In celebration of the upcoming Philippines Startup Week, we are thrilled to announce that we are working with QBO to provide startups access to investors in the region through e27 Pro. 

Philippine Startup Week 2021

Philippine Startup Week 2021 (PHSW21) is the country’s large-scale collaborative initiative to showcase the Filipino startup community in a week-long event. Made possible through the partnership between the Department of Science and Technology, Department of Trade & Industry, Department of Information and Communications Technology, and QBO Innovation Hub. 

Philippine Startup Week 2021 (PHSW21), with this year’s theme “Beyond Recovery: Filipino Startups Redefining Opportunity”, is happening on November 15-19, 2021. The  5-day virtual conference will be held via an online platform that will enable attendees to learn, interact, network, and collaborate remotely. The conference sets out to highlight the various sectors and entities contributing to the growing Philippine startup ecosystem.

Also read: B2B platform Komachine on a mission to transform the industrial machine industry

The conference features five specialised tracks designed to target relevant topics and audiences from the different startup ecosystem stakeholders: Discover, Develop, Collaborate, Invest, and Showcase. 

Through pitching competitions, learning sessions, expo booths, main summits, investor programmes, and various community events under the five unique tracks, the Philippine Startup Week provides a platform for innovators to celebrate the Filipino startup community and the key players contributing to the growing Philippine startup ecosystem, educate more people about the potential of the startup ecosystem, and explore synergies and connect with relevant stakeholders from across the country and beyond. For more information and to get PHSW21 tickets, visit www.phstartupweek.com.

Venture Pilipinas: The Startup Venture Fund Pitch

The Startup Venture Fund, which will be launched during Philippine Startup Week 2021 by the Department of Trade and Industry and the National Development Company, is one of the programmes created under the Philippine Innovative Startup Act. This particular fund is meant to provide rising startups with the resources they need to grow further, scale-up, and potentially expand into the international market. The way it works is that the National Development Company will match the investments of selected investors in homegrown startups based here in the Philippines, ultimately giving the startups a greater chance at success.

In line with the launch of the Startup Venture Fund, the inaugural Venture Pilipinas: The Startup Venture Fund Pitch is happening on November 19, 2021, from 4 – 7 PM at the PHSW21 virtual stage. The event is set to showcase ten (10) high-growth startups from various industry verticals, and the pitch will be conducted similarly to Shark Tank—with the founders encouraged to bring their A-game to their presentation as they battle for the chance at highly coveted mentorship hours led by esteemed potential SVF Partners. The ten (10) participating startups include:

• Agro-DigitalPH, a digital solution focused on raising farmers’ incomes through end-to-end sustainable value chain solutions.
• CEREBRO, a ready-to-use eLearning solution aimed at reducing faculty workload and improving the quality of online teaching. 
• Dirt Bag, an on-demand laundry service that is easy on the lifestyle, easy on the budget.
• Farm Box, a social enterprise that provides support and assistance to the local farmers by helping them have access to quality farming essentials and agricultural solutions.
• JazzyPay, a ​​FinTech startup that provides affordable and accessible digital payment solutions for traditional businesses.
• Mosaic, a cloud-based restaurant management solutions provider that supports the F&B industry by helping businesses maximise profits, improve top-line sales, and streamline operations. 
• OMG!, a technology-based startup that provides customers everything they need from their favourite brands in as fast as 30 minutes.
• Shoppertainment Live, a startup focused on bridging brands with customers and helping shoppers understand products more through real-time engagement, reviews, and entertaining live demos. 
• Tangere, a tech-based startup that provides a more efficient and current way of market data gathering, making market research more accessible with real-time actionable insights.
• Wela, an end-to-end system that automates school processes while providing real-time data access to parents and students. 

Opportunities to build your investor network

Over the past couple of months, we have served over 3,000 connections between startups and investors through e27 Pro’s Connect feature.

In this new normal, there is a distinctive lack of ability for different parts of the Southeast Asia tech ecosystem to reach out to each other.

We used to have thousands of offline activities happening monthly, connecting various local and regional ecosystems, connecting startups, corporates, governments, and investors. Even our very own Echelon used to bring in more than 10,000 people over two days to achieve these meaningful, often serendipitous, connections.

Also read: How the construction industry got “smart” and cleaned up its impact

This is a real pain, especially if you are new to the ecosystem and do not have existing networks that can introduce you to new ones. Online webinars and conferences temporarily alleviate this issue, but we find that the startup ecosystem requires more.

e27’s mission has always been to empower entrepreneurs with the tools to build and grow their companies. With e27 Pro, we’re going back to our roots and helping startups with their fundraising by providing a platform that allows not only discovery but a tool to begin conversations with investors and update them on their progress.

With over 300 verified active investors on the platform, e27 Pro members have in their reach the ability to find, connect, and engage with investors that are right for them (not a Pro member yet? Start here).

Get the chance to connect with QBO

QBO is onboard e27 Pro, and members can reach out directly to them via Connect.

Any e27 Pro member can simply visit QBO’ profile and click the Connect button to get the ball rolling.

About the organisers

QBO Innovation Hub: QBO (‘ku-bo’) is an innovation hub or a platform for the start-up community to collaborate, develop talents, and grow. We believe in the vision of Filipino start-ups changing the world. We provide startups with support and resources through events and capacity building programmes and focused interventions designed to improve access to markets, knowledge, capital, and talent. Created in 2016 through a partnership between IdeaSpace, J.P. Morgan, DOST, and DTI, QBO has been an active player in creating a competitive start-up ecosystem in the Philippines. For more information, visit www.qbo.com.ph. 

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI): The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is the agency of the Philippine government responsible for realising the country’s goal of developing globally competitive and innovative industry and services sectors that contribute to inclusive growth and employment generation in the Philippines. For more information, visit https://www.dti.gov.ph.

National Development Company (NDC): The National Development Company is the Philippine’s leading state-owned enterprise investing in diverse industries, serving as an effective catalyst for inclusive growth. For more information, visit https://www.ndc.gov.ph.

The post QBO partners with e27 for Startup Venture Fund Pitch appeared first on e27.

Homebase, a proptech company in Vietnam, has attracted US$30 million in equity and debt funding from a host of investors, including Y Combinator and its CEO Michael Seibel, Partech Partners, Goodwater Capital, Ace and Company, Emles Advisors and Foundamental.

Existing investors VinaCapital Ventures, Brian Ma (co-founder of Divvy Homes), Troy Steckenrider III (ex-COO of Zerodown), and Darius Cheung (founder of 99.co) also co-invested and were joined by operators and executives from SoFi, Opendoor, Republic, Microsoft, Instacart, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and Binance also joined.

Southeast Asia is the world’s fastest-growing real estate market. However, it has become one of the least affordable as it takes longer than two decades for the average millennial to save up for their first home in Vietnam. Even during COVID-19 lockdowns in Q3 2021, average landed property prices grew about 3-17 per cent YoY, according to global real estate consultancy CBRE.

Also Read: Owning a house in Vietnam is no longer a distant dream, thanks to Homebase

Traditional bank mortgage options now require a loan-to-value ratio of up to 50 per cent with 13 per cent yearly interest rates. This, coupled with growing property prices, has increasingly placed homeownership out of reach for anyone other than high net-worth individuals with stable incomes.

Started by JunYuan Tan and Phillip An, Homebase aims to make homeownership accessible across Southeast Asia by providing an alternative to traditional mortgage financing.

Its flagship co-investment product buys homes upfront for clients, allows them to move in and buy back anytime. Clients can fully buy out when they are ready, or walk away and cash out their savings.

How it works:

• Clients choose any home they like, or Homebase can recommend an agent to help find one,
• Homebase then buys the home in cash; clients need to make a minimum 20 per cent deposit,
• Clients can move in, renovate, or rent out their home as they wish,
• Each month, clients deposit a fixed amount that builds their home savings; there’s no rent, interest, or other monthly fees,
• At any time, clients can choose to fully buy out their home when they’ve deposited 100 per cent of the pre-agreed price; or, they can walk away and cash out their savings.

The first Vietnamese company to be selected for the Y Combinator programme, Homebase is set to develop its proprietary technology further, launch additional partnerships with real estate developers and agents, and increase its talent base in the coming months.

Also Read: Homebase bags 7-figure pre-Series A round to expand property financing platform in SEA

Its mission is to empower homeownership for 100,000 families across Southeast Asia.

Less than a year ago, Homebase announced the closing of a “seven-figure USD” pre-Series A round from investors, including VinaCapital, Class 5 Global, Pegasus Technology Ventures, 1982 Ventures, and Antler.

—

Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

Image Credit: Homebase

The post Homebase lands US$30M to provide an alternative to traditional mortgage financing in Vietnam appeared first on e27.

She Loves Tech, an international non-profit committed to closing the funding gap for women entrepreneurs, has launched a US$10 million early-stage accelerator fund co-managed by Teja Ventures, reports Tech In Asia.

She Loves Tech Global Fund will fund up to US$100,000 in pre-seed and seed round of 100 women-led firms over three years. There are no specific requirements regarding the location or industry of startups.

As stated at Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH) 2021, Microsoft Asia will join hands with She Loves Tech in a multi-year partnership spanning 15 countries in Asia to contribute towards inclusive economic growth.

Also read: A woman among women: 27 female-led startups in SEA that are going places

Following the collaboration, Microsoft will support an Azure-powered digital platform to facilitate connections at scale between women entrepreneurs, VCs and angel investors worldwide.

As per a press statement, She Loves Tech startups will also get access to Microsoft’s cloud environment, technology tools and security solutions to pilot born-in-the-cloud innovations and “scale from idea to unicorn.”

In addition, Microsoft’s global ecosystem of industry experts will bring into the fold deep technical and co-selling expertise to support faster go-to-market and a community for mentoring, skilling and funding for startups.

Learning content on MS Learn and LinkedIn Learning will also be incorporated into She Loves Tech’s curriculum.

Launched in 2015 and based in China and Singapore, She Loves Tech is an acceleration and community platform for women in technology. It aims to unlock over US$1 billion in capital by 2030 for women-led businesses.

She Loves Tech holds an annual global competition catering to early-stage, female-founded startups in 50 countries. To date, its startups have raised more than US$250 million post-competition.

“By helping over 10,000 women entrepreneurs gain access to funding, a global network, and support from other women founders from around the world, we hope their success will indirectly contribute towards creating 100,000 jobs across local economies in Asia,” said Leanne Robers, co-founder of She Loves Tech.

Also read: Investing with gender lens: Proven strategy to achieve 2x+ in returns

The pandemic has further exacerbated the disparity in salaries and access to funding for female founders. Funding to female founders dropped 31 per cent last year, compared to a 16 per cent dip for ventures run solely by males, according to PitchBook. Women-led startups in Southeast Asia even attracted only 0.9 per cent of total capital raised in the region in 2020.

However, there is a global trend of investors who are betting on female founders, who took in US$46.3 billion in funding in 2019, according to data from PitchBook. That’s more than twice the number a year before and more than 15 times that in 2010.

—

Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

Image Credit: Microsoft

The post She Loves Tech earmarks US$10M for women-led firms, joins hand with Microsoft appeared first on e27.

Rapid innovation in financial services in Singapore has spurred the nation into becoming a regional fintech hub. Known as The Asian Silicon Valley, Singapore is home to many fintech, holding more than 40 per cent of the regional market share.

In H1 2021 alone, the fintech sector clocked in 72 deals worth US$614.2 million (S$833.8 million), a 22 per cent jump from last year.

This number is expected to continue upward as more fintech, including crypto companies, pour in investments.

Singapore is becoming a hotspot for global crypto companies with its crypto-friendly regulations, investor-oriented climate, and evolving licensing regime.

They have quadrupled in number since 2017, resulting in a vibrant yet highly competitive environment that fuels growth and innovation.

As such, for crypto companies planning to launch and expand their business in Singapore, being aware of the current landscape is crucial to helping them thrive.

Understanding Singapore’s cryptocurrency market

As of January 2020, the Payment Services Act (PSA) requires all-digital payment token providers (DPT), including cryptocurrency trading platforms, to be registered and licensed.

Also Read: Why is there no crypto ETF yet in Singapore?

The act streamlines payment services under single legislation and calibrates regulations according to the activities’ risks by adopting a modular regulatory regime.

Recently, Singapore issued its first licenses to a cryptocurrency exchange, a bank and a fintech player to operate as a fully regulated virtual asset service provider (VASP). These “in-principle” approvals being given are reflective of the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Singapore is undoubtedly beginning to embrace crypto— evidenced by Coinhako’s massive 1000 per cent jump in trading volume in the first eight months of 2021, compared to the whole of 2020. Our trading volume is expected to cross the ten-billion-dollar mark by the end of this year.

Overcoming the cryptocurrency stigma

Even with Singapore’s innovation-friendly climate, helming a cryptocurrency business in Singapore comes with its set of unique challenges.

Most notably, banking remains a hurdle for crypto businesses. They are often subject to extensive due diligence or immediately classified as high-risk businesses because of the nature and risk factors of crypto trading.

Most crypto platforms rely on third-party solutions to facilitate their transactions.

As of April 2021, the combined peak daily trading volume of three prominent cryptocurrencies quoted in SGD (Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP2) amounted to only two per cent of the average daily trading volume of securities on the Singapore Exchange 2020.

This shows that cryptocurrencies are still seen as highly volatile assets as their value is not tied to economic fundamentals.

The central bank, too, has increased surveillance of crypto businesses to identify suspicious platforms and is constantly raising public awareness on the risks of trading in crypto.

Entering a new market as a crypto player

Entering a new market should be done the right way. The first step in becoming a crypto player is ensuring compliance with the local laws and regulations. Having a sense of security is important to crypto users.

Also Read: You don’t care about crypto but here are some things you need to know about DeFi

One factor driving them to regulate crypto players is the rise in scams while trading on peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto platforms. These platforms allow individuals to exchange cryptocurrencies directly on their terms, hence the high risk involved.

On top of being compliant and ensuring the best security, offering a user-friendly platform is essential.

Ensuring the platform offers users a robust variety of cryptocurrencies is crucial – meeting the demand for tokens in the crypto market and minimising the risk of trading in a single currency.

Apart from that, enabling users to trade in local currency, giving pricing, withdrawal options, security, and the number of coins available for trading is vital in creating the most conducive crypto exchange environment.

Crypto players can widen the appeal of cryptocurrency and expand their user demographics by tapping into different industries, sports, financial institutions or even technology and media.

Coinhako recently unveiled its venture into e-sports, with sponsorship for Mobile Legends team ALMGHTY, an up-and-coming Singapore e-sports squad.

Approximately half of the sponsorship value is paid in Ethereum, marking Singapore’s first cryptocurrency funded e-sports sponsorship.

With supportive regulations growing in Singapore and the country’s innovative approach to cryptocurrency trading, users are increasingly assured of safe trading platforms.

For Coinhako, complying with the PSA to acquire the necessary licenses remains a top priority. It continues to solidify its position as a leading cryptocurrency service provider in Singapore and the Asia Pacific.

By offering multiple locally preferred payment methods, including S$ bank transfers and card payments, Coinhako can provide a seamless and simplified trading experience for its users.

Also Read: 3 key pillars of crypto trading for the modern trader

As the industry evolves, assuring the security of trading platforms while ensuring user-friendliness will be crucial. The success of crypto trading lies in the technology and the country’s regulations and advisory, which allow for its widespread acceptance.

Moving forward, crypto businesses need to innovate their services and roll out new offerings to remain relevant in Singapore’s highly competitive market.

Crypto trading’s demand and appeal will only expand if it is seen as practical and relatable in day-to-day activities.

–

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

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

 Image credit: 3dsculptor

The post How to scale a crypto business in Singapore’s competitive market appeared first on e27.

Kilo, a Vietnamese B2B e-commerce platform that connects wholesalers with micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), has received US$5 million in pre-Series A financing.

The round is co-led by California-based Altos Ventures and Australian VC firm January Capital, Techcrunch has reported. Existing investor Goodwater Capital, Ascend Vietnam Ventures, Decisive Capital Management, Ratio Ventures, and other angels participated.

Kilo will use the fresh capital to grow the team and add new features, such as financing, logistics and self-service e-commerce store creation for the MSMEs.

Also read: 3 factors affecting e-commerce trends in Vietnam

Founded in 2020 by e-commerce veteran Narayan Kartick, Kilo is a one-stop-shop supporting local SMEs’ digitalisation with shopping and management tools. It enables them to save costs and reduce risks through optimising inventory turnover, offering a diverse assortment of products, and leveraging transparent pricing.

Kilo also assists shop owners on multiple sales channels, including Kilo’s app, Facebook and Zalo, an instant messaging app with 62 million users in Vietnam.

Before founding Kilo, Kartick held the role of CBO at e-commerce giant Tiki that is eyeing a US IPO, and the former vice president of Seoul-based Coupang, which also made its market debut on the NYSE in March.

Kilo boasts that it has grown the net merchandise value by 320 times since launching in October 2020. As stated on its website, the startup taps into an ~US$180 billion retail consumption space in Vietnam, with small retailers covering 80 per cent of the market.

The e-commerce space is ripe for an explosion in the region, with Vietnam’s TIKI and Indonesia’s GoTo eyeing IPOs while snagging sizable deals earlier this month. 

Last week, Vietnam’s B2B e-commerce platform Telio secured US$22.5 million in a pre-Series B round led by VNG Corporation. Last week, Society Pass became the first Vietnamese company to complete a traditional listing on the US stock market.

—

Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

Image Credit: Kilo

The post Ex-Tiki CBO raises US$5M to grow his new B2B e-commerce startup in Vietnam appeared first on e27.