Bukalapak looks to raise up to US$1B in IPO, could be largest in IDX history; The IPO will be conducted from July 28-30, and shares of Bukalapak will start trading on IDX on Aug. 6; Emtek subsidiary KMK holds the biggest stake at 31.9% in Bukalapak, followed by API Holdings that owns 17.4%, followed by GIC through its subsidiary Archipelago Investment (12.6%).

After Gojek, AirAsia close to clinching 2 more in ramp-up of digital business; AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandez hinted at possibility of future partnerships with GoTo as the company could benefit from AirAsia’s existing travel and logistics vertical; ‘If Tokopedia decided to expand outside of Indonesia, we are a very logical company to carry their goods, he says.

AirAsia fintech arm BigPay to enter Thai market after GoPay acquisition; BigPay CEO says its goal in Thailand is to launch all of its core features, from payments to international remittance; In the coming months, BigPay is looking to launch a number of new services including responsible credit, micro-savings and an offering for micro SMEs and freelancers.

Mental health and startups: Report says founders lack practical strategies for managing stress; According to a whitepaper report by ACE and Safe Space, while 78 per cent of founders highly rated the importance of mental health in their teams, there is still plenty of room for improvement; Male founders in Singapore were seen to be twice as likely to experience a toll on mental health, but are also twice as likely to confide in no one.

Temasek, Warburg Pincus pour US$500M into India’s Ola; Ola said that the funding comes ahead of its IPO plans; However, it did not provide details of the IPO’s timeline or size; The company’s EV unit Ola Electric is reportedly in late-stage discussions to raise over US$300M from Temasek, SoftBank, and Tiger Global, among others.

Singapore’s Temasek in for long haul with in-house startups; As an investor, Temasek has full flexibility to either invest in existing solutions or create new ones, depending on the opportunities it has identified, says Chia Song Hwee, deputy CEO of Temasek; According to data platform Global SWF, Temasek was the top tech backer internationally last year among state-owned investors at US$2.3B.

SEA is the fastest-growing mobile wallet market globally, Boku report says; In Philippines, about half of users prefer GCash over others, while GrabPay is the no. 1 mobile wallet in Malaysia and Singapore; Meanwhile, Ovo takes the top spot in Indonesia, with 38% of users opting for the mobile wallet.

Thai central bank BOT warns against using digital assets for payments; BOT has made it clear that digital assets are not legal tender; In using digital assets as a means of payment, both the player and receiver could face risks such as price volatility, cyber theft, and money laundering.

Lithium: the material fueling the EV revolution; Despite the recent investments, lithium production is not increasing fast enough to meet demand of the EV market and, based on current projections, lithium demand is set to outpace supply by 2027/28; Concerned with the supply of lithium, EV makers like Tesla are making moves to safeguard this critical resource.

Singapore and France test cross-border CBDC payments network; The experiment was supported by JP Morgan’s blockchain-focused business unit Onyx and was the first to enhance efficiency through the employment of liquidity management and automated market-making capabilities; A permissioned, Quorum technology-based blockchain was used to transact across borders between a Singapore dollar CBDC and a euro CBDC.

For Stripe, Asia’s fragmented payments landscape is an opportunity; In Southeast Asia, Stripe is making its mark slowly; It entered Singapore in 2016 and Malaysia in 2019, with a Thailand expansion in the works; It has already garnered a good number of partners, which include the likes of GrabPay and notable startups like SOCAR and FashionValet.

Singapore workers less engaged than their managers think: says study; Only 12% of employees surveyed strongly agree that they “feel engaged” in their overall work experience, compared to 19% of management who think their employees will strongly agree; In addition, only 9% of employees strongly agree that they “feel recognised” in their overall work experience, whereas 18% of management thinks their employees will strongly agree.

Why Malaysia is quickly becoming a cybersecurity hub for the rest of the world; Behind its No. 8 power ranking, Malaysia achieved a top score in three of the five categories used by the UN agency International Telecoms Union; They are a legal framework for handling security and crime; capacity measures based on R&D, education and training; and international partnerships and information sharing.

Top 5 cleantech startups in SEA; The top cleantech startups in the region have proven that sustainability in tech is not only possible but beneficial to all, helping families, companies, big and small businesses, the animal kingdom, and the environment; Though there are impressive breakthroughs all across SEA, recently, the most remarkable innovations are seen in Cambodia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

The future of agritech: Inside Singapore’s vision for food security; Singapore aims to produce 30 per cent of local nutritional needs by 2030; To reach the goal, the country will increase local production of commonly consumed food such as fish, eggs and vegetables.

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Image Credit: airasia Digital

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Pride Month and intersectionality: Why I hope that we will no longer need a special event to celebrate it by Simon Hearn from Distellery

Diversity is embedded in my company’s DNA; our founder Steve is part of the LGBTQ+ community, so when the band’s frontman is leading the chant, it’s very easy for the rest of the team to pick up an instrument and play to the beat.

Great leadership means developing a culture that celebrates individuality, and when you have leaders who represent it we can attract diverse talent.

We know that we need role models to help break down the barriers of entry and for people to see leaders with who they can identify with. It’s like a snowball effect as diversity leads to more diversity. Here are three initiatives from my agency that have helped drive great inclusion at distillery.

Foodtech special

TWG Tea’s founder on how a luxury food brand can tap third party digital marketplaces to expand business by Maranda Barnes, co-founder, TWG Tea

Since early 2020, the pandemic has led to major restrictions on personal mobility. Our experience at TWG Tea in the past 18 months has confirmed our belief that customers increasingly expect to access their favourite brands through both brick-and-mortar as well as online retail experiences.

In 2020, TWG Tea saw growth in every market we have an online presence in. Furthermore, we have noticed that this new online shopping trend is remaining consistent even in instances when social distancing measures are lifted, proving that consumer behaviour has evolved.

Can alternative proteins help build a more secure and sustainable food system? by Xin Yi Lim, Sustainability and Agri Impact at Pinduoduo

Advances in foodtech have made it easier and cheaper to produce animal-free meat and many see cultured meat (also referred to as cultivated or cell-based meat) as an opportunity to diversify our food sources and enable food production closer to consumers. Cultured meat is grown from animal cells and uses fewer resources than traditional livestock farming.

The fast-growing field has attracted some of the world’s biggest companies and top investors. Companies such as Tyson Foods have partnered with cultured meat startup Future Meat, while Mosa Meats counts Google co-founder Sergey Brin among its investors.

New plant-based meats have also become popular with consumers, with startups whipping up new products using anything from soy and pea to jackfruit and algae.

The banking world

Building technology for the AI bank of the future by Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company, Renny Thomas

At many institutions, standard practices now include omni channel engagement, the use of APIs to support increased real-time information exchange across systems, and the use of big data analytics to improve credit underwriting, evaluate product usage, and prioritise opportunities for deepening relationships.

As financial-services organisations continue to mature, the increasing demands on the technology infrastructure to support more complex use cases involving analytics and real-time insights are pushing firms to re-examine their overall technology function.

Once they have committed to modernising the core technology and data infrastructure underpinning the engagement and decision-making layers of the capability stack, banks should organise their transformation around six crucial demands: technology strategy, superior experiences, scalable data and analytics platforms, scalable hybrid infrastructure, configurable product processors, and cybersecurity strategy.

E-commerce for the future: How open banking enables greater security and trust by Diego Rojas, founder and CEO at Finantier

Amidst these eye-boggling statistics, it also means the e-commerce industry would get more competitive as more players enter seeking to get a slice of a growing lucrative market.

Retailers will need to fight harder for loyalty by establishing competitive advantages in user experience. Put simply, the best experience wins.

Besides, the increased adoption of digital services will see e-commerce platforms emphasise fighting online fraud. In 2019, US$260 million was lost to digital fraud in the region, with identity theft (71 per cent) and account fraud (63 per cent) among the leading methods.

This figure, which puts Southeast Asia among the top regions for fraud worldwide, has been largely caused by inefficiencies in identity verification.

The art of blockchain: What is the NFT craze all about? by Rachel Lau, Managing Partner at RHL Ventures

Being one of the most thrown around word of the hour, blockchain, the peer-to-peer network that sits on top of the internet is an open distributed ledger that records transactions between two parties efficiently and can be validated by a selected or public audience.

It features “smart contracts” that are triggered automatically after conditions are met. The advancement of technology has spawned new variations of blockchain technology. Today we explore the latest manifestation of this vanguard, non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

nonfungible.com reported that more than US$2 billion was spent on NFTs in Q121, an increase of 2,100 per cent compared to Q4 2020. Coined as the art of blockchain, NFTs took the blockchain world by storm.

Money matters

How did MoneySmart grow its revenue by 25 per cent amidst a pandemic? by Enricko Lukman, co-founder of ContentGrow

“One of the most effective ways to reach our customers is by making sure that we’re visible with super contextually relevant content based on what they’re looking for at that time,” explains David Harling, CMO of MoneySmart Group. Joining the company in January 2018, David has overseen an in-depth business transformation at MoneySmart, which has helped the company almost quadruple its revenue within three years.

Speaking with ContentGrip, David provides a glimpse into how MoneySmart’s marketing engine operates to drive growth, capitalising specifically on first-party data and original content.

How ByteDance navigates choppy waters as regulatory hurdles delay mammoth IPO by Oleg Spilka, investor, founder and CEO

ByteDance seemingly cemented its intentions by launching a recent share buyback for current and former employees. The buyback comes after the company announced in April that it had no imminent plans for a public listing.

This represents a full reversal after ByteDance had initially planned to list some of its Chinese businesses, including Douyin, a Chinese equivalent to leading social media app TikTok, in Hong Kong, according to Reuters.

To add further uncertainty to the immediate future of ByteDance, the company founder and CEO, Zhang Yiming surprised stakeholders by announcing that he’s stepping down from the company in the wake of increased state scrutiny over China’s leading tech firms.

Can SPACs avoid another reverse merger crisis? by Joseph Hsia, Summer Associate at AppWorks Ventures

SPACs are a form of a reverse merger. Looking at SPACs, It’s difficult not to think of the reverse merger crisis back in the 2000s. The streamlined process of the reverse merger and the access to US capital markets attracted more than 150 Chinese companies to this route from 2007 to early 2010 (PCAOB, 2011).

Many of these target companies were with the quality, but a more relaxed regulatory environment did leave some grey areas for certain issuers to commit fraud. Eventually, dozens of listed companies through reverse merger were either delisted or halted from trading based on claims of fraud or violations of US securities laws, and a number of others were targeted by short-sellers.

10 lessons from building a niche, profitable Shopify app in 12 months by Zenos Schmickrath, entrepreneur and tech enthusiast

Inspired, we decided to build a public Shopify app that levels the playing field for independent eyewear brands, allowing them to compete with larger retailers.

Development began in June 2020, and we launched LensAdvizor on the Shopify App Store three months later. By June 2021, we were profitable with monthly revenues growing over 20 per cent a month.

Here are ten valuable lessons I learned from this experience.

Why Malaysia is quickly becoming a cybersecurity hub for the rest of the world by Andrew Rossow, Attorney

Malaysia’s first cybersecurity policy dates back at least 15 years, giving rise to what is today’s Critical National Information Infrastructure – a portal for sharing information and a coordination and command centre that addresses the nation’s cybersecurity crises, evaluating threat levels on a regular basis.

One of the most appealing aspects of the country’s model is X-Maya, annual drills that are run to test the nation’s readiness and ability to address security incidents.

While this isn’t necessarily unique to the Asian nation, the ongoing assessment and commitment to running these drills demonstrate the nation’s ability to continue growing its position as a cybersecurity leader.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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As the app market becomes more saturated, it’s becoming harder and harder for apps to stand out among their competitors. Business of Apps recorded that currently, iOS users can choose from over 1.85 million applications. With 2.56 million apps available through the Google Play Store, Android users have even more options.

App developers spend an average of US$3.52 to acquire app users to register or create an account in an app. However, it is said that not all of these users will stay and use the app.

As much as 25 per cent of users tend to abandon an app after one use, only 32 per cent of users return to an app 11x or more. Why is that so?

While app developers go full throttle on their app user acquisition, they fail to realise that they need to prioritise how they can engage and eventually retain their users in this stiff competition –a concept known as user retention strategy.

After all, it takes five times to acquire new customers than to keep one. This number just shows how a clear user retention strategy can be a powerful tool to ensure the success of an application.

User retention is a significant factor in determining the success of an app. If you have an active user base that stays engaged with your product, you are more likely to retain those customers and increase your in-app revenue.

A study found that a five per cent increase in customer retention produces more than a 25 per cent increase in profit. Further, 65 per cent of a company’s business comes from existing customers.

Also Read: Why building user communities is far better than paid advertising

So how can you ensure user retention for your application? Integrating engaging features to help attract and keep users coming back for more might just do the trick.

Social media as the inspiration for your user retention strategy

If we look at today’s most popular applications, there is no doubt that social media platforms dominate the app market — and for the last ten years at that. Based on App Annie, nine out of 10 most downloaded apps have been social media platforms in the past decade.

However, it doesn’t just end there. The prominence of social media continues as more and more people sign up on these platforms. According to Hootsuite’s Digital 2021 Report, social media saw an increase in its users by more than 13 per cent over the past year, bringing the global total to nearly 4.2 billion.

While many social media sites are popping up, users don’t seem to mind signing up on almost all of them. People are comfortable interacting with users from various backgrounds through social media platforms.

The universal desire to socialise, share opinions, and be part of a community where they can be their authentic self is something humans crave — precisely what these social media apps provide.

The innate social nature of humans gives these platform providers a reason to capitalise on this. In a world that is increasingly reliant on digital technology, social media apps have provided a way for people to network and engage on a large scale previously unimaginable offline. By replicating our physical interactions virtually, they allow users to establish connections for socialising anytime and anywhere.

Also Read: How not to build a bot: 3 steps to a cringeworthy chatbot experience

Social will transform your app’s experience

Seeing these results, app developers and companies are catching on. They have noticed the power of social media as a platform and started incorporating social experiences into their apps to increase engagement.

Low-cost airline company AirAsia has launched their super app, a refreshed iteration of their platform travellers worldwide are familiar with. Intending to have an app that users open daily for all their travel and lifestyle needs, AirAsia wanted to connect people to destinations, people to people, and people to all kinds of travel-oriented services.

To increase engagement within their application, they implemented chat features that allowed users to connect while simultaneously fostering communities in-app despite not being able to go on trips due to the pandemic.

It wasn’t long before they saw the results. The number of chat users grew from 2,000 in the first month to over two million by the end of 2020. And new users keep coming every day.

On top of that, AirAsia’s platform became a hub for creating communities, collecting valuable information to improve their services, and offering direct support to their users even when they are not travelling.

Along with AirAsia, there are also numerous successful examples of apps that have integrated social experiences. We see this with GooglePay, which also integrated in-app chat in its platform.

Also Read: 10 lessons from building a niche, profitable Shopify app in 12 months

Beauty giant Sephora also utilised user-generated content (UGC), such as reviews and make-up tips, to empower the communities on their platform.

Instead of hosting their customers on other platforms, where users and communities are spread across different applications, these companies opted for in-app social features to boost their user experience, in-app engagement and stay ahead of their competitors.

Time to integrate social experiences for user retention

How do you then translate this to your app?

If you already have an app and want to make sure that your users keep coming back to your platform, adding these social features to your application might be an untapped solution to help you reach your app’s full potential.

Here are three ways  you can enable social experiences on your app:

• An in-app feed can be a great way to connect users with the most relevant content. The use of app-based algorithms allows you to display the content you and your fellow users create. You can also enable comments, reactions, and the ability to share across your platform to ensure continuous app engagement. Implementing these solutions will keep them interested and scroll endlessly, thus, spending more time on your app.
• Your platform could benefit significantly from features that enable users to stay connected, such as 1-1 and group chats, allowing them to have more efficient and organised conversations. And to provide a better user experience, you can utilise in-app messaging features such as live chat using a chatbot to provide 24/7 support, especially if they need a quick response.
• Turn your app into a community platform for users to connect and share what they’re passionate about using in-app groups. By fostering a sense of community where they can express themselves and share their thoughts with like-minded peers, they’re more likely to keep using your app. Groups also give them a reason to continue returning to your application, increasing app stickiness, user engagement, and retention on your platform.

The future of your app is social

Your app must now start exploring uncharted solutions in the rapidly changing digital landscape to make sure your app survives in this highly saturated app industry. Integrating social experiences similar to those from today’s top social media platforms can help secure you a win in this fierce competition.

Also Read: Why fintech companies should learn about customer retention from e-commerce companies

Integrating social features that enhance in-app connections can replicate their success on your platform. And by adding them, you can create lasting, meaningful relationships with your users, and at the same time, allow them to keep in touch with those with whom they share interests.

Providing social experiences in your app as part of user retention strategy ensures that users return to the platform, drive engagement, increase in-app retention, and open up new revenue streams for your application. And with that, securing an advantage to win your market and stay in the game for years to come.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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The world’s most successful and innovative tech startups hail from Asia. Tencent, Alibaba, Taiwan Semiconductor and Grab are just a handful of examples.

However, hidden in the shadows thrown by these brilliant successes is a far larger group of Asian tech startups: those that fail.

In my experience, most investment and industry insiders estimate that about nine out of every 10 Asian startups will fail to reach their fifth birthday.

I have the privilege of examining hundreds of fundraising memorandums from Asian startups each year. I also have extensive experience on the board and in the C-suite of successful technology companies such as the Australian unicorn, the REA Group.

Here, let me walk you through the three most common reasons Asian tech startups fail and how founders can avoid them.

Not solving a real problem

Failure to solve a real problem for other people is also known as a “lack of product-market fit.” That is startup jargon for “no one wants to buy what you are trying to sell.” You don’t need an MBA to understand that your business can only succeed when people are willing to pay you real money.

In Asia, too many technology entrepreneurs rely on imported business models or overemphasise the use of technology. It’s natural to look at other markets such as China or the Western World for inspiration.

Unfortunately, when founders bring ideas into emerging Asia, they are tempted to overlook how different local needs can be. 

Also, while North America or Europe are advanced in some aspects, that is not always the case. Asian companies are on the cutting edge in social commerce, super-apps and 5G.

Also Read: How fintech startups can fast forward their growth

There are also gaps among the various Asian markets themselves. Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand have much in common but offer very distinct challenges for any business. 

If you hope to import a business model or a technology, do your homework to make sure it can succeed before you tie the success of your entire enterprise to it.

At Juwai IQI, for example, we discovered that there is no common and established platform that enables real estate agents to do their business in Asia’s developing markets.

This kind of enterprise resource planning and customer relationship management software is easy to find in nearby Australia and New Zealand or the US. Still, we decided not to import a solution developed elsewhere.

Instead, we have created a proprietary platform for our more than 21,000 agents. Each of them literally carries an entire real estate office in their mobile phone.

The functionality may not be as deep as in more mature markets, but it is very wide and solves a real problem for our agents. It also makes them more productive as a result, and we can improve the offering over time.

Obsolescence before launch

As risky as it is to import a business model from another place, it can be just as dangerous to adopt one whose time has passed. Although startup founders are supposed to be the most forward-looking of businesspeople, they regularly create online businesses that are already out of date before they even launch.

In most of Asia today, any new business that depends on reaching users via the web —rather than through social media or super-apps — is probably obsolete.

Older technology such as websites, standalone apps or messaging via SMS are still widely used in many Western markets, but life in Asia has moved on.

Also read: e27 Discussions, my first startup was a failure but I want to start another one, how can I do better this time round?

Today, most consumers are not surfing the web in the same way we did 10 or 20 years ago but are scrolling through social media. They are not downloading apps from every company with which they have a relationship. Instead, they are connecting within the supportive environments of super-apps such as WeChat and Grab.

Social commerce is a combination of social networking and live streaming. It took Alibaba’s Taobao Live just 30 minutes last year to transact US$7.5 billion in sales during pre-sales for Singles Day. 

Super-luxury brand Louis Vuitton is famous for controlling its image and every aspect of the consumer’s experience of its brand. Yet, it was the first large luxury brand to cede a measure of control by marketing its wares in the free-for-all of Xiaohongshu, the word-of-mouth community shopping forum also known as Little Red Book.

Very few products cannot be sold via these new channels. Automobiles are significant purchases that consumers have traditionally wanted to experience in person. Yet, even car buyers now start their search on social media.

At Mobil123.com’s virtual car expo in August of 2020, consumers bought cars online from BMW, Honda, Mazda and MG. (Full disclosure, I am Chairman of iCar Asia, Mobil123.com’s parent company.)

If you want your business to succeed, go to the consumers on the platforms where they already spend their time.

Tech startups failing to be sustainable 

The next failing that leads many Asian tech startups to crash and burn is a failure to build a sustainable enterprise. Your solution must be profitable —or at least offer the potential of attaining profitability at scale. Otherwise, you are solving a problem but not creating a business.

Even startups losing billions and having no short-term plan for profitability are only viable because of their future potential. Chinese ride-sharing giant Didi lost US$1.6 billion last year. But Didi has already shown that it does solve a problem.

Moreover, consumers are willing to pay for this solution – to the sum of more than US$21 billion last year. Investors know Didi is invests every dollar it can into additional growth, and that will likely pay off in greater profitability later.

Also read: From Archives: Why do startups fail: Part 1

Your business, too, must be sustainable to succeed.

These problems are not unique to Asia. In fact, they are the same challenges that cause so many tech startups to fail all over the world. Asian markets, however, are particularly competitive and fast-moving, and that leaves founders and investors here even less room for error.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community or like the e27 Facebook page

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