As an entrepreneur or startup operator, navigating product-market fit (PMF) is crucial for any business’s success. PMF is the sweet spot where your product features, target customers, and business model come together seamlessly.

Rather than any specific performing metric, PMF is a composite signal for a company that, based on market response and conditions, the time is ripe to sell and scale operations around a specific product. Many startups fail due to a lack of PMF, which may stem from issues such as narrow market focus, insufficient R&D, or inexperience.

And while PMF is not the sole factor investors consider, it significantly influences their decisions during Series A and B funding rounds. Demonstrating PMF can improve a startup’s chances of securing investments.

To better understand this vital aspect of company building, we debunk some common misconceptions about PMF, explore its importance for long-term growth, and examine real-world examples from Southeast Asia.

Misconception: PMF solely depends on the product and market

Reality: Product-market fit isn’t the only fit that matters. Achieving PMF is a challenging journey that involves factors beyond the product and market, such as language, distribution channels, and operations. Understanding these factors can help refine your product and achieve better PMF.

Real-world example: Especially for fintechs, it’s important to know existing regulations and consumer sentiments around the status quo. The founding team behind the pioneering digital bank Tonik had to spend time working with local regulators to secure a license to launch in 2021. They also made it a point to find a language-market fit that would appeal to their target market.

Misconception: PMF is a one-time achievement

Reality: PMF is not a final destination but a continuous process that requires constant adaptation based on customer feedback and data. Embracing this dynamic journey can lead to long-term growth and success.

Real-world example: Instead of optimising for topline, GTV growth on their financing and ERRP SaaS business, Indonesian fintech for FMCG SMEs AwanTunai optimised their ability to manage risk and build up their data ops to unlock successive PMFs after their initial financing product, leading to the launch of their app-less ERP software and financing products for other stakeholders in the FMCG supply chain. This especially enabled the company to weather the impact of the pandemic on financing businesses and more recently, become a Top 50 APAC high-growth company.

Misconception: Sustaining growth is all about product features

Reality: Every product eventually reaches a plateau in user growth. To break through this ceiling, startups must revisit customer assumptions, optimise performance, and unlock new market segments.

At the heart of breaking through what is often called the “S-curve” of growth is the company having the ability to unlock value from the data it has. Already we are seeing today that the biggest companies today aren’t just great at selling, they are great at leveraging data to make what they’re selling matter.

Also Read: Achieving product-market fit: The ultimate guide to growth, strategy and positioning

Real-world example: From day one, auto retail platform Carro has been leveraging its ability to ingest data on customer transactions to improve the auto retail experience, from offering personalised financing and insurance to optimising pricing and ensuring the quality of their supply of used cars.

Misconception: Achieving PMF guarantees long-term growth

Reality: Long-term growth requires continuous product improvements, experimentation, and the ability to build viral products. PMF is a critical aspect of achieving this durability and sustainable growth, but not a guarantee.

Real-world example: Vietnam retail wealth management platform Finhay found PMF with their initial mutual fund investment product, but realised in order to unlock further growth, they needed to expand into other asset classes. This led to them launching several other products in the next few years, including savings accounts, stock trading, and gold investing.

Misconception: Scaling is independent of PMF

Reality: Scaling a business without a solid PMF can lead to wasted resources and customer churn. Establishing a paying customer base, ensuring your product can be sold by your sales team, and maintaining customer retention rates are essential steps in the scaling journey.

Real-world example: Indonesian startup Gojek, in its early years, successfully scaled by focusing on its paying customer base, expanding its services beyond ride-hailing, and maintaining low churn rates.

While there’s no single formula to find PMF, it is clear that having clarity on what this means for your startup is crucial for long-term, sustainable growth.

Instead of a single formula, what we have are many frameworks, mental models, and approaches born out of the experiences of entrepreneurs over the years. We distilled 20 of these frameworks and more insights into a Product-Market Fit playbook which is free to access here.

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UENA, a hyperlocal online F&B startup based in Indonesia, has raised an undisclosed amount in funding co-led by existing investor East Ventures and new investor Trihill Capital.

This new round, closed in Q1 2023, strengthens Uena’s balance sheet following the seed funding raised in September 2022.

The new capital will be used to continue expanding the locations and services to reach more users and customers.

“The majority of our orders come from repeat customers and their orders continue to increase from month to month. Even though we have only been operating for less than one year, the mature stores are already break-even and getting a healthy payback period. The new fund adds our confidence to continue capturing the great opportunity ahead,” said Alvin Arief, Co-Founder and CEO.

Also Read: Bootstrapped: How dating app Sirf Coffee takes on the likes of Tinders without raising VC money

Since launching in August 2022, Uena has opened seven kitchen locations in Jakarta and has served more than 300,000 portions. Customers can order Uena directly through its app or by contacting WhatsApp number. It does not rely on food delivery aggregators too much since more than 80 per cent of its orders come through direct channels.

Each of the kitchens only serves a hyperlocal radius of 1-1.5 km radius and handles delivery internally to minimise delivery cost and delivery time. A typical order will arrive in 15 minutes after a customer placed the order.

Uena sees the problem where the daily food segment in Indonesia is a US$90 billion market annually but almost entirely served by unorganized street-side vendors. This causes customer pain related to high fragmentation, especially in quality, reliability, and price. Uena aims to solve this problem by serving quality food at affordable prices through online delivery. It uses a very light cloud kitchen format and leverages the power of technology and economy of scale to increase quality while decreasing the price at the same time.

Uena is now gearing up for expansion and duplication in Jakarta. Each kitchen requires low capital, fast set-up, and flexibility to use a wide range of available spaces.

It will also continue to add more menus to increase customer repeat orders at multiple meal times each day and multiple days throughout the week.

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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 brings together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here. Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups can pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like connecting with investors, visibility through the platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.

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Southeast Asia and India’s first wave of fintechs was characterised by B2C products that provide consumers with easy access to financial services. While demographic and macro factors favoured fintech adoption, a large part of this was also driven by venture funding. Rewards and incentives, rather than the products alone, spurred end-user adoption.

Last year’s market correction became a forcing mechanism for fintechs to prove their long-term value. With tighter capital, fintechs and embedded finance companies are now forced to rely on a differentiated product or service to attract demand.

The necessity to differentiate has in turn created a new opportunity: Finance-as-a-service startups that abstract complexity at the infrastructure layer, enabling end-customer-facing companies to build better products and solutions faster than ever.

(Re)Building infrastructure

Instead of building for the last mile, finance-as-a-service startups provide the infrastructure needed for emerging companies to build an end-customer solution on top. By building the baseline tech stack, solving for regulatory compliance, and forming partnerships with banks, they help accelerate the pace of development of other fintechs and embedded finance startups.

For traditional banks, working with infrastructure companies can help them grow their digital distribution channels. As an example, M2P Fintech is partnering with traditional banks to offer an integrated tech stack for lending.

Finance-as-a-service does not just help new startups starting from scratch. Existing companies can leverage this to improve the quality of the tech stack or reduce the time for expanding into new product lines or geographies.

Also Read: Revolutionising fintech in Southeast Asia: AI and ML empower businesses with data

An embedded finance player expanding from Singapore to Indonesia will have to rebuild its own integrations and bank partnerships, a process which would take at least half a year without an infrastructure partner.

Finance-as-a-service

Banking-as-a-service

An end-to-end model that allows third parties to connect with the banks’ systems directly through APIs to build banking offerings on top of the providers’ regulated infrastructure. BaaS is different from Open Banking, which is the framework that makes BaaS possible by providing rules around how third parties can access financial data (i.e., BaaS is a subset of Open Banking).

Bank-connections-as-a-service 

Their APIs provide third-party access to financial data from banks. Use cases include enabling users to have a consolidated view of their finances across platforms or enabling bank transfers as a payment method on checkout forms.

Point solutions in as-a-service

Models that focus specifically on enabling one type of financial service, instead of the full banking proposition with bank accounts, cards, loans etc. Examples here include Marqeta, Card91, and FinBox for cards issuing-as-a-service, and Calyx and Finastra for lending-as-a-service. Point Solutions provide a focused product set for companies who do not necessarily want to become banks and can also help traditional banks extend their services digitally.

How they generate revenue

• Interchange: BaaS companies primarily make revenue on the interchange split based on card usage, adopting a rev share model with partner banks.
• Subscription/SaaS fees: Startups may also charge a subscription fee for platform usage. Some place a higher importance on this as a revenue stream.
• Monthly per account/per customer fees: This is usually charged in addition to subscription fees to account for variable costs as a startup scale.
• Credit/lending offerings: Interest rates, account fees etc., which will typically be a revenue share with banking partners.

The opportunity in APAC

In APAC, embedded finance is projected to grow at a CAGR of 24.4 per cent from 2022 to 2029, reaching a total revenue size of US$358 billion. The large and fast-growing market aside, a few underlying characteristics make finance-as-a-service a unique opportunity in the region

Real-Time Payment Systems (RTPS) at the forefront

RTPS is already prominent in countries such as India (UPI), Singapore (PayNow), and Thailand (PromptPay), with others like Indonesia (BIFast) catching up fast. While governments and bank consortiums have focused on the infrastructure, there is much more to do to wrap products around these rails.

Also Read: How voice AI is revolutionising the fintech scene

Emerging companies in the region can differentiate themselves from global brands by delivering products that capitalise on or help to enhance, RTPS. For example, by leveraging RTPS to facilitate instant pay-outs from platforms to freelancers, startups can help platforms circumvent the high costs of instant pay-outs in an automated manner.

Supporting, and not replacing, traditional banks

Many banks in the region operate on legacy core banking platforms with data siloes and APIs that are not suitable for the next generation. Instead of only partnering with banks, finance-as-a-service startups can make banks a lucrative revenue stream by providing them with modern infrastructure for digital offerings.

M2P Fintech recognised this and is expecting their lending infrastructure product to traditional companies to account for 25 per cent of revenue. Hyperface.io, a cards-issuing-focused fintech in India, is primarily helping banks improve their card programs.

In addition to being a revenue stream, this approach can help startups de-risk regulatory restrictions that protect traditional banks.

Constantly evolving local regulatory landscapes

In multiple countries (e.g., the introduction of the Account Aggregator framework in India, and consumer protection rules by OJK in Indonesia) means that companies need to put in substantial effort to stay up to date with compliance and regulatory changes.

For those that plan to scale regionally or globally, this becomes even harder to manage. Instead of managing regulatory complexities on their own, having the right partners will free up their capacity to focus on building products.

Looking for the next best thing rather than having brand loyalty

Case in point: the average number of cards per user in Singapore is close to 5, and a user in Malaysia owns an average of two e-wallets. Startups facing end customers want to spend most of their time on product and service differentiation, and thus have less time to focus on building out a reliable and secure infrastructure layer.

Regional plays over domestic-only play

The fact that many fintechs and embedded finance startups aspire to win in the APAC region, and not just in domestic markets, gives finance-as-a-service a unique opportunity. Aside from providing the required technology and partnerships, emerging companies that can support cross-border money movement or multi-currency accounts will stand out.

Despite the potential, the thesis will take time to play out in APAC

• Building close to the metal is a long game that takes years.
• The buy vs build question will continue to be top of mind for many startups. The largest traditional banks and embedded finance companies today have been around since the startup boom and have existing resources (e.g., finances, existing partnerships, and a talent brand) to tap on. In some markets, they can even buy their own bank (e.g., FinAccel’s acquisition of Bank Bisnis, BharatPe with Unity SFB). Given the nascency of financial infrastructure startups in the market today, it may just become a race on who can build faster.
• Regulations and partnerships in the region are highly local. And with the region lacking an intragovernmental regulatory framework, this makes regional expansion for infrastructure startups themselves difficult to scale.
• Finance-as-a-service startups work with a wide spectrum of partners and suppliers including card networks, sponsor banks, and other core APIs that they white label. This makes supply-side integrations extremely critical to longer-term profitability, and part of the unit economics of these businesses is the delicate balancing act across third parties. In addition, risks of regulations that limit the upside, such as interchange caps, could mean even tighter margins.

Parting thoughts

While challenging, the heterogeneity of the region and active regulatory landscape means that there will always be lots of complexity and complexity means opportunity. Those who survive need to be highly focused on what matters most to the companies they are selling to and maintain a moat from being commoditised.

Are they selling a stellar tech stack? A solid network of bank partnerships? How sticky is their offering? The startups that can navigate these questions and articulate their value will be worthy of investment.

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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

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What do Coca-Cola and Web3 have in common?

Not much at first glance. 

Yet could there be timely lessons that Web3 can glean from the world’s most popular beverage?

To find out, we begin with the origins story of Coca-Cola. The American Civil War was not kind to recipe creator John Stith Pemberton. After sustaining a sabre wound, the soldier became addicted to morphine. Desperate for a cure, this doctor brewed a potent concoction of coca wine, kola nut extract and damiana. A brown liquid advertised as an “intellectual beverage”, the first version of Coca-Cola was anything but successful, selling just US$50 in its first year. Pemberton sold the rights to the Coca-Cola formula and brand in 1888 for US$1,750, just over US$50,000 today.

Fast forward 135 years and 94 per cent of the world recognises the iconic white cursive on a red background of the Coca-Cola brand. 

 

What led to the ‘mass adoption’ of Coca-Cola?

There are many factors, but advertising has played a major role in making this medicinal concoction the world’s most popular drink. Between 2014 to 2020, Coca-Cola averaged an annual ad spend of US$4B. The brown liquid that came out of Georgia laid the foundations of a global conglomerate generating more than US$30B in annual revenue. 

Can ads do the same for Web3? More interestingly, could Web3 also improve the ad experience?

Why do ads feel unwanted?

The common reaction to ads, especially amongst Web3 natives, is “eeck”! Just as few early adopters appreciated Pemberton’s beverage, ads in Web3 seem equally unwelcome. From a builder’s perspective, using ads can often be considered a sellout. For users, ads carry memories of misused data, annoying interruptions and being taken advantage of.

Most of these negative perceptions stem from the power imbalances in contemporary advertising. A whopping 86 per cent of digital ad revenue is concentrated in three companies: Google, Meta and Amazon.

Also Read: Web3 startups: The next big thing investors are flocking to

This has established unfair advantages in accruing first-party data,  the kind users generate through online actions and creates impenetrable ‘walled gardens’ with little space for competitors to offer a better ads experience for audiences. It is little wonder that the ads experience is as unpleasant as interacting with the mob for advertisers or consumers; it’s pitched as a necessary evil with no room for improvement. 

What does Web3 bring to ads?

As written previously,  Web3 heralds a paradigm shift in advertising. The first-party data that Google and Meta used to create unfair moats is now public and accessible if recorded on a blockchain.

With social protocols such as Lens emerging, every user interaction, be it a like or comment, is now on-chain and visible to anyone with a block explorer. Advertisers are no longer walled in by closed ecosystems, nor is their customer targeting reliant on centralised giants.

For example, a fitness application can utilise Web3-native ad networks such as Slise to discover and target the holders of “move-to-earn” tokens. The possibilities to innovate and improve the consumer ads experience are no longer far-fetched. 

If data is no longer the moat, and control is seized from the hands of “too big to fail” tripoly actors, what are the differentiators in advertising?

One factor would be ad network quality and algorithms to more efficiently process data and understand user intent better, as outlined previously. Another would be the thoughtfully designed incentives to reward users; the focus of this piece. While incentives were once one-dimensional, Web3 has created new, fascinating avenues for incentive design.

The case for rewarding users

While the open nature of on-chain data is exciting, it is only half of the equation. On-chain data needs to be complemented with off-chain data to deliver personalised, relevant ads to users. Whereas interactions with smart contracts and dapps create an accessible on-chain history, most transactions and actions still occur off-chain, where accessibility is limited.

Advertisers and ad networks have two choices: permission access to off-chain data, where users approve the sharing of their first-party data, or permissionless access, where user approval is not needed and an understanding of the user is built on a combination of guesswork and algorithms. Both approaches carry distinctive benefits and trade-offs; we believe the permissioned approach will prevail for two key reasons:

Completeness of data

With data and privacy regulations tightening worldwide, a growing amount of personal data will only be accessible to advertisers and ad networks through the explicit permission of the user. These privileged data tend to be most pertinent in ad targeting, so a permissionless approach will face increasing challenges to achieving completeness of data.

Lack of interoperability across on-chain and off-chain sourcesWhile there are emerging ‘bridges’ like oracles to connect on-chain and off-chain data, or to consolidate on-chain data across multiple chains, interoperability remains tricky. As more blockchains emerge, aggregating and analysing data across permissionless chains becomes more technically complex than permissioned methods

If we believe permissioned access to off-chain data is key, then we need incentives to reward users for giving their permission.

Where are the opportunities for incentive design?

One of the most immediate opportunities to incentivise users is the “pay-per-consumption” approach: view an ad, and be compensated.  The benefit to users is clear: they are directly rewarded for completing the desired action instead of centralised entities like Google or Meta.  

Also Read: Meet the 22 Web3 investors that are ready to rock the future with your startup

This model can be over-simplistic: few users would intentionally consume ads to earn compensation. Ads are often a by-product of a user’s job-to-be-done, whether it is checking a token price on a coin tracking site, or searching a transaction on a blockchain explorer. Incentivising a user to divert attention from their job-to-be-done to view an ad can be costly, the few dollars from an impression or click might not be sufficient. 

What if incentives are designed to enable users to complete their jobs to be done faster, cheaper, and simpler?

While users might not intentionally divert attention to consume an ad, there are proven models around cashback, the emphasis being supporting the user’s intended job-to-be-done, instead of hindering. Cashback and other forms of affiliate marketing are turbocharged as a result of on-chain data, as the correlation between a user’s identity and their transactions is accessible instantaneously, and can be rewarded with tools such as Chainvine and Fuul. 

Another opportunity area for incentives is gas fees: the pesky but necessary costs to transact on blockchains like Ethereum. Currently, end users pay the gas fee.  While the few dollars per transaction might seem trivial to sophisticated crypto traders, gas fees disincentivise new-to-crypto users, adding extra costs and friction toward adoption.

A beginner hoping to transfer their first token may not have the native token to pay for gas. The need to on-ramp a small amount to pay for gas is simply unappealing. Yet, the recent advancement of ERC-4337 reveals a potential opportunity for advertisers and ad networks to silently cover transaction fees for users, thus creating a seamless experience for all. 

Incentives also need not be financial. Often, users may be seeking quid pro quo exchanges. Emerging incentive mechanisms such as the DataDAO model enables users to pool together data, creating meaningful and valuable datasets whose value is greater than the sum of parts. The incentive for users is clear; contribute data in exchange for “credits” to access other forms of data.

Often data that are otherwise hard to access or aggregate. For example, a user can offer her browsing history data in exchange for tokens, and subsequently, she is able to utilise the said tokens to request data around the Web3 data economy. In short, non-financial reciprocity may prove to be a viable alternative alongside financial incentives.

The Coca-Cola moment for Web3

Incentives expand the possibilities of rewarding users and removing friction. Unhindered by barriers like gas fees and empowered by new use cases through quid pro quo exchanges, we can expect to see more users onboard to Web3, generating more demand for Web3 applications, which creates a positive flywheel effect for web3 advertising and general adoption.  

Just as traditional ads brought Coca-Cola from a non-descript beverage to a cultural icon, Web3 ads can potentially catalyse the inflection point across multiple categories. We can expect to see a reshaping of the tripoly advertising landscape where centralised entities have their power undermined, users will be incentivised to share data so they can better accomplish their jobs to be done, and ultimately, mass Web3 adoption will accelerate.

This article is co-written with Oleksii Sidorov, Co-Founder and CEO at Slise. 

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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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So, how does a livestreaming app such as Kumu make its revenue?

In this email interview with e27, Kumu Co-Founder and President Rexy Josh Dorado explains how the company’s revenue is currently driven by virtual gifts available on its platform. It allows users to send one-time animations to support their favorite streamers, who earn commissions from those virtual gifts.

“In doing so, users can also support streamers in winning campaigns, which are contests that allow streamers to win prizes, get themselves on a billboard or TV broadcast, etc. But more broadly, our economy is driven by people around the world supporting Filipino content creators–and retained on the platform by a sense of authentic connection that they can’t find elsewhere. Through the years, one thing still rings true – users are willing to support their favorite creators financially, and this has been a key driver of revenue growth for Kumu,” he stresses.

While virtual gifting remains the main source of revenue for Kumu, according to Chief Operating Officer Arianne Kader-Cu in the same interview, there are also a couple of other contributing streams from advertising and social games.

“Advertising involves partnering with brands to create highly targeted and engaging ads or executions that run during live streams and shows. Meanwhile, social games provide a platform for our community to interact with each other making the platform more fun and engaging. One of our games, color raid, allows the community to work together to achieve a common goal to win,” she explains.

To get a better understanding of how this Philippine-based startup do it, Dorado and Kader-Cu answer some of the biggest questions about making revenue in this Q&A session. The following is an edited excerpt of the conversation.

Also Read: Kumu nets Series C to become the ‘Disneyland of social media’; total funding exceeds US$100M

What process did you have to go through to come up with this revenue model?

Dorado: We took pointers from the success of live streaming apps in China, which pioneered livestream virtual gifting. The trial-and-error has been more around how to execute this in a way that promotes a safe, family-friendly content environment that has the potential to break into the mainstream.

We’ve done this by working with some of the leading local influencers, TV shows, and films in the Philippines–which have helped launch live streaming into the public consciousness. The challenge now is how to execute that playbook with talents and IP for whom we are true partners and help them grow their careers while enriching the Kumu ecosystem in the process.

Kader-Cu: There were definitely a lot of experimentations before we got things right. One of the biggest lessons we learned while scaling up the business was the importance of building a strong community of users. It was a balancing game to establish an online culture based on positivity and new possibilities.

Who are your users and how do you acquire them?

Dorado: Our users are Filipinos both within the Philippines and around the world. Specifically, Filipinos who are looking for entertainment and connection at a deeper level. The average user spends 60 minutes a day on the platform on just a few pieces of content. We have found user growth primarily effective via word of mouth, but it is also accelerated through partnerships with talents and IP with established fanbases.

Also Read: Kumu nets Series C to become the ‘Disneyland of social media’; total funding exceeds US$100M

There has been greater pressure for startups today to become more sustainable businesses financially. What are your thoughts on this? How do you approach building a profitable and sustainable business model?

Dorado: It’s the right move–especially if you are in a business that’s less winner-takes-all, and more about creating enduring and differentiated value for a specific but highly engaged group of people. This is the case for Kumu; just 20,000 paying users generate millions of dollars a month for our economy.

And in the past, we’ve been profitable for a full quarter before we started investing heavily in growth–which means we are well-positioned to be sustainable again as we go through the rocky macroeconomic movements of the next few years.

Kader-Cu: Having a sustainable business model is crucial for the long-term success of any startup. At Kumu, we have found that diversification of revenue streams and being able to pivot in response to market changes is key to achieving this goal. Relying too heavily on any one source of income can leave a startup vulnerable to changes in the market or unexpected disruptions. That is why we built a model that provides us with multi-faceted revenue streams as a safety net to mitigate any risks and ensure that there are multiple sources of income to draw from.

However, we also recognise that diversification alone may not be enough to guarantee long-term success. Through the pandemic, we’ve had to enact swift strategic changes in our business, which we can admit have been difficult calls to make, but that’s growth; that’s the journey.

Also Read: Kumu raises Series B funding round co-led by SIG, Openspace Ventures

How do the back-to-back global crises affect your business? And how do you deal with it?

Dorado: We grew from COVID-19 as people got stuck indoors–and so growth became harder when the economy opened up. Moreso when inflation started to hit our users’ wallets. For us, this means a shift in focus from aggressive growth to indefinite survival to ensure we are positioned to win in the long term when the tide rises back up.

What other opportunities do you aim to seize this year? What will be your big plan?

Dorado: Growing our base of homegrown talents and IP. Engaging around them more holistically–not just through virtual gifts but through other revenue streams, such as merch, gaming, etc. We are laying the foundations for what we believe will be the most vibrant network of Filipino creativity that we can proudly showcase to the world.

Kader-Cu: Our long-term vision at Kumu is to become a formidable digital entertainment company.

We have begun planting seeds throughout 2022 among a number of local businesses – acquiring Penlab, a leading local comics and webtoons platform with over one million monthly reads, and beginning to take major steps into gaming.

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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 is bringing together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here.

Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups get the chance to pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like a chance to connect with investors, visibility through e27 platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.

Image Credit: Kumu

The post How Kumu uses virtual gifting to make revenue as a livestreaming app appeared first on e27.

Use our special promo code: GO for 75% off your Echelon tickets!

The 2023 Echelon Asia Summit is happening at the Singapore EXPO on 14-15 June 2023. Are you a startup founder, investor, corporate, or tech enthusiast? Don’t miss out on one of the most anticipated tech conferences in the region! For more information, visit the official Echelon page.

Registration for TOP100 is now open and we are looking forward to seeing your startup on the list!

TOP100 Program gives you the one golden chance to connect with hundreds of investors, showcase your startup at Echelon, pitch on the TOP100 stage, and access special programs. Find out what’s new in TOP100 and join here: https://bit.ly/TOP100_2023

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Now that Echelon Asia Summit is coming back in full swing, e27 is determined to make one of its key features, the TOP100, one of the best yet!

The TOP100 program is an annual initiative organised by e27 to showcase and recognise the most promising startups in the Asia-Pacific region.

The program is open to exciting new startups from the Asia-Pacific region with innovative ideas that break barriers across different industries. The selection of the TOP100 involves a rigorous screening process, including an evaluation of the startup’s product or service, team, market potential, and traction.

Also read: Echelon Asia Summit is back! Get to know our PR partner

The selected startups are given the opportunity to pitch their business ideas at the Echelon Asia Summit this June 14-15, 2023, at the Singapore Expo. The program also provides exposure to investors, mentors, and potential partners, enabling growth among participating startups and helping them expand their networks across the larger global tech ecosystem.

The TOP100 program has become one of the most prestigious startup competitions in the region, attracting thousands of applicants each year and providing valuable visibility and support to the most promising startups in the region.

6 startups closer to competing at this year’s TOP100

Being a frontrunner refers to startups close to making it to this year’s TOP100 program.

With all the amazing startups sprouting across the Asia-Pacific region’s vibrant tech startup ecosystem, we now present you with 6 frontrunners closer to competing at this year’s TOP100. Get to know them here!

Factorem

Factorem saves hardware teams time sourcing for parts while saving manufacturers time in drafting quotes. We enable both sides to connect & transact seamlessly while growing the platform sustainably.

Their technologies provide a seamless ordering experience for custom parts while enabling scale and cost-savings for organisations. With better communication and more efficient decision-making, they help teams build better products in weeks instead of months. Their trusted Factorem Partners offer capabilities ranging from CNC Machining, 3D Printing, to Sheet Metal Fabrication.

Factorem is Southeast Asia’s first tech-enabled platform for on-demand custom manufacturing.

3DNA Technology Ltd.

3DNA has built the digital rails for the sustainable transformation of the eyewear industry. Their technology stack allows digitally native eyewear brands to innovate faster, go to market quicker, and solve the major sustainability issues with mass production of inventory by converting the value chain to an on-demand production model. 3DNA’s global network of independent optical retailers is supported by their retail technology kiosks, which contain face-scanning technology and their proprietary eyewear design app enabling rapid selection and customisation of eyewear. Their digital manufacturing solution enables products to be made on-demand, and made-to-measure.

At its core, 3DNA is an ecosystem for digitally native eyewear brands.

HealthySure

HealthySure is India’s most loved employee benefits insurtech platform for SMEs, startups, and enterprises across the country. The platform offers a suite of group health, life, and accident insurance products with curated health and wellness programs and operates with a digitised policy and claim experience. They have enrolled over 150 corporates in their portfolio, securing over 50,000 lives so far.

Their portfolio boasts some of the most credible corporate names such as Snapdeal, Chaayos, Enkash, Vista Rooms, Clovia, and Pocket Aces to name a few.

They have launched an industry-first Flexi Top-up Insurance which allows employees to personalise and upgrade their corporate health covers and enjoy continuity benefits post-employment.

RescaleLab

RescaleLab (a subsidiary of EAT Launchpad Pte Ltd) is a B2B platform-as-a-service whose mission is to power up skills development.

They are a data-driven B2B platform purpose-built to streamline skill development processes and needs, whilst capturing feedback loops between trainers and learners. They achieve this through an incentive-driven environment in and between users, then the assignment of varying weights into existing deep belief networks, recommender systems, long-short term memory, and recurrent neural networks. This outputs the user-matching results, activity optimisation, timeline prediction, skillset recommendations, input tuning strategies, and industry learnings. Their closed-loop algorithm continuously engages and collects user performance and feedback to recalibrate for building resiliency in people and businesses.

Ametshop Limited

Ametshop.com is a wholly Ghanaian-owned e-commerce retail shopping platform that offers a wide range of products that span various categories including home appliances, mobile phones, computer electronics, automobile accessories, furniture, and groceries while offering hire purchase or consumer finance services online through its web store and mobile commerce applications with flexible payment terms of quality and trusted brands of products in Ghana. Their mission is to help people own high-quality products at fair prices with flexible repayment terms to give them the peace of mind they need to freely pursue their dreams.

Ametshop was founded in February 2016, duly registered as a sole proprietorship business in April 2019 and later registered as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in October 2020.

Glee Trees Pte. Ltd. (Gleematic)

Gleematic AI is a Singapore-based tech startup. The first Asia-focused cognitive automation system was developed and has enhanced productivity in banks, insurance businesses, logistics companies, manufacturing companies, government agencies, and service organisations by up to 319%. Their customers are spread across Asia, including China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Singapore.

The Gleematic A.I. software robots can perform tasks up to five times faster than humans, have near-perfect accuracy with digital data, are flexible to any technique, are intelligent enough to handle semi-structured data, and can be used at any time of day.

A step closer to the coveted prize

After a rigorous screening process, these startups are a step closer to qualifying for this year’s TOP100.

If you are one of the founders of the startups above, a representative from e27 will be reaching out to you soon to discuss with you the next step in your application process. Feel free to get in touch with us for any inquiries.

Also read: 15 startups that are among this year’s frontrunners for TOP100

If you have an exciting startup with innovative ideas that can eclipse the best and the brightest in the region, join the 2023 TOP100 and stand a chance to pitch your ideas to some of the top investors in the Asia-Pacific at this year’s Echelon Asia Summit. Register for TOP100 here.

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Cryptocurrencies have been making headlines for their potential to transform the way we think about money and investment. With their decentralised nature and lack of government control, they offer a level of autonomy that traditional assets cannot match.

As a result, many investors are looking to diversify their portfolios and take advantage of the potential for high returns as a hedge against the economic instability that cryptocurrencies offer. Furthermore, the anonymity and privacy afforded by cryptocurrencies are a significant draw for those who value their financial privacy.

However, as cryptocurrencies become more mainstream, it is becoming increasingly important to integrate them with traditional banking systems. This presents several challenges that must be addressed in order to fully realise the potential benefits of cryptocurrencies.

For example, traditional banks may be hesitant to work with cryptocurrencies due to concerns over money laundering and other illegal activities. Additionally, the technical complexity of integrating cryptocurrencies with existing banking systems can be daunting.

Despite these challenges, there are potential solutions that can help bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and traditional banking. From regulatory frameworks to technological innovations, the future looks bright for those who are interested in leveraging the potential of cryptocurrencies in their investment strategies. In this article, we will explore the key obstacles to linking crypto to traditional banking and examine potential solutions for overcoming them.

Regulatory challenges

One major obstacle to linking crypto to traditional banking is regulatory compliance. Traditional banks are subject to strict regulations around anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) policies. Cryptocurrencies are often seen as high-risk due to their decentralised and pseudonymous nature, which makes it harder for banks to comply with these regulations and prevent fraudulent or illegal activities.

Also Read: Is CBDC the answer to the crypto fallout?

Technical limitations

Another is the technical challenges associated with integrating cryptocurrencies into traditional banking infrastructure. Traditional banking systems are built on legacy technologies that are not designed to handle the unique features of cryptocurrencies, such as decentralised ledgers and smart contracts.

Security concerns

One of the biggest concerns associated with cryptocurrencies is security, even more so after the debacles that happened in 2022 and the recent bank runs at some large crypto-friendly banks. Cryptocurrencies have a history of being targeted by hackers, and there have been several high-profile incidents where large amounts of cryptocurrency have been stolen. Traditional banks may be wary of the security risks associated with cryptocurrencies and may not have the expertise or resources to manage these risks effectively.

Lack of understanding

Another obstacle to linking crypto to traditional banking is the lack of understanding that exists between the two industries. Cryptocurrencies are a relatively new technology, and many traditional banks may not fully understand how they work or how they can be integrated into their existing infrastructure. As a result, banks may need to take extra care in ensuring that they are adhering to applicable regulations and industry best practices.

Overcoming these obstacles

Despite the challenges presented by regulatory compliance, technical limitations, security concerns, and lack of understanding, there are several potential solutions that can help bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and traditional banking systems.

Regulatory frameworks are being developed in many countries to help clarify the legal status of cryptocurrencies and provide guidelines for banks and other financial institutions to follow. These frameworks can help alleviate concerns around AML and KYC policies, providing greater transparency and trust for both banks and cryptocurrency users.

For example, in the United States, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued guidance in 2013 that clarified how virtual currency businesses should comply with AML and KYC regulations. More recently, in 2021, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued guidance that allows banks to use stablecoins for payment activities.

In addition to working with regulators, some banks are creating industry standards for dealing with cryptocurrencies. In 2018, the World Economic Forum created a framework for regulators and banks to use when evaluating the risks associated with cryptocurrencies. The framework includes guidelines for assessing the risks of cryptocurrencies and recommendations for developing risk management strategies.

Collaboration and education play a crucial role in bridging the gap between cryptocurrencies and traditional banking systems. Collaboration between tradfi and cryptocurrency companies can help foster greater understanding and trust between the two industries, leading to more effective integration.

Education efforts can help traditional bankers better understand the unique features and benefits of cryptocurrencies, enabling them to make more informed decisions about integrating them into their existing infrastructure.

Interoperability platforms or assets management firms have emerged as a promising solution to overcome the challenges of integrating cryptocurrencies into traditional banking infrastructure. Such companies can act as intermediaries between banks and cryptocurrency networks, enabling seamless transfer of funds and data. They provide a layer of abstraction that can help mitigate the complexity of the integration process.

Also Read: The regulatory war on cryptocurrency

However, companies must comply with existing AML/KYC regulations to provide banks with the necessary tools to monitor transactions and prevent illegal activities. Obtaining licenses from regulatory bodies in major financial jurisdictions is crucial to ensure that these companies are following the required regulations and to provide banks with additional confidence working with cryptocurrencies.

Therefore, by adhering to regulatory frameworks, these companies can become a critical bridge between traditional banking and cryptocurrencies, enabling the two to work together seamlessly.

Bridging the gap

As the world of cryptocurrencies expands, the need for bridging the gap between tradfi and crypto becomes more pressing. While there are certainly obstacles in integrating these two ecosystems, there are also promising solutions on the horizon. One immediate solution would be to enlist the help of asset managers with experience in both fields, which are licensed and adhere to strict regulations to ensure your assets are kept safe and secure.

These managers understand the regulatory, technical, security, and operational challenges that currently exist for crypto holders, and at the same time are experienced in navigating the traditional finance environment. By addressing these challenges head-on, they can create a more seamless and integrated system that benefits participants in both industries who would like access to one another.

As cryptocurrencies become increasingly popular, it is important to develop the infrastructure necessary to support their integration with traditional banking systems. By leveraging the benefits of cryptocurrencies while maintaining the trust and stability that traditional banking systems provide, licensed and experienced asset managers can play a crucial role in bridging the gap between these two worlds through their regulated licenses and technical prowess in blockchain technology.

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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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Imagine having the opportunity to be part of a dynamic and innovative community that not only values your voice but also helps you build your brand credibility!

That’s exactly what e27 Contributor Programme was created for. With the mission to equip founders, investors, innovators, and technicians with the tools to build and grow their businesses, our primary objective has always been to foster a sense of community amongst our members, both in-person and online.

But it’s not just about building businesses; it’s also about building relationships. Building a strong brand and cultivating a loyal community of customers and supporters is essential for any business to succeed. A well-established brand can help differentiate your company from competitors and create trust and credibility among your target audience.

However, building a brand and community is not just about marketing and advertising — it’s about establishing a genuine connection with your customers and providing value beyond your products or services.

Thought leadership is a powerful tool that can help businesses achieve this by sharing their expertise, insights, and ideas with their audience. By establishing themselves as industry leaders and providing valuable information to their community, businesses can build a loyal following of customers and advocates who believe in their vision and values. Through thought leadership, businesses can not only build a brand but also create a meaningful impact on their industry and the world around them.

Farida Charania, Co-Founder and CEO at Empauwer says, “I’m part of the e27 Contributor Programme because I believe in investing in myself. While the programme has helped me to develop my thought leadership journey and gain exposure, it’s also helped me to grow as a writer and learn new things about the ecosystem. It’s a great way for me to learn more about the ecosystem and what makes it tick. As a contributor, I can share my thoughts with the world on any business topic that interests me.”

Also Read: Write, connect, grow: What motivates us to run the e27 Contributor Programme

Introducing thought leadership for your organisation

While we are at it, we want to extend our family and reach out to your whole organisation.

As a leading technology news portal in Southeast Asia, e27 covers everything from startups and innovation to business and investment news. By having your employees share their insights on the latest trends and innovations, you can demonstrate your company’s expertise and position yourselves as a leader in the field.

The programme offers a unique opportunity for your company to increase its visibility and establish thought leadership in the industry. In addition to the exposure and recognition, you will connect with potential employers, investors, clients, and partners, forging valuable relationships with the key players in the startup ecosystem and opening doors to limitless possibilities.

Tap into the upsides

• Become a trailblazer in the experts’ community at e27 and stand out as a thought leader who shapes the future of Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem.
• Get featured on e27.co and bask in the spotlight of our massive two million+ reader base and 50,000+ newsletter subscribers. Make your mark and gain recognition for your expertise.
• Elevate your personal branding and unlock a world of exciting speaking opportunities that showcase your unparalleled knowledge and expertise in the startup world.
• Secure your place in the prestigious e27 Voices Hall of Fame, a coveted list of 50 emerging thought leaders in the Southeast Asian ecosystem. Join the ranks of the most influential and game-changing entrepreneurs and innovators in the region.
• Enjoy unparalleled exposure with your brand promoted three times daily across e27‘s powerful social media channels. With our extensive reach, your voice will be amplified like never before.
• Connect with potential employers, investors, clients, and partners and take your business to new heights. Forge valuable relationships with the key players in the startup ecosystem and open doors to limitless possibilities.

What’s expected

Simply nominate two (or more) of your employees with adequate experience and expertise to submit articles on any topic of their choice. Our editorial team will support them in writing these articles and also publish them.

Who to nominate

• Your best-performing employee
• Your employee with the most unique background or story or career trajectory
• Individuals with diverse backgrounds, skill sets, and areas of expertise

We kindly request that individuals from content marketing teams within an organisation refrain from applying to the program. We believe that a more holistic and well-rounded team of contributors will provide our readers with a richer and more diverse range of insights and opinions.

Please fill out this short form to nominate your employees for this programme.

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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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In the digital native age, online shopping has become the norm for consumers around the world. Gone are the days when brick-and-mortar stores were the primary way of purchasing products. In fact, if brands and businesses are not yet digital and are not using e-commerce to reach their customers, they stand the risk of cataclysmic failure.

With the e-commerce market continuing to grow, businesses are seeking innovative ways to stand out from their competitors and provide personalised experiences for their customers. The shift in consumer demands has led to businesses turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to provide more engaging and personalised content for online shoppers.

Engaging and interactive content has been proven to increase online sales. This is evident in the rise of live-stream e-commerce, a highly interactive shopping format. A Statista survey revealed that 30.3 per cent of Singaporean consumers had used live commerce for shopping, with a further 49.1 per cent of respondents saying they are aware of it but are yet to use it.

With this in mind, businesses are increasingly looking to optimise engagement using AI-powered tools such as chatbots that can provide personalised recommendations and answer customer queries in real-time.

Benefits of AI-powered e-commerce tools for businesses

These chatbots provide a tailored experience for customers, making it easier for them to find products they may be interested in. AI-powered product recommendations also provide a personalised shopping experience, increasing the chances of customers making a purchase.

Also Read: Hard work takes over when talent fails: Latif Sim of BeLive Technology

New technological developments are also changing the way businesses engage with online shoppers. Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) for instance enable customers to virtually try on clothing and accessories or even visualise how furniture will look in their homes.

This provides a more immersive and interactive experience for customers, making them more likely to make a purchase. For example, Sephora, a leading cosmetics retailer, turned to AR technology through their Virtual Artist app to provide virtual try-ons for their products. Customers can now use their mobile phones to virtually try on lipstick shades, making it easier for them to make purchase decisions.

The impact of the pandemic has also had a significant effect on online shopping strategy. With the closure of physical stores and increased online shopping, businesses have had to adapt and find new ways to engage with customers. Many have turned to live streaming as a way to showcase products and provide a more personalised experience for customers.

Live streaming has evolved to include interactive features, where customers can ask questions and receive immediate responses. Nike, a global sports brand, used live streaming to launch its latest sneakers. Their Nike Training Club app provides personalised workout plans and training sessions based on the user’s fitness goals, while also offering interactive features like social sharing and leaderboards.

In addition to this, the company created a virtual event where viewers could watch a live stream of the product launch and interact with experts to get more information about the sneakers. This helped increase their engagement with the brand and ultimately drive sales.

Brands like IKEA and Wayfair have integrated interactive 3D and augmented reality features into their online shopping experiences, allowing customers to see how furniture and home decor items will look in their homes before making a purchase.

Another area where technology is having a significant impact on content creation is through the use of generative AI. Traditional video creation methods can be time-consuming and expensive. However, generative AI can help streamline the video creation process and reduce costs in several ways.

For example, automated video editing and AI-powered script writing eliminate the cost of labour, speed up the creation process, and produce a high-quality end product. Similarly, generative AI can be used to create video scenes that include background imagery, characters, and other visual elements. As such, the cost of hiring designers and artists is avoided.

Also Read: Beyond live shopping: What’s next?

The future of e-commerce: Emerging technologies and trends

The latest iteration of the digital age has transformed the way businesses engage with consumers, and the shift to online shopping has only accelerated this trend. To succeed in the highly competitive e-commerce market, brands must leverage the latest technology and trends to provide engaging and personalised experiences for their customers.

From AI-powered chatbots and product recommendations to augmented and virtual reality experiences, businesses have a plethora of tools at their disposal to create immersive and interactive shopping experiences.

The pandemic has further accelerated the adoption of these technologies, with live streaming and social media integration becoming increasingly popular among retailers. By embracing these trends, businesses can stand out from their competitors and thrive in the ever-evolving world of e-commerce.

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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

Image credit: Canva Pro

The post How AI, AR, and live streaming are changing the online shopping experience appeared first on e27.

In addition to fundraising developments, this week also witnessed some acquisitions, big partnerships, and fund launches.

Take a look at the major happenings reported from across the region this week.

Comma3 Ventures makes first close of US$45M Web3 fund

Comma3 Ventures made the first close of its Web3 fund at US$20 million. The target size is US$45 million.

Diverse institutional investors, family offices, well-known executives and high-net-worth individuals in Taiwan and Singapore invested in the fund.

Comma3 Ventures is composed of three GPs: Nicole Liu, Ivan Li, and Denny Yang. Through their projects, the GPs have previously invested in various projects, such as Zilliqa, Polygon, Klaytn, Thetan Arena, Highstreet, Tranchess and Cetus.

AnyMind Group agrees to acquire DDI

Singapore-based commerce enabler AnyMind Group agreed to acquire all shares of smaller rival PT Digital Distribusi Indonesia (DDI).

The terms of the deal remain undisclosed.

This is AnyMind’s first acquisition in Indonesia.

With this, DDI will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of AnyMind Group.

This is the first acquisition agreement by AnyMind since its listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market on March 29, 2023.

Through this acquisition and by combining the capabilities of both companies, AnyMind Group looks to form the basis to accelerate expansion into the e-commerce space in Asia.

Flash Coffee extends Series B round to US$50M

Singapore-based tech-enabled coffee chain Flash Coffee announced the completion of its Series B financing round led by White Star Capital. With this, the total amount raised from this round touched US$50 million.

Existing investors, including White Star Capital, Delivery Hero, Geschwister Oetker, and Conny & Co, participated in the financing round – several of them further increased their stake in the company.

The new funds will be channelled towards accelerating the company’s mission to achieve group-level profitability. This includes sustainably growing its footprint across the Asia Pacific region, serving customers in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Hong Kong and South Korea, doubling down on technology and product innovation and further developing the sales performance of existing stores.

SCG acquires Indonesia’s Seekmi

Thai company Siam Cement Group (SCG) announced that it acquired Indonesian home service marketplace Seekmi for an undisclosed sum.

Following the acquisition, Seekmi will continue to use its brand while Founder and CEO Clarissa Leung will have the role of Advisor.

With the acquisition, SCG’s subsidiary Q-Chang can immediately gain a foothold in the service industry in the market with nearly 300 million people and one of the fastest-growing middle-class populations in the world.

SCG has been eyeing to expand its Q-Chang business into Indonesia in recent years after experiencing rapid adoption of its platform in Thailand.

Ruangguru acquires Vietnamese edutech firm Mclass

Indonesia-based edutech startup Ruangguru announced that it had completed an acquisition of Mclass, a live teaching edutech platform in Vietnam, for an undisclosed sum.

In a press statement, Ruangguru said the acquisition is a strategic move to expand its reach and capability in the market, following its launch in Vietnam through its subsidiary Kien Guru.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mclass to the Ruangguru family. Together with Kien Guru, we believe that Mclass’s reputation and understanding of online learning can further strengthen our offerings and business in Vietnam and Southeast Asia (SEA),” said Belva Devara, Co-Founder and CEO of Ruangguru.

Stripe, WhatsApp introduce in-chat payments feature for businesses

Stripe, a financial infrastructure platform for businesses, partnered with WhatsApp to allow Singapore businesses to accept payments directly in WhatsApp chats.

The new feature is built on Stripe Connect and Stripe Checkout, and enables Singapore customers and businesses to buy and sell directly in WhatsApp without having to go to a website, open another app, or pay in person.

The option to enable payments on WhatsApp in Singapore is available to local businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform, which will include a Stripe account. The feature is currently available to a small number of Singapore-based businesses and will be available to many more in the coming months.

Supported payment methods include credit and debit cards, and PayNow, a real-time payment system popular in Singapore.

East Ventures, Trihill invest in Uena

UENA, a hyperlocal online F&B startup based in Indonesia, raised an undisclosed amount in funding co-led by existing investor East Ventures and new investor Trihill Capital.

This new round, closed in Q1 2023, strengthens Uena’s balance sheet following the seed funding raised in September 2022.

The new capital will be used to continue expanding the locations and services to reach more users and customers.

“The majority of our orders come from repeat customers and their orders continue to increase from month to month. Even though we have only been operating for less than one year, the mature stores are already break-even and getting a healthy payback period. The new fund adds our confidence to continue capturing the great opportunity ahead,” said Alvin Arief, Co-Founder and CEO.

SMBC, Incubate Fund launch new US$200M fund

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC Group) co-founded the corporate venture capital fund “SMBC Asia Rising Fund” with Incubate Fund in Singapore. The fund managed is US$200 million, and its purpose is to accelerate business development and partnerships through investments in high-potential Asian startups.

Through this CVC, SMBC Group will enhance its business and provide clients with new solutions by uncovering/applying new technologies via partnerships with investee firms and developing new business models/products.

It will also enhance the value of its investee financial institutions in Asia by collaborating with startups looking to invest in areas such as lending tech, payment, supply chain finance, Banking-as-a-Service, and digital assets.

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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 is bringing together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here.

Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups get the chance to pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like a chance to connect with investors, visibility through e27 platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.

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