As 2021 rolls to an end, we are taking a look at what made it a great year for e27 and our community. We wanted the year to be all about making connections, creating opportunities, and being heard in a world that is still gaining its footing. Here are the highlights of our year:

Close to 9,000 connections made through e27 Pro

Without events – large and small – that allow us to gather together, we wanted to give startups and investors an avenue to discover, meet, and connect with each other. This year we focussed on creating improvements to e27 Pro’s Connect feature that would allow for that.

We have made investor discovery easier on our platform – this includes not just highlighting over 400 verified investors who are open for connection requests, but recommending investors relevant to startups based on vertical and funding stage. Apart from that, we are in regular communications with both investors and startups, highlighting potential connections they could initiate.

Also Read: A horse of another: Here’s the complete list of Southeast Asia’s 26 unicorns

Startups and investors are able to manage their connection requests with the Connect Dashboard. Startups get an overall view of their Connect activities, while Investors can use the additional feature of the Connection Manager to respond to connection requests. Both startups and investors can also schedule and track their meeting progress with the Appointment Manager.

Since we launched Connect, we’re excited to say that close to 9,000 startup-investor connections were made.

Highlighting 56 heroes of the SEA startup ecosystem

Amidst the numerous adversities that the COVID-19 pandemic brought about, Southeast Asian (SEA) startup ecosystem has proven its resilience. At the beginning of 2021, we wanted to put the spotlight on the heroes of the SEA startup ecosystem – individuals who played instrumental roles in the resilience and success of their respective organisations.

The e27 Luminaries features non-founders who have led groundbreaking projects, implemented life-saving ideas, or made improbable achievements despite the unfavourable situation, and who are directly nominated by their respective organisations.

From HR managers, business development executive, administrative staff, and more, we put the spotlight on 56 individuals from 56 companies selected based on their remarkable achievements in any one of the five categories: Pivots, Fundings and Acquisitions, Partnerships, Expansions, and Breakthroughs.

Making the voices of over 370 rising thought leaders heard across 1000+ community articles

In e27, we not only keep you updated on the region’s latest startup ecosystem news. More than just a running commentary and announcements on launches, fundings, and whatnot, what we really aim to do is to tell your story.

But it’s not just us telling the stories. You, the e27 Community, trusted us to share your own stories, offer your insights and best practices, dole out advice, and more. In fact, some of the most read stories in 2021 are articles contributed by our growing community. 

This year, we published over a thousand articles contributed by over 370 contributors; 303 of whom shared an article with us for the first time.

We know that putting your stories and insights out there takes more than just time and we wanted to thank you. A few weeks ago, we announced e27 Voices: The top 50 emerging thought leaders of the tech startup ecosystem to show how much we appreciate the trust you placed in us sharing your stories. 

And in honour of that, on behalf of our contributors, we donated to Aidha, a charity that is supporting entrepreneurship and financial literacy education for marginalised women, because in a world such as we are in now, having the chance to help offer opportunities is both a privilege and a responsibility.

Learning and sharing together – from across the miles

Life goes on, even if we are all stuck at home. One of the things that make this a great community is the willingness of each one to share their knowledge and experiences. We wanted to create this shared learning experience this year despite not being able to in person.

In 2021, we held 37 online events to help you build and grow your companies and upskill your team. 

From the Fundraising Fundamentals series that featured the region’s top VCs as they shared what they are looking for in startups; the Startup Playbook Series that covered various topics from the basics of setting up you sales process to the fundamentals of B2B Sales; the Scaling Your Startup Across Borders series that discussed best practices in setting up and managing your remote teams; and many more webinars with topics ranging from building healthy company spending habits to adapting to changing customer behaviour, we’re glad that you shared this learning experience with us.

Building partnerships to create opportunities

This year, we are glad to have worked on over 70 projects with over 50 partners to create opportunities for the SEA startup ecosystem.

From nurturing communities with Facebook Accelerator; sharing opportunities for growth and development in various co-creation projects with ICMG; facilitating mentorship and creating opportunities for growth via the Vision Program with STPI; and opening up expansion to Japan with JETRO; we are proud to have worked together with so many companies and organisations who shared our mission of empowering entrepreneurs with the tools to build and grow their companies.

Not just limited to programs and events, we also worked with partners to give you access to tools and resources that can help you in various stages of your company’s growth.

Improvements to make your experience better

One of the key things we focussed on in 2021 is making it easier for you to move around our platform. We added some features that allowed you to manage your connections, view your articles, and find things easier on the e27 site.

The Connect feature of e27 Pro has a slew of new features this year – from a dashboard that allows startups and investors to view connection requests, to a connection manager that lets investors respond to the connection requests they received, and the appointment manager where both startups and investors can schedule and track their meetings.

We improved the investor page to make it easier to view and connect with verified investors, as well as launched improved recommendations for active investors that may be relevant to our members. 

Also read: Pocket power: 27 personal finance startups in SEA to help you manage money

The startup pages had some cool new features added, allowing companies to share not just basic information but their story and personality with videos, images, and the capability to connect their blog.

It’s now easier for you to learn more about the companies you are reading about as well. We have launched company profile widgets on the sidebar of the article pages so you can easily head to their profile, learn more about them, and connect with them. 

And because we  want to make it easier for you to find the things you are looking for, we have created a dedicated page for news where you can find articles categorised based on specific interests/topics.

We had a lot going on in 2021. We are thrilled and grateful that you have been along for the ride. Onward to 2022!

 

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Northstar Group, a Southeast Asia-focused private equity firm, has announced the final close of its fifth fund with US$590 million of capital commitments.

Northstar Equity Partners V (Northstar V) received backing from sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, institutional investors, family offices and high net worth individuals.

With the final close of the new fund, the group now manages over US$2.5 billion in committed capital.

Northstar V will invest in mature growth companies, with select investments in early-stage opportunities, in Indonesia and, to a lesser extent, other countries in the region.

Its core investment themes will focus on the key growth drivers, including consumers, financial services, the digital economy, and the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. It has already invested in Greenfields Dairy, Advance Intelligence Group, and Ula, which is also backed by Jeff Bezos.

Also Read: Go-Ventures, Northstar Group co-lead eFishery’s Series B round

As per a press note, the group is working on several new opportunities for Northstar V that should close in H1 2022.

“The past two years have seen unprecedented volatility, uncertainty and complexity, but Southeast Asia and, in particular, Indonesia continue to present compelling medium to long-term investment opportunities. As these markets recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, their favourable demographics, increasing wealth and consumption, greater levels of education and further digitisation will drive outsized growth,” said Patrick Walujo, co-founder and managing partner of the Northstar Group.

Founded in 2003 by Walujo and Glenn Sugita, Northstar Group raised its first PE fund, Northstar Equity Partners Limited (US$110 million), in 2006. The second fund with a corpus of US$285 million was closed in 2008, followed by an US$820 million third fund in 2011. The group closed its fourth fund at US$810 million in 2014.

Since its founding, the group has invested in more than 35 companies across the banking, insurance, consumer/retail, healthcare, manufacturing, technology, telecom, and agribusiness sectors, including GoTo Group (formerly Gojek), Bank BTPN, Alfamart, Thai Credit Retail Bank, APAC Realty, Indomaret, Bunda Medical Group, TiKi and Bank Jago.

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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.

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Ex-CTO drags Society Pass into court for “breaching employment contract”, seeks over US$1.3M in damages
Rahul Narain says Society Pass failed to pay him his earned compensation in salary, bonus payments, healthcare reimbursements, equity awards.

Vietnam’s fintech firm MoMo joins unicorn club following US$200M Series E round
Investors include Mizuho, Ward Ferry Management and Goodwater Capital; MoMo will channel the fresh funds to increase the reach of its offerings to 31M customers, starting with a bill payment service.

Northstar Group hits final close of Fund V at US$590M in capital
Northstar V will invest in mature growth companies, with select investments in early-stage opportunities, in Indonesia and, to a lesser extent, other countries in SEA; It is working on several new opportunities for Northstar V that should close in H1 2022.

ONE Championship raises US$150M
Investors include Guggenheim Investments and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA); The firm has already raised US$50M in equity funding from Al-Rayyan Holding, a subsidiary of QIA; ONE is also proposing a merger with Gores Holdings VII, a US$480M blank cheque vehicle listed on the Nasdaq.

SEA-focused SPAC RF Acquisition files for US$100M Nasdaq IPO
The SPAC plans to raise US$115M; It will seek a business combination with a SEA company in the new economy sector, even as it may pursue a target in any industry or geographic location.

CHAI rakes in US$45M to develop a fully automated end-to-end payment infra for merchants
Investors include SoftBank Ventures Asia, Nyca Partners, KT Investment, Samsung NEXT and B Capital; Through CHAI Port, merchants can activate and offer over 30 payment options, such as credit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers and cross-border payments to their customers.

Fashion e-commerce platform Pomelo raising US$20M in Seriec C3
A tranche of about US$12.5M has been received from investors, including European family office Ambient Sound Investments, TA Activity Singapore, and Lavender Investments; In 2019, the firm announced a US$52M Series C from Central Group, and InterVest Star SEA Growth Fund, among others.

MDI Ventures launches angel investment network eMerge with an investment in GOX
eMerge allows angels to invest via a syndication model under an SPV, or co-invest with MDI and other pre-seed and seed-stage VCs; GOX is Indonesian gaming live streaming platform and community.

Solana block explorer Solscan bags US$4M to roll out subscription-based analytics platform
Investors include Multicoin Capital, Electric Capital, Jump Capital, Sequoia India, and CoinGecko; With Solscan Analytics, developers can utilise both on-chain and off-chain data for high-quality market intelligence.

Why Fidelity Funding believes startups need more than just funding to succeed
To curb the high failure rate in the startup ecosystem, Fidelity Funding builds a model that provides startups with more than just money.

Taiwan’s TNL Media Group ropes in Tim Draper as investor
It comes a year after it closed a financing round from Palm Drive, Guitar Hero, and XRM Media co-founder Kai Huang; TNL Media has also launched its seventh media brand, Ohsowow, which will mainly focus on Korean entertainment, culture, and lifestyle content.

Binance leads US$1.5M seed round of P2E gaming guild community Cosmic Guild
Co-investors are DeFiance Capital, Alameda Research, and Play Ventures; Cosmic Guild holds a portfolio of NFT game assets of crypto games that are loaned to guild members who can play using the NFTs and earn yields on games.

Hub Global JSC, an ecosystem for blockchain startups, gets VinaCapital backing
It focuses on three key areas: incubator/accelerator, blockchain community and sandbox, and blockchain investment fund; The newly established blockchain fund is backed by ten LPs and several entrepreneurs.

OnMic, Vietnam’s answer to Clubhouse, scores seed funding from Touchstone Partners
OnMic is an audio content platform that provides voice-streaming chat rooms featuring no visuals and only minimal text; The app also allows live interaction between speakers and audiences to discuss topics spanning spirituality, travel, job counselling, financial advice, and dating.

Pitik nets funding from Arise, Wavemaker Partners
Pitik provides poultry farmers with a full-stack farm management system; It enables them to capture data across the value chain and then utilise this data to improve the efficiency of their operations; Pitik has partnered with farmers in over 20 districts in Java and claims to have secured more than 4M annual chicken production capacity.

Agritech startup Agriaku raises seed funding
Investors include Arise, Wright Partners, and MDI Ventures; Agriaku builds a marketplace that connects agricultural supply stores with manufacturers or first-level distributors; This model allows farmers to procure a full catalogue of SKUs of agri-inputs with ease and at a nominally competitive price point.

AirAsia Food to launch in Indonesia early next year
It has opened applications for prospective partners in the country; AirAsia’s food delivery service was first launched in Malaysia, which it subsequently expanded to Singapore and Thailand.

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Part of preparing for fundraising is getting all the traction metrics that investors, particularly venture capitalists, might want to know about. With its ability to make or break a fundraising process, this can be nerve-wracking even for the more seasoned founders amongst us.

There seem to be plenty of factors that one would like to show to help investors make their decisions, but which one of those actually matters?

Things get even more complicated when we consider the fact that different investors might consider different traction metrics, depending on the verticals that the startup is working on. For example, startups working in the deep tech sector might also need to show proof of concept in their fundraising process while startups in the B2B sectors might need to show their CAC payback period.

But there are principles that are applicable for almost every early stage startup.

In this article, we will look at the different traction metrics that investors would typically consider in an early stage startup. There are three factors that we will explore: market opportunity, proven traction, and other deciding factors.

Market opportunity

Part of the most common reasons why startups fail includes the lack of product-market fit –a situation where startups are building products that the market does not need. This is why market opportunity will be one of the top traction metrics that investors will look at because strong returns can only come from equally strong market shares.

Also Read: Pitching 101: Questions that VCs will ask you during a pitch session

Tech ecosystem enabler RocketSpace details the four factors that investors will consider when it comes to measuring market opportunity in a blog post, that can be summarised into these points:

Total Available Market (TAM)
TAM typically refers to the total revenue of the market that a startup is operating in, usually calculated per geographical location over a five year period. There are different ways that startups can calculate it, including an estimation of how much market it could gain if there were no competitors or an estimation of market size that could theoretically be served with a specific product or service.

Despite its importance, RocketSpace warns against putting too much emphasis on TAM as it does not always translate to high demand.

Market Share
Instead focusing too heavily on TAM, RocketSpace recommends founders talk about the startup’s potential market share or sales measured as a percentage of an industry’s total revenue. For example, if founders predict sales to go up to US$200 million in the fifth year of business, they need to be able to explain why this number is achievable.

Industry Growth
You may notice that each year, there is always a vertical that becomes more popular than the rest. For example, earlier in 2021, there was a great surge in food delivery and cloud kitchen startups, but come Q4 2021, everybody was all about metaverse and Web3. This is also one thing that investors are looking at.

International Expansion
For some markets, international expansion is a more crucial factor to consider as it enables startups to tap into a bigger market. But if founders do not see international expansion as part of their agenda in the future, then it is more important to be honest about it.

Proven traction

There was no question that this will be the most important part to show a potential investor. All of the founders’ claim in the previous segment will need to be backed by data that includes profitability, revenues, number of active users, number of registered users, amount of engagement, partnerships or clients achieved, and amount of traffic generated.

Also Read: Startup funding rounds: A handbook from seed to exit

But how about startups that are still in the pre-revenue stage? Is there any difference in how they should present this aspect?

In a Medium post, Quake Capital explains:

“For revenue-generating businesses, some examples of metrics are sales and revenue, units sold, revenue growth, and profit margins. For example, Quake would love to see growing MRR and ARR (monthly and annual recurring revenue). However, there is no perfect number. Rather, we look to see that revenues come from your business model, because ultimately that is proof of product-market fit.”

“For pre-revenue businesses, metrics may include the number of users or clients of your product or service, the number of engaged users (for example, an app may have 50,000 downloads but only 10 users per day, which isn’t great). Ideally, the number of engaged users should be close to the number of total users. We like seeing high retention and low churn. Retention is defined as the number of users or subscribers who continue using your product or service while churn is the number of users or subscribers who stop using your product or service after a certain time period.”

Team strength

If you have been following our Meet the VCs series, you might notice that there is one factor that investors will always look at: the strength of the team behind the startup. This is strongly related to the matter of trust as well as resilience; if the startup is being helmed by a strong team of founders, even when the worst happens, they will come up stronger than before.

What kind of “strong team” do investors look at? The key here is credentials and skills. But most importantly, it is all about the team’s passion in the business.

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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: dacosta

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One Championship, an Asian mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter and sports media property, has closed a US$150 million funding round.

Qatar Investment Authority and Guggenheim Investments, the asset management and investment advising subsidiary of Guggenheim Partners, co-led the round.

The fresh capital will help Singapore-based One Championship diversify its content offerings, such as reality television shows and live fights and e-sports tournaments, among other entertainment businesses.  

As part of the expansion strategy outside of Asia, the firm looks to foray into the US market — home to its archrival Ultimate Fighting Championship.

One Championship previously secured a round of financing worth US$346 million from Sequoia Capital, Iconiq Capital, and Temasek in June. Financial Times reported that this round brought One Championship’s valuation to US$1 billion

Earlier this month, Temasek and Sequoia reportedly converted US$179 million worth of convertible notes into equity shares in the firm, as per VentureCap Insights data.

Also read: Mobile, e-sports, live streaming shaping SEA’s gaming startup landscape in 2021

One Championship, owned and operated by Group ONE Holdings, was founded in 2011 by Havard graduate Chatri Sityodtong, a self-made entrepreneur and lifelong martial artist. To date, the firm claims to have broadcast sports shows to more than 2.7 billion spectators in over 150 countries.

One Championship has recently expanded into reality TV to cope with headwinds caused by the pandemic. It launched the first season of The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition on Netflix in the first quarter of 2022.

In addition, it has also ventured into e-sports. Its ONE E-sports Dota 2 Singapore Major, broadcast earlier this year, attracted 274 million viewers.

The firm plans to captivate new audiences through social media, athlete-related stories and digital merchandising such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The Bussiness Times revealed that One Championship hit a profit of US$340.6 million this year, reversing from a deficit of US$83.5 million the year before. Yet, the reversal of fortune is attributed to a US$400 million from the sale of intellectual property rights to Group ONE’s US subsidiary established in 2020.

Verified Market Research recently-published report estimated the value of the global sports online live video streaming market size at US$18.1 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach US$87.3 billion by 2028, representing a CAGR of 21.26 per cent during the forecast period of 2021-2028.

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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: One Championship

 

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