Y Combinator-backed Philippine fintech startup PayMongo has announced that its Co-Founder Francis Plaza has stepped down as President and CEO effective November 30, 2022, to pursue other ventures.

He has been replaced by Chief Operating Officer Isabel Ridad, who is the acting CEO. Ridad joined PayMongo in early 2021 as Chief of Staff and has worked as its COO since February.

Plaza will, however, act as an Advisor to the Boards of PayMongo Philippines and PayMongo Payments.

Plaza’s stepping down comes months after PayMongo was hit by many crises, including the fallout among top leaders, the firing of two co-founders, allegations of questionable spending by co-founders and employee harassment. The infightings and scandals in the company were broken by TechInAsia in a report published in August this year.

Also Read: PayMongo’s ex-CFO denies stealing money, apologises for remarks against female colleagues

As per that report, Plaza allegedly splurged money on extensive trips to Europe and the US and bought a luxury Porsche car. Some of his business class flight trips and a company loan taken to finance a property rental in the Philippines are also under ongoing investigation.‍ The PayMongo board, chaired by co-founder Luis Sia, had opened a formal investigation against Plaza, who was also a board member.

Founded in 2019 by Plaza, Luis Sia, Jaime Hing, and Edwin Lacierda, PayMongo empowers online businesses to accept the full range of payment options, including credit cards, e-wallets, and over-the-counter payments.

In February this year, PayMongo secured US$31 million in a Series B round of financing from investors, including JAM Fund (founded by Tinder founder Justin Mateen) and local VCs ICCP-SBI Venture Partners and Kaya Founders. Previously, the fintech firm bagged US$12 million Series A led by Stripe in 2020 and US$2.7 million seed round from investors, including Y Combinator, in 2019.

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Vietnamese audio content platform Fonos has announced the completion of its US$1.8 million in Pre-Series A funding led by US media and technology VC North Base Media.

Returning and new investors, including AngelCentral, Vietcetera’s Vietnam Innovators Fund, and Orvel Ventures, also participated.

Fonos will use the funding from this round to expand into podcasting and content acquisition.

Founded in 2020 by Oscar Jesionek and Xuan Nguyen, the startup has established itself as the audio content leader in Vietnam, with over 2,100 exclusive pieces of content available on its app, including best-selling audiobooks, book summaries, and meditations.

Also Read: One-click checkout startup Beam raises US$2.5M seed funding led by Surge

In addition to the extensive content library, its strength has been in successfully monetising the content. Fonos grew its revenues by seven times in 2021 and continues that trend this year. The company also claimed strong user growth with over 130,000 monthly active users in October.

For many months, the Fonos app has been the number one top-grossing app in the book category in Vietnam, both on the Apple and Android app stores. According to app revenue analysis tools such as data.ai, Fonos plays a significant part for the majority of audiobook sales in Vietnam.

Fonos aims to become a key podcasting player in Vietnam with multiple initiatives to be launched in Q1 and Q2 2023.

“I’m incredibly excited for Fonos to enter the podcasting market. We’ve been laser-focused on the audiobook market for the past three years to become the market leader. We’re now ready to take that same focus and apply it to the podcasting market,” said CEO Oscar Jesionek.

In September 2021, Fonos raised US$1.1 million in seed funding from Hustle Fund and iSeed, as well as investors from AngelCentral and other local angel investors.

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Two decades ago, Facebook introduced their interpretation of social media services, effectively altering how people live.

Today, most of the world’s population exists on social media. It is how people connect, interact and stay relevant to the rapidly evolving world. Social platforms’ far-reaching impacts even affect how Businesses are conducted and how Economies can be influenced.

Will the introduction of metaverse platforms affect such a drastic shift?

At least, Mark Zuckerberg believes so. So much so that the social media giant changed its brand to Meta and started diving head-in into the narrative.

The metaverse is envisioned to be a digital space that parallels the physical world. It is where people, represented by their virtual avatars, will live their lives, meet others, attend events, do business, shop, game and more.

Essentially people of the (very near) future will exist in Virtual Reality. It is an iteration of social media but with more interactivity, immersion and endless possibilities.

Why hasn’t the critical mass jumped in yet?

For a start, metaverse projects tap into blockchain/Web3 technology. While the concept managed to rally huge support from Web3 fans, the processes involved can seem daunting and foreign to Web2 natives.

In fact, Web3 advocates are so community driven that new Web3-specific cultures, norms and lingos were birthed. This further drives the divide between them and the critical mass still deeply etched in Web2 platforms.

With so many big brands and companies moving towards this space, the eventual migration into Web3 platforms is, however, inevitable. The market will shift when crossing into the metaverse becomes more palatable and digestible to the masses.

Why are only big brands jumping on board?

Major brands like Nike, Gucci, Coca-Cola and Lego have jumped into the metaverse. So have major celebrities like Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and Steve Aoki.

Also Read: “See you in the metaverse” – Yours, life

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are creeping in at a much slower rate. The world has witnessed how prominent brands like Nokia, Atari and Kodak got eliminated in the race to adapt. Major brands’ motivation to shift could be fuelled by their fear of becoming irrelevant in a fast-changing economy.

While SMEs have shown growing interest in entering the metaverse, being foreign to Web3 still presents a hurdle for SMEs to cross before a shift can happen. Being foreign also means that many SMEs do not see pragmatic reasons or direct benefits for embracing Web3 technologies.

How is Playground contributing to this transition?

Playground is a metaverse platform that harnesses Web3 technology. The platform aims to help with the crossover by building systems and environments that make sense to Web2 retailers and businesses.

Believing that the idea of metaverses already has strong proof of concepts in game-centric virtual worlds, the team aims to encourage Web2’s mass adoption by building systems and 3D environments familiar to Web2 natives.

For instance, getting into the Playground’s metaverse might not require a crypto-wallet connection right at the get-go but will present its uses and benefits at a later stage.

Playground’s deliberate steps to bring real value to commercial parties have also seen the onboarding of traditional retail- renowned brands like Franck Muller, Naiise, Sincere Watches and MegaMall are amongst many that have hopped onto the Playground bandwagon.

Leveraging on its collaboration with many game developers and game studios, the platform offers Retailers easy access to gamification strategies that can enhance community engagement, branding and sales conversions.

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Singapore-based global Digital Entertainment Asset (DEA), a Web3 entertainment company, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Rakuten Group for a collaborative partnership in the Web3 domain.

The partnership will see DEA and Rakuten collaborate on potential synergies in their respective businesses to enhance the value of their services further.

As part of the deal, Rakuten’s corporate VC arm Rakuten Capital will also make a minority investment in DEA by subscribing to share acquisition rights.

DEA operates the PlayMining GameFi platform, which features a catalogue of play-to-earn (P2E) NFT games, including Job Tribes, Cookin’ Burger, Menya Dragon Ramen and the recently launched Graffiti Racer. 

Also Read: Filipina actor Yassi Pressman nets US$2M for her new Web3 startups BrandNation, PEG

The platform has an NFT marketplace featuring hot content from household names among Japanese anime and video game fans and a metaverse initiative under development.

DEA also has its token DEAPcoin ($DEP), a P2E token approved by Japan’s Financial Service Agency. By having an NFT market, a token and a GameFi and metaverse platform in one place, PlayMining can offer IP monetisation opportunities to third-company game studio partners.

“Our vision for DEA is to become the world’s top Web3 entertainment company. Our agreement with Rakuten will go a long way towards helping us work toward this goal by increasing adoption of PlayandEarn gaming,” said DEA’s Co-Founder and co-CEO Kozo Yamada.

Rakuten Group provides over 70 services spanning e-commerce, fintech, digital content, mobile carrier business and other communications services, including professional sports. It runs several Web3 businesses, including an NFT marketplace, sales platform Rakuten NFT, and crypto asset trading exchange Rakuten Wallet.

Hiroshi Takasawa, President of Rakuten Capital, said: “We expect Rakuten’s membership base, brand and business experience, expertise in related areas, and DEA’s experience in GameFi, token economy and metaverse business promotion will contribute to the future business growth of both companies.”

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BayaniPay, a fintech startup offering cross-border financial services to Filipino professionals in the US, has secured US$4.5 million seed funding from East West Bank, Wavemaker Partners, and Talino Venture Labs.

The fresh capital from East West Bank and Wavemaker Partners will allow BayaniPay to expand the technology team as it scales its product lineup and expands into more geographies.

Based in Los Angeles, BayaniPay offers low-cost cross-border financial services from the US to the Philippines. It provides access to a digital checking account, a debit card, and zero-fee remittance forex rates for Filipino Americans sending money home.

Earlier this year, BayaniPay signed a contract with East West Bank in Southern California to offer banking services, including a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured checking account, for Filipino American customers.

Also Read: Filipina actor Yassi Pressman nets US$2M for her new Web3 startups BrandNation, PEG

This collaboration enables BayaniPay to offer cross-border, digital financial services for the 4.2-million-strong Filipino American community, which accounts for US$146 billion or 14.4 per cent of the Asian American market in the US.

BayaniPay already has partnerships with BDO Unibank in the Philippines, media firm Asian Journal, and Seafood City, a Filipino-owned supermarket chain in the US.

BayaniPay collaborates with BDO Unibank to enable its users in the US to pay for services in the Philippines through pay code technologies directly. Local businesses and services can provide Filipino American customers with pay codes that they can use for easy and convenient cross-border payment of bills, tuition and school fees, medical expenses, and even real estate.

Through BDO Unibank, BayaniPay offers zero fees and market-leading exchange rates. BayaniPay has gained over 7,000 users.

“Streamlining cross-border payment systems has become more urgent than ever as remittances grow in scale from overseas workers. Unfortunately, even today, existing remittance methods remain painful and expensive for the average remitter. BayaniPay is addressing this pain point with its suite of payment solutions that simplify various remittances,” said Eric Manlunas, Founder and Managing Partner of Wavemaker Partners.

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Venteny Fortuna International, a Jakarta-headquartered company providing growth funding and HR services for MSMEs, said on Thursday its application to list on Indonesia’s exchange IDX has been approved.

Venteny has received a pre-effective letter from the Financial Services Authority (OJK) and opened a book building (IPO) for potential investors from 21-29 November 2022.

With this, Venteny is set to become the first Japanese founder-led startup to be listed in Southeast Asia.

The company seeks to raise as high as IDR 422,900,595,000 (US$27 million) or the equivalent of 15 per cent of the total issued capital.

It plans to use the funds (minus the issuance costs) to increase the group’s working capital and support its business development and growth. It expects to improve its capital, human resources, and technology.

The price per share of Venteny sets to IDR 350-450 (US$0.022-0.029).

Venteny was founded in 2015 by Jun Waide, a Japanese businessman and professional. Initially incorporated in the Philippines, Venteny expanded to Singapore in 2016 and finally started operations in Indonesia.

As the business continued to grow, in 2021, the management established a holding company, Venteny Fortuna International, to strengthen the synergy of all subsidiaries.

Venteny Fortuna provides growth funding and human resources services for MSMEs and large enterprises. Through its financing partners in Indonesia, Venteny disburses funding to MSMEs with competitive interest, supported by an integrated credit assessment process to minimise the risk of bad credit and a fast application process.

Also Read: Fonos raises US$1.8M in funding to expand into podcasting

It also provides employee benefits, such as welfare, protection, self-development, and entertainment,  through its employee super-app services.

Since being established in Indonesia until Q3 of 2022, the company claims to have disbursed funds of more than IDR 2 trillion (US$128 million) to businesses.

The group has been profitable since 2021. Based on the audited financial statements as of June 30, 2022, the group’s net profit grew by 800 per cent YoY.

In February 2017, it secured a seed round, followed by Series A round funding from SV-FINTECH Fund managed by Voyage Group and SV Frontier in December 2017.

“We are grateful for the customer’s trust, so Venteny has been profitable within two years of operations. This proves that Venteny has worked well on market potential and demand. Through IPO way, we invite everyone to participate in creating the future of the solid industry ecosystem,” says Waide, Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Venteny.

With four offices in Indonesia, Venteny plans to increase it to 15 next year and start its operations in the Philippines and expand into Thailand and Vietnam.

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Sirclo Group, a provider of e-commerce solutions that help brands sell online in Indonesia, announced on Tuesday it terminated the employment of 8 per cent of its staff members.

The layoffs are part of the efficiency measures policy amidst the “current macroeconomic conditions”, it said in a statement.

The group has not divulge the number of employees affected by the move. As per its LinkedIn profile, 1,371 employees are currently working in the firm.

The company also stated that all aspects of the group’s business are in the optimisation stage to achieve long-term growth.

“As a rapidly growing technology company, Sirclo Group strives to remain adaptive in making business adjustments to achieve long-term growth. In a challenging macroeconomic situation, Sirclo has gone through a series of internal evaluations and will make significant changes, especially in the aspect of business focus, to ensure the sustainability of the company,” said CEO and Founder Brian Marshal.

Also Read: SIRCLO Group acquires Warung Pintar to strengthen its omnichannel commerce strategy

Sirclo said it would ensure that every affected team member receives a compensation package by applicable rights and regulations and comprehensive assistance to support their transition period. “The development of our ecosystem from year to year cannot be separated from the contribution of each employee in it,” added Marshal.

Founded in 2013, Sirclo is a provider of omni-channel commerce solutions in Indonesia. Its solutions are divided into two main categories — entrepreneur and enterprise solutions.

In the first category, it offers Sirclo Store, an online store dashboard for SMEs to sell across website, marketplace, and chat commerce. It also offers IbuSibuk, a solution empowering communities of mothers as key opinion leaders, micro-influencers and resellers.

In the enterprise category, it offers e-commerce enabler services, a solution for omnichannel technology development, and a B2B2C platform selling mom and baby products. It also offers a parenting platform Orami, which it acquired in April. Orami runs IbuSibuk, a digital economic empowerment programme for mothers, specifically for those passionate about entrepreneurship.

In September last year, Sirclo announced a US$36 million fundraise, led by local investment firms East Ventures (Growth Fund) and Saratoga. A year earlier, it announced a US$6 million Series B fundraising from East Ventures, OCBC NISP Ventura, Skystar Capital, and Sinar Mas Land.

Recently, many startups in Indonesia announced workforce reductions amidst a looming recession. The names include GoTo, Ruangguru, LinkAja, Zenius, Binar Academy, and JD.id.

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The future of commerce is undoubtedly conversational. Regardless of size, brands have prioritised conversational experiences by incorporating them into their communication strategies.

Now more than ever, brands look for ways to automate customer communication while keeping a human touch in every interaction.

By creating conversational experiences, brands meet the expectations of the modern customer and offer convenient and fast resolutions to queries. For example, the adoption of chatbots has helped customers get their FAQs answered instantly and keeps satisfaction scores high.

But brands need to keep in mind that conversational experiences shouldn’t stop at customer support. They can now engage with their customers through their entire sales journey over messaging channels. This is referred to as conversational commerce, and it’s a game changer for brands looking to innovate experiences.

But what is conversational commerce?

Also Read: How SMBs can use conversational commerce to boost year-end sales

A term coined by Chris Messina back in 2015, conversational commerce largely pertains to utilising chat, messaging, or other natural language interfaces (i.e. voice) to interact with people, brands, or services and bots that thus far have had no real place in the bidirectional, asynchronous messaging context.

Seven years in, with the aid of new technologies, conversational commerce has an updated look and feel for 2022 to address the ever-evolving customer needs.

What is the hype all about?

As messaging and interactivity functions mature across all digital touchpoints, be it powered by humans or machine learning, conversational commerce is seeing a renaissance.

Consumers can now ask for support from a live agent or a chatbot, get information on products and pricing, browse product catalogues, get personalised recommendations, and make purchases all within one conversation.

Opportunities are endless with conversational commerce as it gives a highly personalised experience. According to McKinsey, 71 per cent of customers expect relevant, personalised communications from brands and get frustrated when they don’t receive them.

The same study has found that personalisation directly impacts buying behaviours. Brands have started to recognise the importance of the customer’s journey and how conversational commerce outweighs social commerce in some areas.

As social commerce primarily uses the functions of social networks, it has its own set of limitations that conversational commerce can address. Typically, conversational commerce facilitates a more natural and seamless conversation between brands and their customers.

Customers’ queries are attended to in real-time, and orders and payments can be made without leaving the app, which leaves customers engaged throughout their shopping experience.

Reaping the benefits of limitless communications with customers

Conversational commerce is what customers look for when shopping today. They expect the convenience and comfort of conversing with brands through their favourite chat apps from any location.

Implementing conversational commerce use cases is not only beneficial for your customers but comes with massive business benefits for brands. Limitless communication with customers drives several business outcomes, including:

• Reducing shopping cart abandonment: Conversational commerce ensures that every step of the customer journey is elevated – from pre-purchase and purchase to post-purchase. Shopping cart abandonment is reduced when customers are kept in an active conversation, unlike on social media, where the use of ads is prevalent, customers get impatient and change their minds about their purchases.
• Retaining customers vs generating new leads: While social commerce has its strength in reaching out to the targeted audience, it does not guarantee a conversion. Conversational commerce, on the other hand, has the power to retain customers because the interaction that takes place offers convenient support leading to a pleasant and happy experience. Did you know it also costs seven times less to retain customers than to convert a lead?
• Upselling and cross-selling opportunities: Using target customers’ favourite chat apps as a sales channel is a great way to promote products. On average, customers spend approximately 38 minutes a day on WhatsApp, which means marketing messages will get the visibility they need to land impact when sent on the right channel. By leveraging past behaviours, shopping habits and interests, companies can send relevant products and services or upgrades on plans or memberships that will meet their needs.

Also Read: The thesis for cross-border e-commerce in Southeast Asia

Several companies have utilised conversational commerce to the fullest, resulting in growth, as seen with Bajaj Auto in India.

This automotive manufacturing company saw its conversion rates double and engagement boosted by 133 per cent just by adding WhatsApp and RCS (Rich Communication Services), an upgraded version of SMS with branding, rich media, interactivity and analytics delivered through default messaging apps, to its communication stack.

Bajaj Auto sought out communication channels that would let them meaningfully engage with customers instead of sending out transactional, one-way communication.

What’s next for conversational commerce?

Conversational commerce will continue to shape how consumers and brands interact with one another as emerging technologies such as AI push the boundaries, delivering automated messages that can be more timely, tailored, and cost-efficient.

Innovation in conversational commerce will drive new consumer demands that brands need to prepare for. In the coming years, organisations can expect to invest in analysing consumer habits, capture pre-purchase journeys, and strategically retain human touchpoints within their customer journey map. This is especially so as the modern customer journey is non-linear.

This new era of conversational commerce presents opportunities for brands to humanise their voice. By actively listening and engaging the customer from the start of their purchase to when their package arrives at their doorstep, it brings companies closer to their customer and forms meaningful connections with them, getting them to the top one message at a time.

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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

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Organised by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, X-HUB TOKYO connects startups and established companies in Tokyo with the global innovation ecosystem, accelerating their growth and innovation in a new era. To realise its vision, X-HUB TOKYO helps Tokyo-based companies gain insightful market information and analysis and provides networking opportunities for the companies to seek funding and mentoring with leading investors and venture capitalists at home and abroad. With win-win and lasting collaboration, X-HUB TOKYO aspires to contribute to creating cutting-edge technologies, and sustainable solutions to solve complex challenges and strengthen the ecosystem. 

In the upcoming pitch event, X-HUB TOKYO is delighted to introduce the nine promising Japanese startups actively seeking collaborative opportunities with Singapore companies and investors to take their business activities to the next level.

1. IDDK Co., Ltd.

IDDK Co., Ltd. focuses on developing a ground-breaking Micro Imaging Device (MID), which is a microscopic observation chip that can be delivered to places previously inaccessible by conventional microscopes due to physical, climatic, or technical restrictions. MID is believed to create a healthier and better future for societies by enhancing the accuracy of disease diagnosis, observations, and treatment discoveries. IDDK is creating a remotely controlled and fully automated laboratory that companies can access in the future to observe how things work at the micro-level. In addition to healthcare, the technology can also be applied in other industries, such as education. IDDK Co., Ltd. is open to partnership and funding opportunities to accelerate its business growth.

2. INFORICH, Inc.

With the mission of “Creating a society that thinks and acts for the next person and generation”, in April 2018, INFORICH launched its innovative mobile battery-sharing service called ChargeSPOT to help people refill their mobile phone batteries conveniently. After five years in operation, INFORICH has provided over 30,000 charging units in Japan, 4,300 units in Taiwan, 3,000 units in Hong Kong, and 1,000 units in Thailand.

The company also continuously adapts to changing market conditions to improve user experience, such as integrating mini-programs with carrier-based payment applications, and upgrading the “ChargeSPOT” batteries with antibacterial and antiviral treatment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s comparative advantages lie in its international brand awareness, signage for every machine, and its respect for intellectual property.

Also read: Exploring corporate partnerships as a pathway to scaling your startup

3. Credit Engine, Inc.

Credit Engine is a SaaS product provider, which leverages data-driven technology to innovate financial services, including online lending and debt collection. The product aims to deliver a more seamless and stress-free experience for users when dealing with stressful financial matters. It also ensures an ethical debt collection process thanks to the digitalisation and automation of the processes that increase transparency, leading to higher collection rates with lower costs. Users can also track most of the processes via history logs and optimise the flow for better performance. 

4. Skillnote Corporation

With the purpose of solving the challenges of companies for human resource and skill management, especially for the manufacturing industry, Skillnote offers a Skill management system to allow users to record employees’ skill data, which will enable strategic human resource development. The insights can be used for strategic human resource management and project management. Skillnote is used by over 120 global companies and 100,000 users. The product incorporated CEO Takafumi Yamakawa’s deep understanding of the workflow and operation of the human resource department thanks to his 25 years of experience.

5. STANDAGE Inc. 

Powered by blockchain and AI technologies, STANDAGE Inc. has developed a digital trading platform, DiGiTRAD, which can solve all the problems of sales channel development, negotiation, contract, settlement, and logistics necessary to establish a trading business. The platform wishes to support Japanese SMEs and aims to expand their global operation, having established bases in Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, Hong Kong and the United States, actively conducting import/export operations in each region. STANDAGE Inc. plans to expand its business further in other Southeast Asian countries and seek opportunities and funding for business development.

Also read: Customer retention strategies are getting trickier. Can you keep up?

6. SpoLive Interactive, Inc.

Creating the world’s first data management SaaS for various sports, SpoLive is a digital platform that enables emerging sports organisations to easily build an interactive experience with fans, just like Twitch. They can stream game stats and video simultaneously with ultra-low latency, creating real-time interaction between fans and teams and allowing fans to cheer remotely and feel a sense of unity and participation like in a stadium. The platform is also a tool for teams to collect and manage online data to improve their marketing activities.   

7. TBM Co., Ltd.

TBM aims to galvanise a global sustainability revolution by promoting two fundamental approaches: environmentally friendly materials and circularity. Regarding material, TBM develops and distributes LIMEX, a limestone–based new material that can be an alternative to paper and plastics, helping to preserve the environment. Major applications of LIMEX include booklets, posters, shopping bags, cosmetic packaging, and food containers, to name a few. In terms of circularity, TBM accelerates the circulation of materials such as LIMEX and plastic wastes by producing the flow of materials and operating recycling plants. LIMEX has successfully partnered with over 8,000 customers globally, and it is keen on speeding up sales expansion even further, especially in Southeast Asian countries.

8. NEWROPE Co. Ltd. 

Aiming to help the fashion industry to become more profitable and reduce waste, NEWROPE provides AI-powered services such as recommendation engines and trend analysis for E-commerce for fashion-related companies as SaaS. Based on these insights, fashion companies can understand growing customer trends, optimise their stock, and match customers with the right items. NEWROPE has developed its AI since 2016 and collected data since 2018, and it has cooperated with some fashion brands, retail including E-commerce, OEM, media and so on.

Also read: Dedoco: A founder’s journey to building next-gen digital trust technology

9. Hacarus Inc.

Founded in 2014, HACARUS INC. provides big insights from small data. Headquartered in Kyoto, Japan and backed by Osaka Gas and Miyako Capital (Kyoto University), among others, its technology enables humans to make better, faster and more reliable data-driven decisions. Its proprietary AI engine is built using Sparse Modelling, a method that understands data by its unique key features and is much more efficient than Deep Learning. Since its inception, the company has supplied solutions in 100+ AI projects across the Medical and Manufacturing fields. 

To learn more about these fascinating startups, join our Demo Day on December 6th. 

Sign up for the event here.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Tokyo Metropolitan Government

We can share your story at e27, too. Engage the Southeast Asian tech ecosystem by bringing your story to the world. Visit us at e27.co/advertise to get started.

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After a successful debut in Jakarta, The Big Leap Roadshow makes its next move to Singapore!

This event results from a partnership between e27 and CleverTap, trusted by 10,000+ mobile brands and a pioneer in helping brands engage and retain their users.

Over the next six months, we will bring exclusive interviews, content, roadshows, networking events, and informal meet-ups with Southeast Asia’s leading tech leaders in multiple countries – Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines.

After our first stop in Indonesia, we will host the next event on November 24 at Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, Riverfront Ballroom, 392 Havelock Rd, Singapore 169663.

In this event, we will touch on the topic of Unlock the recipe for accelerated growth with our distinguished speakers:

– Marc-Antoine Hager, SEA Regional VP, Sales, CleverTap
– Baptiste Le Gal, Chief Revenue Officer, APAC, Vestiaire Collective
– Thaddeus Koh, Co-founder, e27
– Igor Mostovoy, VP Product, 99.co
– Avantika Jain, General Manager, Fave
– Sistla Sumanth, Digital Technology Director, APAC, RBI
– David Setiawan, Head of Marketing, JobStreet by Seek
– Achint Setia, Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer, Zalora

Just like in Jakarta, this event will be an opportunity for notable growth leaders in Singapore to rub shoulders with a community of like-minded individuals. Having secured registrations from more than 100 names in the industry, the following is the handy list of growth leaders that you will get to meet at the event:

1. Leslie Lin, Head of Growth Marketing, SingSaver

According to his LinkedIn profile, Lin has more than 12 years of progressive experience in management and operations. He describes himself as a “a senior marketing leader with proven history of improvement for brands in the areas of leading new business initiatives and in translating strategy into tactics and execution with revenue enhancement across Asia.”

Also Read: Success is a moving target: CleverTap Co-founder Anand Jain

2. Frank Ng, Head of Marketing, Intellect

Ng’s expertise as a digital marketer includes the whole value chain: strategy, ad execution, analytics, and even teaching. According to his LinkedIn profile, his channel expertise spans across SEO, SEM, paid social, content creation and marketing, and app growth (ASO and app push).

3. Bassam Abdel Rahman, SVP, Zenyum

Rahman is a global marketer with a passion for growing businesses and brands. In his LinkedIn profile, he detailed having more than 17 year experience in working with the worlds bigger brands as well as SEA’s fastest growing unicorns.

4. Kenji Narushima, Chief Strategy Officer / Chief of Staff, Carro

As the Chief Strategy Officer / Chief of Staff of Carro, Narushima has over 16 years of extensive experience working in private equity investments in middle stream infrastructure such as transportation and energy, and has shifted into Venture Capital Investment.

5. Fabian Foo, Founder, MatchMde

As the Founder of MatchMde, Foo has more than 15 years of strong management experience in the IT and financial domain with expertise in project, product, incident, change, and delivery management. He has proven abilities in leading international, cross-functional teams in the delivery and deployment of multiple concurrent projects.

6. Theresa Pragasam-Sidhu, Head of Brand, Brand, Digital Marketing, StashAway

In her LinkedIn profile, Pragasam-Sidhu describes herself as a Strategic Brand Marketer with strong commercial experience in expanding revenue, market penetration, brand development/awareness and customer experience.

7. Aulia Damayanti, Performance Marketing Analyst, Rukita

Damayanti describes herself in her LinkedIn profile as a digital marketing enthusiast with specialisation in performance. She is experienced in strategic planning, social media management, and paid ads strategy.

8. Nikola Rudic, General Manager, Orientech Fine Banking

Rudic told e27 in an email that as much as crises destabilise global supply chains, they also present us with opportunities to venture into new markets, win new projects, or pivot a business.

Also Read: Customer retention strategies are getting trickier. Can you keep up?

“Beyond the crises, automotive industry in particular is undergoing structural changes due to the shift to EV. Our marketing strategy as well as our culture, is that of always being close to our clients, in order to keep up with the changes in demand and stay top-of-mind. Following these simple principles allowed us to win many new businesses in these difficult times, reaching nearly 40 per cent of last year’s sales amount.”

9. Rita Chang, CMO, klikit

This year, Chang told e27 that her greatest achievement was building the company’s one-year-old venture’s marketing team from just one to six “incredible people”.

“Our nascent team is the perfect mix of talent and personalities across growth, product, content, and creative. In 2022, we’ve built a robust infrastructure for execution within marketing and across the company — and we know every day there’s always opportunity to be stronger and faster for the restaurants, creators, and brands we serve at klikit.”

10. David Setiawan, Head of Marketing, JobStreet Singapore

Setiawan has more than 10 years of working experience in the field of digital marketing. In his LinkedIn profile, he listed rich experience in SEM, Programmatic, Direct Buy and Facebook Ad campaign management and optimisation.

11. Hse May Chan, Regional Head Brand and Growth Marketing, igloo

Hse May Chan is a data-driven communications professional with a journalism and economics background.

12. Desmond Ng, General Manager, M1 Limited

With a master’s degree in user experience design, Ng’s expertise and experiences involve a wide range of industries, from telecommunication, Virtual & Augmented Reality, and Interactive Digital Media.

13. Flame Rozario, Performance Marketing, MyRepublic

In addition to handling performance marketing at MyRepublic, Rozario is also an adjunct lecturer in digital marketing at Lithan. She also writes about archaeology and movies in her personal blog.

14. Elaine Cheong, Brand Strategist & Product Marketing Manager, Fave

In her LinkedIn profile, Cheong describes herself as a “certified brand strategist who currently leads go-to-market strategies and strategic initiatives with multiple hats in B2B and B2C- branding, product marketing, content creation, product design and project management.”

15. Saurabh Dutta, General Manager, Changi Airport Group

Dutta has over a decade of experience in consulting on mobile marketing and technology architecture in the areas such as retail banking, consumer brands, insurance and retail. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has been responsible for several major innovations in the field of mobile wallets (prepaid and real-time), mobile loyalty cards and marketing automation.

Also Read: Follow the steps of these 35 growth leaders to The Big Leap Roadshow in Indonesia

16. Nicole Teo, Head of Marketing, Coins.ph

Teo describes herself as a data-driven marketing strategist. She has over eight years of experience in marketing with a strong background in performance marketing for e-commerce and crypto companies. Her interests include innovations in tech and social impact, especially in Web3, art, fintech, gaming, and agritech.

17. Justin Ong, Manager – DMO Partnerships, Relations and Strategy (SEA & Oceania), Klook

In his LinkedIn profile, Ong describes himself as a lifestyle enthusiast, travel professional, and sales and relationship builder.

18. Yi Xuan Tong, Co-Founder, Marketing, Crater Merch

Tong describes her passion as improving consumer-brand relationships meaningfully and impacting audiences effectively with words, illustrations, and strategies in her LinkedIn profile.

19. Le Yi Khor, Co-Founder, Ottodot

As Co-Founder of Ottodot, Le Yi Khor defines her personal mission as empowering youths in realising their fullest potential through good design and technology.

20. Sabrina ‘Princessa’ Wang, Director, People’s Inc

Wang is an award-winning serial entrepreneur and advocate in the media, marketing and technology industry with over a decade of experience. She had been featured across various media.

21. Naushaba Salahuddin, independent communications specialist

In her profile, Salahuddin describes her niche as “Developing effective messaging and using strategic and innovative delivery channels to showcase solutions to problem statements.”

Also Read: Gen Z is redefining global consumption. Can companies keep up?

22. Soumyakant Dash, Director, Regional Head of BNPL, SE Asia GrabFin

With experience in strategy consulting and investing in financial services (FS), Dash is passionate about the coming together of technology and FS to deliver impact at scale in Southeast Asia and India.

23. Eddie Courtney Chan, Account Director, Pace

In addition to having experience as an operations manager and business development lead, with a history in notable companies such as WeWork, Chan has also worked as a personal stylist.

24. S M Ashik Ahmed, Vice President, Priyoshop

Before his work at Priyoshop, Ahmed was a senior auditor at a leading Chartered Accountants and Consulting firm in Bangladesh.

25. Roohi Taragi, Marketing Lead, Alta Group

Taragi is a marketing specialist with seven years of experience in planning, executing, and managing multi-channel marketing strategies.

26. Steffan Fung, Founder/CEO, ELXR

After a 16-year career with the Special Forces of the Singapore Armed Forces, Fung wrote in his profile that he embarked on the mission to make fitness more accessible and affordable through the Direct-To-Consumer brand ELXR.

Also Read: SEA’s mobile-first population are spending all their time on mobile phones: Are you?

27. Cecile du Passage, Head of marketing, Bim

du Passage believes that working in a multicultural environment is the most rewarding experience in her professional career as it allows one to learn and develop both technical and human skills.

28. Jamie Choo, Co-founder & CEO, Loominate

Choo describes himself as a founder passionate about design thinking and impact tech. He is an ex-industry director and space engineer, blending 14 years of expertise across technical, customer and business domains.

29. Cedric Lee, CEO, ConnectingDNA

With 19 years of experience in regional health and medical tech, Lee started the company in 2018 after discovering the solution for his health struggle through DNA testing.

30. Marcus Wong, Founder, Vision Direct Club

Vision Direct Club is Singapore’s first eye health app that aims to deliver primary eye care with step-up and step-down care. In building his company, Wong writes that he believes that great ideas are built on not being afraid of being ridiculed.

31. Bryan Se To, CEO, Lexly

According to Bryan Se To, two things fascinate him about entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurship being the environment to nurture imagination, and the opportunity to lead a team and unlock their potentials.

32. Zhongye Woo, Founder, The Nutri X

Prior to founding The Nutri X, Woo spent two years as an investment analyst at venture capital and private equity firm Verlinvest.

Also Read: Keep your customers around with stellar retention strategies

33. Michelle Tan, Marketing, Chope

Prior to joining Chope, Tan already has an extensive experience in the regional foodtech industry with notable companies such as Foodpanda and Domino’s Pizza.

34. Dylene Contigno, Key Accounts, Cross Border Sales for SEA, Ninja Van

Contigno is an experienced Business Development Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the food and beverages industry.

35. Marisha Lakhiani, VP of Marketing, Mindvalley

At Mindvalley, Lakhiani is responsible for its US$100 Million in revenue and manage all the key marketing functions including product launches, product marketing, membership, B2B, localization, performance marketing, creatives team, marketing tech, and all brand channels.

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Want to be part of this amazing opportunity? There is time for you to sign up for The Big Leap in Singapore! See you on November 24!

Image Credit: imtmphoto

The post The Big Leap lands in Singapore to take notable growth leaders on a journey towards excellence appeared first on e27.