Indonesia-based one-stop platform for content creators TipTip today announced that it has raised US$10 million in a seed funding round led by East Ventures.

This funding round included the participation of Vertex Ventures, EMTEK, SMDV, and prominent family offices.

In a press statement, TipTip said that it will use the funding to accelerate its entry into the content creator economy in the Southeast Asian (SEA) region which also included talent and user acquisition.

The company is currently preparing its upcoming invitation exclusive launch in April 2022, followed by a public launch in Indonesia “shortly after.”

TipTip was founded by Albert Lucius who was known for being the co-founder of Kudo, the O2O e-commerce platform that was later acquired by tech giant Grab in 2017 and rebranded to GrabKios.

The company operates in Indonesia and Singapore and is run by a team of more than 70 employees.

Also Read: Ilham Habibie on what it takes to bring the Indonesian startup ecosystem to the next level

TipTip enables content creators to monetise through personalised video sessions, the sale of premium digital contents, and direct interaction opportunities with their followers. The platform also aims to serve as the solution to fill the massive features gap faced by content creators across emerging economies throughout Southeast Asia, such as lack of monetisation opportunities, limited local payments and KYC integrations, as well as challenges related to content creation and distribution over mobile devices.

In SEA, content platform continues to remain relevant with notable investments in the vertical included the undisclosed Series C funding round raised by Philippine-based Kumu in October 2021. This funding round puts its total raised funding to more than US$100 million.

Commenting on the investment, Willson Cuaca, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of East Ventures said, “We believe in the potential of the content creator economy in the region, especially in how it has been accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is obvious to us that some of the consumer behaviour that formed during the pandemic will stay beyond the pandemic, TipTip is well-positioned to capture that. This is a product for the post-pandemic world, that was designed during the pandemic.”

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Image Credit: TipTip

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As nations across the globe continue to sanction Russia in condemnation of their invasion of Ukraine, companies have now joined the movement to exclude the Russian government, and sometimes Russians, from their list of clients.

Some of these companies have decided to ban them as a recommendation to the international sanction provisions from The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Others have taken this decision as a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people. However, not all fintech companies are placing blanket boycotts on Russian citizens.

The most notable holdouts are Binance and Kraken, who cite the argument that banning “innocent Russians” goes against the philosophy behind cryptocurrencies.

So, let’s go through the reactions of fintech companies to the Russian invasion and explore how they affect the socio-economic climate in Russia and the rest of the world.

VISA

According to Statista, VISA owns 12 per cent of all credit payment cards in the world (335 million credit cards), accounting for about 50 per cent of the overall market shares.

The company reacted to the Russian invasion by halting all its operations within Russia and banning Russian VISA cardholders from processing transactions.

According to VISA’s official statement, the company is “taking prompt action to ensure compliance with applicable sanctions and is prepared to comply with additional sanctions that may be implemented.”

The VISA Foundation has also donated a US$2 million grant to the US Fund for UNICEF to provide the Ukrainian people with humanitarian aid.

Mastercard

Mastercard has maintained the same ironclad stance as VISA on the Russian invasion. The credit card company has reportedly forfeited about four per cent of potential revenue by excluding Russians from its services.

Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach released a statement saying that the company has ceased operations in Russia, as well as banned certain Russian banks from the payment network.

Miebach also affirms that the company has sent a US$2 million humanitarian fund to the Red Cross, Save the Children, and employee assistance.

Amex

American Express has also joined the ranks of Visa and Mastercard in suspending all operations in Russia and Belarus.

According to the memo from American Express CEO Stephen J. Squeri, the cards issued on the Russian territory will no longer work in Russia or outside the country.

As part of Amex’s “Do What is Right” code, the company has pledged US$1 million to humanitarian organisations to provide relief to people in Ukraine affected by this horrendous war.

PayPal

Despite being under no obligations to react, PayPal has taken the initiative to join other world-renowned payment services in halting all operations in Russia until further notice.

Dan Schulman, PayPal CEO, released a statement saying:

“PayPal supports the Ukrainian people and stands with the international community in condemning Russia’s violent military aggression in Ukraine. The tragedy taking place in Ukraine is devastating for all of us, wherever we are in the world.”

Also Read: How is the Russia-Ukraine war changing the talk in ESG investing?

He goes on to add that despite banning Russians from using PayPal’s services, the company will still provide support for Russian citizens within its workforce.

Payoneer

Payoneer’s reaction to the Russian aggression was to stop all issuance of cards to customers with postal or residential addresses within the Russian Federation.

According to the company’s updated FAQs, Russian citizens with Payoneer cards issued outside Russia can still conduct transactions without restrictions.

Upwork

In an open letter to freelancers, Upwork CEO Hayden Brown reiterated the company’s mission to help improve people’s lives, highlighting how “Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine” hampers that goal.

As a result, with over four per cent of registered freelancers from Russia and Belarus, Upwork has suspended operations and has shut down support for new business generation in both countries.

To this end, the changes will take full effect on May 1, 2022, leaving freelancers and clients in Russia and Belarus unable to create new accounts, initiate new contracts, and appear in searches.

The platform also donated US$1 million to Direct Relief International to support Ukrainian citizens caught up in the war.

Revolut

As a company with a Ukrainian co-founder Vlad Yatsenko, Revolut has provided unwavering support for the Ukrainians suffering from the war.

The current CEO Nikolay Storonsky, born in Russia to a Ukrainian father, released an open letter, categorically condemning the war, saying that “this war is wrong and totally abhorrent” and that “…not one more person should die in this needless conflict.”

In a statement titled “The War on Ukraine: Our Response,” Revolut has affirmed its dedication to uphold and impose sanctions placed on Russia.

As part of its support to Ukraine, Revolut has removed transfer fees for every transaction going into the country. The company has also pledged to match every donation made to the Red Cross Ukraine appeal.

Paysera

Paysera has released a comprehensive list of financial restrictions on Russia and its allies involved in the Ukrainian invasion.

Here is a list of the actions taken to impose these sanctions:

• Russian citizens will no longer be able to use Paysera (this restriction does not apply to Russian citizens with residency or work permits in other supported countries).
• All current accounts belonging to Russians will be closed.
• Russian and Belarusian companies are banned from using their Paysera accounts.
• All current business accounts belonging to Russian and Belarusian entities will be closed.
• Transactions to Russian and Belarusian banks between private individuals will continue but must go through rigorous verification procedures.
• Paysera will roll back all money transfers from Russian and Belarusian banks received on Monday (February 23 and later).
• Paysera users can no longer exchange to Russian Roubles (RUB).

This list is only one part of the extensive regulation changes for Russian citizens and banks.

Western Union

On March 10, 2022, Western Union issued a press release announcing that all the company’s operations in Russia and Belarus will be suspended with immediate effect.

For the people of Ukraine, Western Union has created a donation portal to address the humanitarian and refugee crisis, according to Elizabeth Executive Director of the Western Union Foundation.

Also Read: Financial literacy is a basic life skill. And this fintech startup is aiding millennials with it

The money transfer company has pledged US$500,000 to provide humanitarian aid to the Ukrainian people. To donate to the Western Union Foundation, visit their official website.

Wise

Before the 2022 Russian-Ukrainian war, Wise (formerly TransferWiser) had already placed a US$200 limit for Russian account owners.

With the current swathe of sanctions, the remittance and payments company has doubled down on its restriction for individuals and businesses within the Russian Federation and its (illegally) occupied territories.

Find a detailed breakdown of the restrictions according to the company’s Help Centre below:

Here you’ll find answers to the most common questions about Russian Rouble (RUB) transfers.

• You can only send RUB to private bank accounts or cards in Russia.
• You cannot send RUB to government agencies in Russia.
• You cannot send RUB to Crimea or Sevastopol.
• You cannot send USD or EUR to accounts in Russia.

These conditions may change as the conflict develops.

Remitly

Remitly is a P2P service that allows immigrants to send money across borders. Since the company’s core demographics (immigrants) are closely aligned to the plight of Ukrainian refugees, it is no surprise that they’ve also banned Russia.

Remitly, through a spokesperson, has communicated its dedication to upholding this ban according to the EU and US sanctions.

Zepz

Zepz (formerly WorldRemit), has released a list of countries on its banned list, including Russia and Belarus.

The company also released an updated list of transaction conditions, showing that Russia is on the blocklist until further notice.

The bottom line

The Russia-Ukrainian war has plunged the entire financial sector into a new reality. We are witnessing an unprecedented situation.

Numerous companies that aren’t obliged by law or sanctions, take the initiative to leave the Russian market. These decisions cost each of them a significant part of revenue, yet they demonstrate the willingness to pay this price in order to help stop the atrocious war.

United in an effort to protect democracy, they have put human values above their economic interests.

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Insitor Partner today announced that it has completed a US$42 million first close of its Insitor Impact Asia Fund II (IIAF II), with a target to reach US$70 million by the end of 2022.

This funding round includes the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF) as well as two core investors from the firm’s previous fund: the UK government’s British International Investment (formally CDC Group) and Insitor’s founding family offices.

With the closing of this fund, Insitor also announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CDC Capital Group recognising their IIAF II fund as the first 2X Pioneer Flagship Fund in Asia.

2X Flagship Funds are an initiative under the 2X Collaborative, the global industry body for gender lens investing that was created after the launch of the 2X Challenge at the G7 in 2021. Its objective is to mobilise US$15 billion to support projects that aim to empower women.

Insitor plans to make 12 to 15 investments in high growth and scalable ventures across its core investment themes: Better Health, Sustainable Living, and Economic Growth.

Also Read: Why family offices can be another facet of venture capital, and how they can impact startup investments in Asia

It plans to invest at the Pre-Series A to Series A stage, and provide follow-on funding as portfolio companies scale. The new fund is also expected to collaborate with Limited Partners to co-invest in larger deals.

“With the 2X Flagship Fund status, Insitor is committed to investing with an explicit gender lens to ensure at least 30 per cent of its portfolio meets the 2X criteria. Insitor further commits to ​promoting and maintaining gender balance as a fund manager. Insitor is female-founded and led, with 50 per cent female employees in both senior management roles and across the overall employee base,” the firm stated.

Since the first closing, Insitor has made three investments in the following companies:

Trellis (Pakistan)
A housing finance provider that uses a fully-digital origination platform to accelerate deployment of housing finance;

MedKart (India)
A low-cost, high-high quality generic drug B2C distributor in India, which allows patients with chronic illness to save an average of 85 per cent on their drug treatments.

Taleem (Pakistan)
The first financial institution that serves the education system in Pakistan, providing affordable funding options to schools, teachers and households. The company aims to grow its active customer base by 25x using Insitor’s funding.

Also Read: How Gunung Capital CEO puts sustainability agenda at the forefront of an age-old industry

Launched in 2009, Insitor described itself as the first impact fund manager with a local presence in Cambodia and Myanmar, and an early player in India and Pakistan.

The company said it has so far made 27 investments across the region, creating 14,000 jobs, and transforming the lives of more than 40 million low-income consumers served by its portfolio companies.

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Image Credit: Insitor

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Singapore-based online platform for designer toys and collectibles company Mighty Jaxx has announced the final close of its oversubscribed Series A extension round.

iDreamSky Technology and an undisclosed technology company “with rich intellectual property resource” invested in the new tranche.

This deal comes days after Mighty Jaxx announced the first close of a US$20 million Series A extension led by East Ventures (Growth Fund) with participation from Mirana Ventures. Other backers in the round are Easternwind International, Pan Solar Ventures, and Teja Ventures, besides existing investors KB Investment and Korea Investment Partners.

To date, Mighty Jaxx has raised over US$40 million from a global network of investors that also includes Greycroft, SGInnovate and Finewill Capital.

“We have observed a qualitative leap in the growth of the Chinese collectible market over the past few years, led by the rise of Chinese brands and new players. In this US$100 billion market, phygital collectibles will emerge as a key focus point in the drive for digital convergence and for the rise of the metaverse and the creator economy,” said Jackson Aw, Founder and CEO of Mighty Jaxx.

Also Read: Mighty Jaxx raised US$10M in a Tencent-led round to grow its designer toys and collectibles biz

As per a Morgan Stanley study, China’s total addressable market accounts for about US$8 trillion.

The new investments will allow Mighty Jaxx to deepen the expertise of its proprietary platform for tech-enabled collectibles in China, strengthening its ability to develop immersive and interactive phygital collectibles and content. It will also leverage the support of its new Chinese investors to focus on developing its extended reality and Web3 capabilities to bridge phygital collectibles with online, digital experiences.

In addition, the startup will look to deepen its capabilities in IP development to create stories and phygital products.

Founded in 2012 by Aw, Mighty Jaxx is an urban culture company that designs and manufactures collectibles and lifestyle products in partnership with global talents and brands such as Warner Brothers, DC Comics, Looney Tunes, Sesame Street, and Casio G-Shock.

It is building an integrated platform to empower future pop-culture brands with the end-to-end supply chain of collectibles, including artist development and incubation, proprietary IP operation, and providing global consumer access with new retail.

The company claims so far, it has shipped millions of products to over 60 countries with diverse offerings in collectibles, gaming, lifestyle, and fashion.

Last March, Mighty Jaxx launched Nubbies: Sesame Street, a hyper-casual game title, in association with the new collectible series of the same name.

Valued at more than US$100 billion, the creator economy is undergoing staggering growth as it forms the focal point into which e-commerce, social media, and online communities converge. As the concept of a decentralised economy takes root alongside developments and the inevitable adoption of Web3, independent creators will undoubtedly rise in number and influence.

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Navigating the dynamics in the corporate world can be challenging. This is especially true for women. From the wage gap to the social expectations gearing women for a domestic life rather than a career-driven one, it can be an uphill battle to succeed in the boardroom. In the fields of venture capital and private equity (PE/VC) in the Southeast Asian region and across the continent, this is reflected in four key areas: culture, recruitment, advancement, and leadership.

The dichotomy between staying at home and caring for one’s family versus excelling in their chosen profession is primarily what forces women to choose between one or the other, making them settle for background roles or leave their careers behind completely. Difficulty in securing maternity leaves and the lack of flexible work hours further aggravate the challenges women face — and this is true for most sectors, not only in the corporate world. 

However, Southeast Asia has been shifting towards shrinking the gender gap in recent years, and many are taking advantage of the positive change. Despite the expected slow turnaround of complete gender parity, women are taking the region by storm, especially in the tech industry. Of course, none of these welcome changes is happening by mere coincidence. There are real hardworking people actively trying to change the status quo and ultimately build a better, fairer future for women.

Overcoming barriers when it comes to opportunities for women

Erika Dianasari Go, value creation partner at Alpha JWC is one of the women turning the gender gap on its head in the region. Go’s role in the venture capital firm is to grow firm capacity, as well as advise startups on how to scale up their capabilities. In an interview with e27, Go shares that getting to where she is now was no easy feat. Growing up in a home environment that didn’t encourage women empowerment, Go pursued higher education to land a job in a firm that valued women’s voices.

Also read: oVice, a virtual office platform, uses innovative technology to redefine remote work

“I joined a private equity operating firm company which is a very male-dominated industry,” Go explained. From there, she secured another position in the automotive industry, which was more male-dominated than her last job. However, instead of deterring her, Go used the experience to gain new insights and perspectives on her position as a woman in the corporate world. In fact, she was able to maximise her unique viewpoints as a woman to help improve company culture. “I realised, being a female role in a very male-dominated environment is good because it helps provide a different overview and influence when the firm is willing to listen and learn,” Go shared.

In 2015, Go began to take notice of the growing startup industry in Indonesia and found her passion in helping grow these up-and-coming companies. It was also around this time that an opportunity to join Alpha JWC came. She believed that the firm’s values of guiding entrepreneurs towards upscaling their businesses aligned with her own vision — improving businesses and helping empower people. The rest is history.

Empowering women to lead

Despite the challenging road ahead for women from entry-level to the C-suite, Go understands the potential for the industry to foster inclusivity and minimise the gender gap. A quick overview of the corporate blueprint of a majority of startups across Southeast Asia would show that the entrepreneurial landscape is still largely dominated by men. Go believes this is due to the challenges women face in the workplace, particularly in terms of balancing home life and work — especially in the case of working mothers. In order to solve this, Go believes that women are more empowered to take on larger roles when workplace cultures and environments become more conducive for women, and therefore, for working mothers.

Go understands these nuances as a mother herself. Coming from a place of understanding women’s experiences through her own life story, she is able to help uplift other women within her industry and outside it. The rest of the Alpha JWC executives hold similar values as family-oriented leaders, as seen in the strong pro-family culture within the company.

Also read: Game on with MongoDB: Challenges and insights on the future of gaming

However, despite corporate prospects for women, there are fewer women at the forefront of the industry. In addition, although women don’t feel the pay gap in startups and VCs compared to other workplaces, there is still a need to have more women lead teams in different fields. At Alpha JWC, women aren’t just given flexibility, they’re also given the chance to lead. The company achieves this by fostering both male and female employees’ abilities to match their skills with the position they’re best suited for.

Such a move is necessary not just at the firm level, but also on a systematic scale. Similar to her own experiences, Go pointed out that women need to be more actively involved in their own empowerment by providing a platform or community that allows them to build meaningful connections with each other. It is in this show of solidarity that women can draw the strength to empower themselves, and more importantly, empower other women.

Male counterparts can also help amplify women’s voices in the VC industry and beyond by being supportive of the needs of their women colleagues, such as the desire for genuine work-life balance, as well as being understanding of the specific and complex experiences that shape how they work.

Alpha JWC and filling in the gender gap

Go also mentioned that in Alpha JWC, the company fosters a culture of empowerment for all, providing co-equal team support — both for men and women on the team. Banking on the concept of “WE culture,” the firm levels off everyone on common goals and objectives to enable them to reach their full potential, as well as maximise the team’s capacity. In addition, the company fosters a communicative environment where everyone’s input is heard and given equal importance. 

On their end, the senior management of the company doesn’t put any pressure on staff to work past office hours, ensuring the work-life balance that many women look for to thrive in their careers without sacrificing their home life. New mothers are also encouraged and supported should they want to take extended maternity leave, and they can do so without feeling as though their careers will be impacted as the partners regularly have 1-on-1 catchups with everyone to chart and discuss their professional and personal development.

Also read: Seeding ideas, nurturing explorations with Leave a Nest Grant

Alpha JWC provides support to startups, both financially and in terms of portfolio management, taking on several approaches including finding the most suitable talents, brand building, and addressing strategic issues. Despite its progress, Alpha JWC believes in continuously improving its role in promoting gender parity in the industry and in the region, and is currently taking the steps to empower its employees to do the same. The company believes that while we as a society have made tremendous strides in creating a more inclusive corporate landscape, so much more can be done.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Alpha JWC

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