Leading Southeast Asian  VC firm Monk’s Hill Ventures (MHV) today announced the launch of the Venture Scouts programme.

The programme comprises over 20 venture scouts, who will nurture and invest in high-growth pre-seed and seed startups across Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia.

Also Read: Monk’s Hill Ventures head of talent’s guide to startup jobs search in Singapore

Monk’s Hill Ventures’s Venture Scouts community brings together exceptional founders, entrepreneurs, and operators with solid startup track records. They also represent a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences. The venture scouts include Bukalapak co-founder Achmad Zaky, Snapcart co-founder Araya Noon Hutasuwan, Zopim co-founder Royston Tay, R Fitness founder Gita Sjahrir,  Pace Enterprise founder Turochas Fuad, and RAENA co-founder Sreejita Deb.

According to Monk’s Hill Ventures, one of the key differentiators is the strength of the Venture Scouts in the programme. “Each venture scout has a strong background/track record as a founder, operator, and entrepreneur, which we believe will add the most value to seed-stage startups and the tech ecosystem from day one,” said a spokesperson.

Venture Scouts are directly responsible for sourcing, vetting, and investing in startups. They invest across verticals and markets.

“The Southeast Asia tech ecosystem continues to evolve rapidly with brave founders emerging to reimagine traditional business models. At MHV, we believe in entrepreneurs backing entrepreneurs. Through this programme, we empower founders to support fellow founders from day one,” said Peng T. Ong, co-founder and managing partner of Monk’s Hill Ventures.

Also Read: A horse of another: Here’s the full list of Southeast Asia’s 22 unicorns

To date, Venture Scouts have made ten investments in verticals, including consumer, B2B, fintech, and sustainability. This includes Crystal Widjaja, CPO of Kumu, who recently invested in ADPList, a global mentoring platform, and John Tan, founder of Doyobi, who invested in Rocket Academy, an online coding boot camp.

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Image Credit: Monk’s Hill Ventures

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Adatos, a provider of Artificial Intelligence-driven remote sensing analysis for agriculture and carbon markets, has announced the closing of its Series A round with undisclosed investment from Malaysia’s Genting Plantations.

As per a statement, the funding will enable Singapore- and Netherlands-based Adatos to foray into the palm oil and other agriculture sectors and strengthen its carbon measuring capabilities.

Founded in 2015 by CEO Jonathan Paul and CTO Drew Perez, Adatos uses AI to analyse complicated open-source satellite data sets to give operational and strategic insights for agriculture and the fast-growing multi-trillion dollar carbon markets. 

Adatos claims its solution results in higher agricultural yields, effective fertiliser use, and better pest and disease surveillance. The use of remote sensing also speeds up and lowers the cost of carbon measurement in natural forests and peat soils.

The startup boasts that it has worked on over 150 use cases and analysed over 400 million hectares of assets for clients in agricultural production, food processing, forestry, and natural resource management.

Also read: Green for good: 9 agritech startups in Southeast Asia fighting deforestation

Adatos plans to keep developing new applications across agriculture, including remote yield estimation and crop macronutrient measurement. It also expands into international carbon asset monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) services, including remotely assessing peat depth and above-ground biomass at scale. 

“Since our investment in 2016, Adatos has demonstrated profitable use cases for advanced AI from agriculture to sustainability,” said Paul Santos, Managing Partner of Wavemaker Partners, an early investor in Adatos. 

Genting Plantations, a subsidiary of Genting Berhard, owns extensive land banks and oil mills in Malaysia and Indonesia and is making inroads into manufacturing downstream palm-based products. It focuses on the use of precision agriculture to leverage its operational performance. 

“Our investment in Adatos and the deployment of its cutting-edge AI will place GENP at the forefront of the Agricultural Technology revolution,” said Tan Kong Han, CEO of Genting Plantations.

According to the Asian Development Bank Institute’s paper series in 2019, emission pricing was worth US$50 billion in 2016 with growing global interest in carbon trading programmes. The number of carbon markets has also doubled since 2012.

Singapore is working towards the “30 by 30” goal to build up the agri-food industry’s capability and capacity to produce 30 per cent of nutritional needs locally and sustainably by 2030. Since then, collaboration to accelerate the growth of AgriTech businesses has gained traction. 

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Image credit: Adatos

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Just hours after Indonesian fintech startup Xendit announced its entry into the billion-dollar club, Singapore’s leading classifieds company Carosell Group entered the unicorn club by bagging a US$100M financing.

The round, led by Korean PE firm STIC Investments, takes Carousell’s valuation to US$1.1 billion.

Carousell said in a press note that it would use the money to “redefine commerce for second-hand goods and automobiles in an increasingly digitally-savvy, affluent and sustainability-conscious region”.

Quek Siu Rui, co-founder and CEO, said Carousell will deepen its investments in re-commerce across more categories and markets and will continue to seek opportunistic acquisitions in scaling up.”

Also Read: Carousell mulling US listing via SPAC merger at US$1.5B valuation: report

“The pandemic has shown us that our mission to inspire the world to start selling and buying second-hand is more relevant than ever. People in the community are using our platforms to make possible for each other—through shared passions, making ends meet, affording what they need, or simply because it is more sustainable. We believe that the accelerated adoption of digital experiences is an opportunity for us to double down on our re-commerce efforts with a focus on convenience and trust, to unlock step-change growth in our community,” he added.

Launched in August 2012, Carousell began in Singapore and is present in eight markets across Asia. As of last September, the firm had over 250 million listings across Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

The marketplace has a diverse range of products across various categories, including cars, lifestyle, gadgets and fashion accessories. It also owns and operates Cho Tot (Vietnam), Mudah (Malaysia), OneKyat (Myanmar), and Revo Financial (Singapore).

“We have grown way beyond categories like fashion, electronics and general goods,” said Siu Rui, “As the region becomes more affluent, people want to enjoy the finer things in life. We are looking at authentication capabilities for higher-value products, including luxury goods and cars. Our goal is to make transacting in a second-hand marketplace as convenient and trusted as any e-commerce platform so that second-hand can truly be the first choice. ”

Also Read: Exceptional founders to nurture, invest in promising startups as part of Monk’s Hill Ventures’s new programme

Early this year, Carousell launched integrated shipping with PosLaju (the Malaysia national postal service) to provide contactless transaction options for sellers and buyers during the Movement Control Order.

Before this round, Carousell has raised over US$260 million via several rounds. They included a US$80 million from a consortium of companies in September 2020 and US$56 million from OLX in April 2019. Carousell’s other investors include Telenor Group, Rakuten Ventures, Sequoia India and Naspers.

In 2019, it made a series of acquisitions to accelerate leadership in Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, including 701Search, the classifieds firm owned by Norwegian telco Telenor Group, and OLX Philippines.

In June, a Bloomberg report said citing undisclosed sources that Carousell was mulling public listing in the US via the merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The listing could occur as soon as the end of this year.

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Image Credit: Carousell

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Medigo, a Vietnam-based medtech platform, today announced that it has raised US$1 million in seed funding from Vietnam-based early-stage VC Touchstone Partners.

Medigo will use the funding to strengthen its technology and operation, increase customer base and expand the pharmacy network with a high number of stock-keeping units (SKUs).

A portion of the capital injection will also be utilised to build Medigo’s telemedicine that provides customer teleconsultation with doctors. This is in line with the product roadmap of Medigo as a connecting platform.

Founded in 2019 by CEO Ha Le, an experienced engineer returning to Vietnam from Germany, Medigo aims to connect users with remote and high-quality healthcare services that provide on-demand medicine delivery 24/7. It helps people find the nearest licensed pharmacies and order medicine to be delivered within 20 minutes.

The company claims that it has formed partnerships with more than 200 pharmacies including large pharmacy chains and hospital pharmacies across three key cities of Vietnam. These partners are all required to be certified and licensed by Vietnam’s Ministry of Health with experienced and dedicated pharmacists.

Also Read: GlobalCare bags funding from VinaCapital to provide insurtech solutions to Vietnamese insurance firms, agents

Medigo CEO said that most Vietnamese go to pharmacies as the first touchpoint for their medical symptoms. However, their quality is hard to verify. 

“We want to use medicine delivery as a feature to educate users of online healthcare services and be familiar with remote pharmacists and doctors’ consultation, building a strong foundation for Medigo’s future telemedicine services,” stated Medigo CEO Ha Le. 

Le added that Medigo is also developing more service offerings such as advertising and ordering medicine in bulk for the pharmacies in the network.

According to the press statement, Medigo is gaining traction by helping people buy medicine remotely from the comfort of their homes, especially during lockdowns. The firm boasts that its gross merchandise value (GMV) has increased eight times with more than 200,000 users in the past six months. These pharmacies partners have also registered a 20-50 per cent increase in revenue.

“We believe this trend will stay as we enter a re-opening period while still managing the pandemic in Vietnam,” said Tu Ngo, general partner of Touchstone Partners. “The investment also aligns with our ESG-friendly investment principles, building a platform for affordable and accessible high-quality healthcare services to the mass in Vietnam.”

The deal is one of the first investments of Touchstone Partners’s US$50 million debut fund since launching in April this year. The firm’s sectors of interest include fintech, real estate, healthcare, edutech, and technology that enhances efficiency in major Vietnamese value chains such as manufacturing and agriculture.

Also Read: Ex-VinaCapital Ventures exec’s US$50M fund Touchstone Partners hits first close

In Vietnam, 70 per cent of the Vietnamese population is living in rural or remote areas, which is a boon for the telehealth market to help address the medical personnel shortage and reduce overall healthcare costs.

According to the Facts and Factors market research report, the global telehealth market’s revenue is slated to grow to US$475.50 billion by 2026 at an annual CAGR of 26.5 per cent during 2021-2026.

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Image credit: Medigo

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The impact that digital technology has on quality of life is distinct and far-reaching. Tech is especially pervasive in areas such as fintech, edtech, and medtech but its transformative power can be applied to more — such as building community resilience against disasters. 

According to the World Disasters Report 2020, more than 100 disasters happened just in the first 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and almost 52 million people have been hit by both the pandemic and climate-related disasters. The latest sixth assessment report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has also revealed one particularly concerning finding: that many changes due to past and future greenhouse gas emissions are irreversible for centuries to millennia.

There is a pressing need for innovative and effective solutions to tackle these critical environmental challenges. The SAFE Steps D-Tech Awards is an initiative that recognises the role of technology in building community resilience. Closely aligned to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of Sustainable Cities and Communities, the awards are established to find, fund, and support technology solutions that protect and save lives before, during, or after natural disasters.

Recently, the 2021 SAFE Steps D-Tech Awards brought to the forefront 4 winners with tech solutions that are creating waves of change by building the resilience of communities to the onset of disasters. Singaporean startup, EcoWorth Tech, won the for-profit category while United States-based organisation, The Stimson Center, topped in the non-profit category. Meanwhile, runner-ups in the for-profit and nonprofit categories respectively were Australian startup, FloodMapp, and Fields Data from Norway.

EcoWorth Tech

Oil and chemical spills in oceans destroy marine life and can have long-term ecological impacts. Singaporean cleantech startup EcoWorth Tech is nipping this pain point in the bud with its Carbon Fibre Aerogel (CFA) sponge made from low-cost natural materials such as waste biomass, renewable cotton, or waste paper. 

EcoWorth’s reusable CFA sponge is modest, but it is proving its might in solving serious issues like oil and gas decontamination, and industrial wastewater treatment. It can absorb up to 190 times its own weight and remove up to 99% of organic liquid contaminants such as grease, solvents, dyes, fats, and oils from wastewater. Once the CFA absorbs oils or other organics, it can be squeezed out mechanically to recover and reuse the oils. The treated water is then safe to be released back into the environment.

Also read: Meet these 4 founders who are raising millions and redefining the way businesses are done

The company converts “waste to worth” to address big environmental issues of water scarcity, waste management and pollution. The strong problem-solution fit, potential to address the market at large and solid business model propelled EcoWorth Tech to the winning position in the for-profit category.

Good disaster technologies can be used again and again. EcoWorth Tech’s solution solves pain points across multiple industries including waste upcycling, oil spill response, oil refineries and wastewater treatment. For this startup, the scalability of CFA and the potential of converting other waste materials for its production signals a promising growth trajectory.

Stimson Center

The Stimson Center won the award for its Mekong Dam Monitor, an open-source online platform that uses remote sensing, satellite imagery, and social media to provide near-real time reporting of dams. The project is especially crucial to avoid the occurrence of upstream flooding that can cause millions of dollars in damage.

The Mekong River traverses 4 countries — originating in China, passes through Laos and Thailand, before meeting the South China Sea in Vietnam. Numerous upstream hydroelectric dams in China and Laos have caused water levels to plunge low causing water shortages, while tropical climate causes it to overflow dangerously at times leading to seasonal flash floods. 

The unpredictability places great strain on the vulnerable communities in the region. By forewarning and providing 48 hours preparation time to adapt to any changes, the Mekong Dam Monitor helps mitigate potentially devastating loss of lives and livelihood in the instance of flooding. It works using publicly-available data inputs from the US’s Defense Meteorological Satellite Array and European Space Agency’s Sentinel Satellite Array. By feeding surface wetness information into an algorithm that models how the river would run without any dams, the Mekong Dam Monitor can forecast short-term droughts and floods. 

But this project is also making great strides beyond its warning system. With its comprehensive data processing, the Mekong Dam Monitor is compelling upstream agencies to improve the transparency and accountability of its activities. In turn, this also gives downstream stakeholders or governments access to better data for negotiation of a fairer water share. 

More importantly, the great success of the Mekong Dam Monitor lies in its scalability to other river basins around the world. As climate change leads to more severe weather events, wider use of this monitoring technology will help communities cope with floods and water scarcity. Overall, the Stimson Center looks to create greater impact by providing more citizen science opportunities and localising its products.

FloodMapp

Foresight is key to prevent emergencies and people from being stranded in flooding disasters. This Australia-based startup specialises in rapid real-time flood forecasting and flood inundation mapping. The technology confidently lets people know when and where floods will occur at each stage of a flood emergency — before, during, and after. 

By providing warnings ahead of time, FloodMapp protects lives and reduces financial loss from damages. Globally, the annual flood damage amounts to $16.8 billion which FloodMapp claims can be prevented by buying time. Damage from floods such as power utilities and prolonged outages significantly affect livelihoods. Communities also face the risk of a devastating loss of lives, homes, buildings and other valuables.

Also read: How Australian scaleups are contributing to Singapore’s tech ecosystem

FloodMapp gives a 200X more granular view that looks at community and asset-level impact compared to other traditional flood models. Through visual mapping, users get an easy view of assets and locations at risk of flooding hours up to 10 days ahead of time. The data used come from trusted leaders like the Australian Government’s Bureau of Meteorology. Based on these data inputs, FloodMapp derives insights from its high-tech trained catchment hydraulic models, machine learning models and processed river systems.

With flooding predicted to displace 50 million people by year 2100, FloodMapp is solving a critical need to build a safer future and more resilient communities. The impact of FloodMapp’s forecasting technology has enhanced preparedness and risk mitigation; improved public safety by cutting supply of power to at-risk assets, protect communities from being stranded and prevent huge financial losses. 

Fields Data

One big setback that humanitarian organisations experience is the lack of data-driven insights for effective decision-making. Despite the noblest intentions, not having enough data simply impedes good work. Some reasons for this data scarcity are tasks taking precedence over providing data, low connectivity in many areas of work and inconsistent updates.

Recognising this gap, Norway-based startup Fields Data collects and shares ground-level information about humanitarian and international development organisations in the form of 4W maps: Who does What, Where, and When. Its purpose is to empower organisations by providing tailored data-driven solutions to facilitate informed decision-making.

Fields Data collects data, processes, analyses and puts it together in dashboard form. Especially where public data can be scattered and unreliable, Fields Data facilitates partnerships, gives visibility to organisations working hard in the field, and helps organisations improve efficiencies. Currently, it covers over 450 organisations in Burundi and Ghana, with plans to expand to India.

The role of the tech community in disaster relief

The impact of COVID-19 reverberates across the world and only further highlights the growing vulnerability of people to disasters. Investments in D-Tech, especially in the Southeast Asian region, are picking up since building community resilience is now critical more than ever before.

Also read: Startup x Innovation Thailand Expo 2021: A virtual world of innovation

In a world of commercially oriented tech solutions, the climate crisis and global pandemic have showcased the use of technology to protect lives. D-tech startups in the emergency technology space have raised significant equity recently: US-based company, RapidSOS (US$85M) and Israeli startup, Carbyne (US$25M).

The vibrancy of D-tech is key to spur more innovators and entrepreneurs in the space for the greater good. As disasters and crises remain prevalent, concerted effort by the best minds in tech is vital to build resilience and safeguard communities.

Keen to know more about SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards?

The 2021 SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards was created by Prudence Foundation and supported by humanitarian partner, the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and technology partner, Lenovo. The partners recognised potential in many solutions in different locations.

Winners and runners up will receive grants from a pool of US$200,000, of which US$150,000 came from Prudence Foundation and US$50,000 from Lenovo. Lenovo will also provide in-kind support for the winners and runners-up in both categories.

Find out more about the SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards 2021 here.

The IFRC and Prudence Foundation are also hosting a webinar on 21 September at the upcoming World Economic Forum Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2021 titled “Advancing Technology for Community Resilience”. The webinar will highlight how technology can support communities to be more resilient, and discuss the barriers to scaling up innovation in this area. Sign up here.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Prudence.

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