Zenius, an Indonesia-based edutech company focusing on developing critical thinking and scientific reasoning, announced today it has raised an undisclosed amount in pre-Series B investment.

The money came from new investors such as Alpha JWC Ventures and Openspace Ventures and existing backers, including Northstar Group, Kinesys and BeeNext.

Zenius plans to use the funds to further develop its platform to “meet the growing customer demand”.

The latest round comes less than a year after it secured US$20 million in Series A from Northstar in February 2020.

Also Read: Why digital capabilities aren’t fully deployed in the education sector

Founded in 2004 by Sabda PS and Medy Suharta, Zenius has developed  a mobile app offering a series of products across different verticals. The app focuses on K12 students and claims to have over 90,000 concept videos and more than a hundred thousand practice questions.

Zenius claimed it experienced strong growth in 2020 with revenues increasing over 70 per cent in the second half of the year, compared to the same period in 2019. User growth increased by over 10X from its launch of its live classes in March 2020, with user retention rate at over 90 per cent.

“Zenius has demonstrated over a decade of track record in proven learning outcomes while reinventing the core offering as new mediums have emerged. We believe its proven track record will be a key differentiating factor in the rapidly evolving education landscape and we hope that the fresh round of funding will propel its growth further,” said Ian Sikora, Director at Openspace Ventures.

Also Read: Zenius raises US$20M from Northstar

“In line with our purpose of bringing Indonesia’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) competence to the global level, we continue to work around the clock to develop new features that will help students to get the best learning outcomes through our technology,” added Rohan Monga, Zenius CEO since 2019 and previously COO of gojek.

The edutech startup offered most of its services for free during the first half of 2020 to support the Indonesian government’s learn-from-home initiatives during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Image Credit: Zenius

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We all are accommodated with fintech in this modern era of digitisation. The trend is rising especially after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also, we face rapid fintech transformations on a daily basis and virtual cards, ATMs, mobile transactions and digital wallets are becoming a new normal. Cutting-edge technologies claim that the fintech horizon is expanding more rapidly than ever in the upcoming future.  

The majority of the businesses faced a downfall when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Only a few of them were smart enough that somehow successfully showed an upward trend and out of them, one was the fintech industry.

Both businesses and customers start utilising contactless payment methods to avoid physical contact with each other. According to a study, there was 72 per cent of evident usage of fintech apps in Europe, especially since the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Following are the top 5 predictions that will take over the world especially in 2021 and later upcoming years. 

Digital banking

Virtual banking services are expanding in the industry of digital banking. Those services include contactless MasterCard, P2P transfer and international remittance with free transaction fees and also with the ability to buy various cryptocurrencies such as ethereum and bitcoin.  

In such a short time period, digital banking gained immense popularity. The main reason for this evolution is that it provides customer due diligence and also eliminates tedious verification processes based on paperwork and visiting banks physically.

According to a report, it was a 36 per cent conversion rate from physical visitors to online bank users from the year 2017 to the year 2022. In 2021, a huge surge can be seen in digital-only banks and this surge will significantly drop the number of physical bank visitors.  

Blockchain

According to Business Insider Intelligence, around 48 per cent of the bank representatives think that there’s a great impact of blockchain technology on financial infrastructure.

The revolution in the fintech industry is because of innovative and rapidly evolving blockchain technology. Transactions can be carried out in a secure and safe manner with the help of this cutting-edge technology. 

Blockchain technology also minimised centralised procedures of online transactions. This technology also ensured customer due diligence and enhanced risk assessment. Also, the customers’ information is secured end-to-end.

Also read: 3 key trends defining the hottest startup sector in Asia: Fintech

Monetary transactions are enabled by many peer-to-peer (P2P) transaction platforms and this technology is invoked in a wide range of financial sectors to deter fraud, reduce expenses, and enhance internal procedures. 

Biometric security systems

Mobile banking, ATMs and e-wallets are becoming a new normal. Integration of biometric security systems with the fintech industry ensures that everything is just one fingertip away. Massive security-related issues are solved by incorporating biometric authentication services in financial infrastructure to control rapidly evolving cyber crimes.

It is mandatory for organisations that involve financial transactions to incorporate all the possible security measures. Keeping in mind threats in cyberspace, biometric identification technology is playing a crucial role to deter fraud.

In the upcoming years, more advancements in AI-based biometric identification systems can be seen to take security to the next level, providing an enhanced customer experience.

According to a study, identity verification solutions that involve physical contact are facing unpopularity. Contactless solutions of biometric systems will take over touch-based fingerprints in the near future.   

AI/ML

Customer identification plays a crucial role in keeping in mind the immense rate of fraudulent activities and illicit money transactions. Thankfully, Artificial Intelligence has managed the increasing rate of cyber crimes and also plays a vital role in enhancing the fintech industry.

It is predicted that by the year 2030, financial transaction and operational expenses will be reduced by 23 per cent because of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Advanced AI and Machine Learning algorithms have made the customer repository in financial infrastructure more accurate and have made the data recording process efficient.

Banks and sectors that involve financial transactions are investing a large amount for incorporating AI and ML-based technological advancements for customer due diligence, and for incorporating cutting-edge technology for customer service such as chatbots, etc.   

RegTech

The advent of technology has risen the risks of fraudulent activities such as money laundering, cyber attacks, data breaches, etc. Regulatory technology, abbreviated as RegTech, is the technology that is used to manage regulatory processes in financial infrastructure.

RegTech technology involves the following main functionalities: monitoring, reporting and compliance. Demand for cloud-based platforms will increase in 2021 to promote a contactless future, especially in COVID-19. 

RegTech is basically a more advanced form of fintech technology, invoked by higher authorities into financial institutions. RegTech empowers technologies with advanced security features to deter fraud and illicit money transactions.

RegTech, in compliance with ML and Big Data, can fight a great battle against data breaches, protects customers and ensures financial stability. 

The rising tide of AI is becoming immense as we move on to 2021. This massive innovation is leading use towards an unpredictable future of social upheaval. Contactless futures are becoming a new normal keeping in view an increasing number of coronavirus patients.  

Also read: Here is the e27 Malaysia Fintech Ecosystem Report 2019

The purpose of advancements in fintech trends is the transparent relationship between business and customer, enhanced customer experience, and risk assessment using biometric solutions, KYC/AML compliance, and digital identity verification.

Integration of fintech innovations with blockchain technology is gaining tremendous transaction in the upcoming era of digitisation. Further disruption can be seen in 2021 and upcoming years in financial infrastructure, especially in the digital banking sector. 

If you are looking for online transaction solutions, make sure that you integrate yourself with such a financial sector that involves enhanced fintech solutions, advanced risk assessment technologies, and also which presume simple, secure and convenient management of financial transactions. 

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Indonesia-based digital investment platform Bibit has raised US$30 million in fresh funding to expand its robo-advisory platform and other services.

Sequoia Capital India joined existing investors East Ventures, EV Growth and 500 Startups in the round.

Launched in 2019, Bitbit’s robo-advisory platform enables users to build customised portfolios based on their risk profiles and investment goals. It was originally launched as Stockbit, a platform for investment news and for investors to share strategies in real-time, before rebranding and pivoting to provide automated investment services.

In a statement released by Bibit, CEO Sigit Kouwagam said the startup has experienced a high growth rate since its launch, with more than a million first-time investors joining in 2020.

Also Read: How to prep the future workforce for a tech-first financial sector

With 90 per cent of Bibit users being millennials and new investors, Kouwagam remarked the growth is a consequence of increased financial literacy and a renewed focus on personal finance management among the younger generation.

Data from Indonesia Stock Exchange and Central Custodian showed that the number of retail investors in the country grew by 56 per cent year-on-year in 2020, with growth mainly driven by millennials, who accounted for 92 per cent of new investors.

“Consumers across the world are moving their savings from low-yielding assets like gold and real estate to higher-yielding financial products,” said Rohot Agarwal, VP of Sequoia India.

“In Indonesia, Bibit has become the most trusted platform for millions of consumers with its well-balanced portfolio that offers the best risk-adjusted returns,” he added.

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Image Credit: Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash

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ProfilePrint, a Singapore-based Artificial Intelligence food ingredient analysis platform, announced today it has closed a 7-figure USD pre-Series A funding round.

Participating investors include Enterprise Singapore’s investment arm SEEDS Capital, Glocalink Singapore, Leave-a-Nest Singapore and BP de Silva Group, as well as other unnamed strategic investors.

The fresh financing will be used to bankroll developments of ProfilePrint’s patented technology, develop analysis solutions on its SaaS platform and expand its team.

Co-founded in 2018 by Alan Lai and Rehan Amarasuriya, ProfilePrint has developed a technology to combine parameters and data into a digital fingerprint that predicts the quality profile of a food sample “within seconds”.

The SaaS startup claims this is possible through the utilisation of technologies such as AI on a cloud-based platform with a portable analyser. This allows various stakeholders — ranging from growers, collectors, wholesalers, manufacturers to retailers — to predict quality profiles without human intervention or destroying the sample.

Also Read: How blockchain can help combat ongoing fraud in the Halal food industry in SEA

ProfilePrint said its solution has taken on increased importance amidst the pandemic outbreak as companies are restricted from sending their staff to farms for sourcing and quality inspections. This has led to an increase in revenue growth and business user adoption for the company, it said.

The startup currently provides its solutions to food brands and manufacturers in countries, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, the US, and China.

Besides its core platform, ProfilePrint also helps organisers of trade shows by creating a virtual platform for its exhibitors and trade visitors to ascertain grade and quality of ingredients online without the need for physical samples.

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Image Credit: ProfilePrint

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Covid-19 has accelerated digitalisation for companies across the globe, forcing many to adapt to a remote workspace during periods of lockdown. Therefore it makes sense that certain sectors and businesses, whose remote teams are working across time zones, have fared much better than their traditional counterparts. Consumer priorities have shifted, along with the way we interact with the world. As a result, global supply chains have slowed down, while the use of virtual services has increased exponentially.

The economic effect of Covid-19 hit traditional sectors the hardest. Brick-and-mortar stores have shuttered, restaurants have turned into food delivery hubs, and airlines have gone bankrupt. As we shift towards more permanent remote work and online consumption, agile startups that have been able to adjust to these trends can thrive and investors should encourage these types of companies in their portfolios.

Also read: ProfilePrint’s AI tool predicts quality profile of a food sample “within seconds”, raises funding

Economic crises breed winners and losers, and 2020 has expanded the gap between both. As the Covid-19 pandemic is one of the world’s largest economic crises ever, digitalisation efforts have also amplified. For example, tech companies that cater to remote needs, such as e-commerce, video conferencing software, and delivery, have grown significantly over the past year. As a testament to this, Zoom’s market valuation exceeded Exxon Mobil’s US $138 billion price tag at the end of October 2020.

Many innovative companies became competitive because of their flexible working arrangements and high level of digitisation. Moreover, rather than traditional office hierarchies, they operate via project-based teams of individuals located in various time zones. This may be unusual for private equity companies to embody, but in setting the example for their portfolio companies, they might also find efficiencies in modernization.

Globalization 4.0

The Covid-19 pandemic has a silver lining; it normalised location-independent forms of work to allow employees to log in and get to work, wherever they are based. In other words, it is the perfect moment to build a global team. Hiring across borders presents an opportunity to bridge gaps in the market by connecting professionals with specific skill sets to the consumers who demand their service or product. Even without physical travel, globalization will continue through international networks formed by apps like Slack, Notion, and Microsoft Teams, which increasingly define the virtual workspace.

Also read: Top 5 fintech predictions that will take over the world in 2021

Dropbox announced it was going virtual-first in early October and has since wholly embraced this new model as the future of work. Remote work has become the primary experience for all Dropbox employees, along with non-linear workdays where collaboration hours overlap between time zones instead of following the standard 9 am-5 pm workday schedule.

Exemplified by Dropbox and many innovative brands, the pandemic spurred a new kind of globalization that is not based on the flow of goods across borders, but on the flow of data. Going global will help VCs and PE firms adopt a more hands-on approach to running their portfolio companies — ultimately increasing the likelihood that their investments will prove successful in a post-Covid environment.

New tools, new normal

A passive approach to managing portfolios remotely limits portfolio companies’ opportunity to capitalise on the investing fund’s expertise. Thankfully, a new set of tools has made it easier for PE firms and VCs to adopt a more hands-on approach.

The normalisation of virtual conferencing means that firms can more easily bridge the gap between their portfolio companies and compliant, trusted partners in their network. As advisors with a collective wealth of experience in scaling companies, increased investor involvement at a strategic level tends to benefit portfolio companies and videoconference software has made collaboration easier than ever.

Another tool available to investors is a partnership with a global Employer of Record (EOR), which brings a geographically dispersed talent pool under one single, locally compliant payroll. By teaming up with an EOR like Globalization Partners, investors can remove the administrative burdens associated with hiring, onboarding, and payroll from their portfolio company’s shoulders and let them focus on growing their business. Thanks to its proprietary cloud-based solution coupled with the company’s unmatched legal and tax expertise, Globalization Partners facilitates global hiring, and provides technology to help the employer efficiently manage their global workforce.

Saving costs while going global

Firms pursuing international M&A transactions traditionally face a unique blend of challenges. Sellers may face setbacks during cross-border employee transfers due to the complexities of international regulations, while buyers face legal issues like benefits matching and disbursing salaries through foreign banks. Resolving these issues can be a drain on financial resources and time.

Also read: How blockchain can help combat ongoing fraud in the Halal food industry in SEA

While firms might use mergers and acquisitions to expand globally, or tap into international talent, doing so without a trusted partner can result in value loss and delays to deal close. With the help of Globalization Partners, startups and investors can navigate employee transfers, onboarding, and offboarding seamlessly and compliantly.

Prepare for Economic Recovery

According to a McKinsey global survey, over 50 per cent of respondents in China, India, North America, and the Asia-Pacific region hold an optimistic economic outlook for economic recovery.

Forward-thinking companies are planning now to take advantage of new global opportunities, however, it can take months or years to expand globally by setting up a local branch or entity, which can prevent portfolio companies from creating value for their investors. Globalization Partners enables companies to grow on a global scale and build international teams in a matter of days or weeks — well in time to catch the recovery wave into a more interconnected future.

Learn more about Globalization Partners.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by 
Globalization Partners

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