in India; and London in the UK.

“While the programme has to be pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic, we are quite confident that once it dies down, a lot of these platforms will be utilised by our startups,” Chow stresses.

Collaboration matters

As a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry in Singapore, Enterprise Singapore was formed to support Singapore small and medium enterprise (SME) development, upgrade capabilities, innovate, transform, and internationalise.

Within the past years, Chow notes that there have been notable milestones in the Singapore startup ecosystem.

First of all, while e-commerce and the “traditional” mobile app platforms continue to dominate the market, the rise of deep tech in the recent years had led to the government paying more attention to the sector.

“We are seeing more ventures coming out of universities and research institutions. They are even coming into Singapore from abroad. For example, five years ago, you could probably count the number of medtech startups with two hands and two feet. Today the number that we have is at least close to 300,” Chow says.

Also Read: Enterprise Singapore, XNode to launch China-Singapore Innovation Launchpad

“They also come from countries such as UK, India, China, coming into Singapore to set up their HQ and making use of the labs that we have here,” he continues.

This is being followed by the rise of foreign VCs and accelerators or incubators in Singapore. Lastly, there is also a greater appetite among corporations to work with startups.

In terms of collaborating with startups, openness is a theme that keeps on showing up recently, even among government institutions.

“The point of view that regulators are the enemy of innovation has started to change. In some areas, it has changed quite dramatically in Singapore. For example, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is well-known for being very protective of the rules. But two years ago, they decide to use the regulatory power that they have as a spur to innovation,” Chow says.

“I’m quite optimistic that this will be the way of the future,” he closes.

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In their latest report on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic to the global startup fundraising effort, Startup Genome revealed that global venture capital funding has dropped by about 20 per cent since the onset of the health crisis in December 2019.

However, the report also noted that the drop is “far” from being evenly distributed.

For example, in China, as a major tech hub that was also the first country to get hit by the outbreak, venture capital funding had a drop of over 50 per cent relative to the rest of the world in January and February. The market experienced a rebound in March.

Despite the improvement, its numbers remained lower than the pre-crisis level, indicating that the situation has not fully recovered for China.

For the rest of Asian countries, a major drop is also seen in January with no rebound as of March.

Also Read: Entrepreneurs share COVID-19’s impact on their businesses in a survey by Startup Genome

As a comparison, the US so far has experienced “only relatively small changes” since December 2019 with a drop of less than 10 per cent by March.

“However, when we take into account the seasonality pattern from previous years, with January consistently showing more activity than December, the small drop between December and the beginning of the year means that every month of the first quarter of 2020 in the US saw over 15 per cent fewer deals than the same months in 2019,” the report elaborated.

How about Southeast Asia?

Separately, Dealstreet Asia also released another report that specifically looked into startup fundraising in the Southeast Asian (SEA) region.

The report stated that the amount of capital committed for interim and final fund closes reported between January and March 2020 fell 47 per cent from the Q4 2019.

Despite the decline, this number was more than triple the value recorded in the same period a year ago.

Also Read: Startup Genome, MDEC partner to boost Malaysia’s startup ecosystem, focussing on policy action

This indicated that the SEA startup ecosystem, despite facing challenges such as soaring unemployment rate and company shutdown, continue to gather investors’ attention.

In a recent webinar with e27, Cocoon Capital co-founders and managing partners Will Klippgen and Michael Blakey stressed that the VC firm continues their business activities as per usual.

They even mentioned that some brands actually became more successful after a crisis.

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Updates: We have corrected several parts of the article including Philippe Chiu’s surname and Unabiz’s services. We apologise for the inconvenience caused.

Singapore-operated IoT company who specialises in low power wireless network, UnaBiz, is on a fast track.

During a virtual correspondence with Henri Bong (CEO), Davy Lassagne (CFO), and Philippe Chiu (CTO), we were brought into the company’s journey in making the world an energy-conscious place, one step at a time, and convincing investors to invest in its Series B round, shortly after winning a deal with Nippon Gas Co. (Nicigas), the largest Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) operator in Japan.

What the company does

UnaBiz’s IoT solutions are characterised by its simplicity and efficiency because the company said that “the best IoT experience is one that is simple and easy to use”.

“We champion low power consuming wireless products and solutions which translate to years of battery autonomy. Installation is kept simple, with no infrastructure investment, so that projects can be scaled up easily, globally,” said Bong, painting the mental image for what exactly the company offers.

Catering to customers’ unique energy needs

Bong then explained further: “When it comes to customised solutions, we always take our time to understand our clients’ field, before recommending the right solution that is best suited to their requirements.”

Doing this means stripping away unnecessarily complex features and sending small data packages so that less power is used. “Currently, our main focus lies in smart metering, smart parking, asset tracking, and asset management,” he explained.

The deal that took a turn

With what the company offers, in November 2019, Nicigas signed a deal with UnaBiz. It was done shortly after Nicigas announced its plan to digitalise the consumption management of their business.

Bong explained that UnaBiz was chosen because Nicigas had shopped around for several off-the-shelves and custom-build solutions from reputable companies but none of them meet their requirements completely, at the right cost for them to justify their ROI.

Also Read: Six Singapore-based IoT companies sign deal with Thailand’s depa

“We came in at the right time with the right set of skills and expertise to make it happen. Being small and agile allows us to adapt our solutions and processes to meet our customer’s needs in a much faster timeframe compared to bigger players,” Bong said.

The deal would involve UnaBiz as hardware provider and Soracom as IoT platform provider deploying 850,000 smart gas meter readers across the Kanto Region by the end of 2020.

The project was meant to seek to upgrade the energy retailer’s grid into IoT-enabled, digitalised, and data-driven operations are one of the most ambitious IoT projects worldwide.

Bong also recalled that the possible collaboration dated way before the deal is done. “We met Nicigas two years ago in Japan through the introduction of our strategic partner and investor Soracom, part of the KDDI group,” Bong recalled.

Nicigas is now deploying thousands of smart meters per day.

How UnaBiz’s technology changes lives

Household energy-consumption data has traditionally been collected manually by dedicated staff every month. This method is costly, prone to errors, and entirely dependent on a regular workforce which most companies do not have the luxury of currently.

With the new smart meter readers, consumption data can be collected hourly without any manual reading and is sent wirelessly to Nicigas daily. Secondly, more accurate data also translates to optimised gas delivery which reduces stress on logistics.

What this means for the utility company by choosing to collect data in a cost-efficient manner, more regularly, is lower operational cost, and overall better decisions on pricing, logistics, and infrastructure needs.

As for the gas consumers, it means access to accurate billing and a customised service offer that is catered to their lifestyle based on their usage pattern.

In the event of an emergency, such as an earthquake or a gas leak, the meters can automatically shut down the gas valve, which would have been a challenge with restricted movement.

Also Read: IoT company UnaBiz raises US$10M+ Series A funding round

What’s next for the industry

Chiu continued: “We do not believe in the term ‘energy-conserved tech industry. It simply doesn’t make sense to have an industry driven by a single goal of energy conservation.”

The company chose to view energy-saving as one of many ways for companies with tangible assets in the field such as beer kegs, airport ground equipment, utility meters, and so on to become more efficient and economically sustainable.

UnaBiz believes that while some companies rely on these methods to survive and deal with the ever-increasing cost of operations and rarifying resources, some companies may qualify these actions as energy conservation efforts.

Also Read: IoT should be like the air we breathe: UnaBiz on making the technology accessible to everyone

“Once company executives understand that energy conservation is all about business optimisation, we will be here to help them digitalise their business using IoT, which is a mandatory stepping stone toward sustainable business,” Chius said.

Series B financing

Even though it may not appear to be the best timing, UnaBiz confirmed that the Series B fundraising for the company has kicked off. The reasoning behind the fundraising made complete sense.

UnaBiz believes that the fact that the company is already profitable in its third year of operations and their ability to bounce back and remain resilient even with the sudden hit of the COVID-19 pandemic has proven their worth to the investors.

“But all in all, we believe that IoT related tech companies are going to benefit from this growing interest, as the coronavirus has pushed even more corporations to accelerate their digitalisation,” Lassagne emphasised.

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Image Credit: UnaBiz

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