Dear Pro member,
The Supreme Court of the State of New York has ruled in favour of Thomas O’Connor, co-founder and former CMO of Nasdaq-listed Society Pass, ordering the company to award him a significant block of pre-IPO shares valued at up to US$6.61 million. The court also imposed an additional penalty interest of up to US$2.38 million due to a breach of the Common Stock Purchase Warrant.
This decision stems from O’Connor’s valid exercise of his right to purchase 1,148 shares of Society Pass Incorporated under the terms of the warrant.
Society Pass’s financial situation is precarious, with only US$10.9 million in cash reserves.
This legal battle is part of O’Connor’s broader claims against Society Pass, as his attorneys plan to file another motion seeking an additional $8 million (plus penalty interests) owed to him under signed agreements with the company.
The court ruling compounds Society Pass’s existing challenges, including an SEC investigation, a separate lawsuit by another co-founder, Rahul Narain, seeking $1.3 million, and removal from the Russell 2000 index, causing a significant decline in the company’s share price.
These legal and financial troubles could have a detrimental impact on Society Pass, potentially leading to delisting from Nasdaq.
This is the highlight of the week. We also have a lot of exciting stuff in today’s edition.
Enjoy reading.
Have a great weekend.
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US court orders SoPa to pay pre-IPO shares to co-founder; firm under SEC probe
The US court ruled that Thomas O’Connor had “validly exercised his right to purchase 1,148 shares of Society Pass under the terms of the Warrant; As per SoPa’s most recent 10-Q filing, it has only US$10.9M left in its coffers.
ARISE, Centauri Fund merge to form US$200M fund Ascent Venture
Ascent will invest in 25 early-stage, tech-enabled companies focused on Indonesia and the rest of SEA; The key focus sectors are MSME enablement, financial service digitalisation, and neo-consumer, climate, and healthcare.
Vertex Ventures SEA & India hits final close of Fund V at US$541M
Japan Investment Corporation, IFC, and DEG are among its LPs; The fund corpus includes a co-investment envelope of US$50M for co-investing alongside the main fund in female-founded startups.
KXVC’s US$100M fund aims to help deeptech, Web3 founders win APAC
KXVC plans to invest in over 30 startups and funds globally with a geographic focus in the US, EU, Israel, and APAC.
Temasek, NUS, NTU to invest US$55M in deeptech startups in Singapore
NTU and NUS will also develop a unified online platform to provide potential licensors with a one-stop shop to identify and select IPs from both universities that align with their business requirements.
Singapore-based blockchain firm Aelf launches US$50M fund
The fund aims to discover investment opportunities within the Web3 sector, particularly focusing on ‘high-performance’ Layer-1 blockchain projects; It will also concentrate on projects that are looking to shift from Web2 to Web3.
S Korean battery firm TDL Global to invest US$200M in Indonesia
The company seeks to produce electric motorcycle batteries and energy storage systems in the country; It has supplied 20,000 battery units for electric two-wheeler vehicles to Indonesia from its factory in China this year.
Awak raises US$20M Series B for on-the-go kidney dialysis machines
Lead investors are Lion X Ventures and Vickers Venture Partners; Awak’s main offering, called Awak PD, is a peritoneal dialysis system that aims to help reduce the need for long hours of in-center dialysis for ESRD patients.
Wavemaker Impact secures US$15M in ongoing raise for maiden fund
The investor is the US International Development Finance Corporation; Wavemaker Impact works with experienced entrepreneurs to establish sustainability startups that aim to cut 10% of global emissions by 2035.
Online travel marketplace Wego acquires Travelstop
This strategic move will expand Wego’s reach into business travel and expense management; WeGo is an online travel marketplace in the MENA region, while Travelstop is a business travel and expense management company.
Buyandship scores US$10M Series B led by Cool Japan Fund
The company will use the capital to automate operations and R&D in AL and ML and expand into SEA; Buyandship is a cross-border e-commerce company that has built an automated shopping assistant to boost its order processing capacity.
Streetwear marketplace Novelship bags US$9.5M following Snoop Dogg collab
Lead investors are East Ventures, iGlobe Partners, and GSR Ventures; Novelship allows buyers and sellers to trade 100% authentic sneakers, limited-edition apparel, and exclusive collectibles.
Proptech firm SIMPPLE lists on Nasdaq, looks to raise US$8.4M
Singapore-based SIMPPLE will use the money for R&D, IP strategy and implementation, scaling up sales and marketing into overseas markets; The company has listed 1.6M shares on the Nasdaq at US$5.25 apiece.
Blockchain-powered Filipino remittance app Parallax nets US$4.5M
The investors include Dragonfly Capital, Circle Ventures, and General Catalyst; Parallax also introduced the ability to convert USD into local currencies, starting with a few select countries and rolling out to more currencies soon.
e27 Connect investors empower SEA startups: Meet the game-changing funds of last week
Teja Ventures, Foxmont Capital Partners, Global Brain Singapore, and others fuel innovation across Asia’s diverse startup landscape with strategic investments.
Baemin Vietnam CEO Jinwoo Song calls it quits
Baemin is a JV between Delivery Hero and Woowa Brothers; Loan Cao, the firm’s CFO, has been appointed interim CEO; Baemin entered Vietnam in May 2019 and acquired food delivery app Vietnammm, which it later shut down.
Netbank, Akulaku team up to provide loans to underserved Filipinos
The partnership will connect Akulaku’s users to Netbank’s ‘loans-as-a-service’ model; According to Netbank’s website, the firm funds loans and provides payment tools for alternative and traditional lenders in the Philippines.
Antler, eFishery CEO back Indonesia’s B2B agritech startup Kora
Kora aims to disrupt the conventional maize supply chain by uniting all parties involved — from farmers to middlemen — under a streamlined B2B model; Kora claims to have sold nearly 11M kilograms of maize and generated US$2M revenue.
Legaltech startup Hukumku secures funding from East Ventures
The Indonesian legaltech startup offers a platform that connects users with vetted lawyers; All the info about lawyers, their practice licenses, areas of expertise, locations, and user ratings and reviews are available on Hukumku.
E-motorcycle adoption in Indonesia: How to tap into this US$19.2B opportunity
In 2022, there were already 25,782 e-motorcycles in Indonesia, with more than 1,500 swapping stations available per Q1 2023; However, this does not mean that the journey into e-motorcycle adoption is not without barriers.
BuzzAR CEO Bell Beh advocates open conversations on systemic issues to empower women in tech
Beh looks at the milestones that women in tech in Singapore have made in recent years and shares her hope for a more equal future.
Book Excerpt: How chatbot threatens to upend an entire industry in PH
In his book, Talino Venture Labs CEO Winston Damarillo points out the five trends that are changing the business landscape –starting with chatbots.
From complexity to clarity: How fintech makes people and business life easier
Navigating the impact of fintech in both B2C and B2B sectors, uncovering hidden tools and niche projects enhancing financial experiences in Indonesia.
The Vietnamese market and Apple Pay: Excellent support or just unmet expectations?
Apple Pay has a limited impact on Vietnam’s e-wallet market due to its iOS user base, POS machine requirement, and reliance on international payment cards.
How to stay creative in the age of Generative AI and Web3
In the midst of an avalanche of technology news in creative industries, we navigate an unprecedented era of creativity and fear of being left behind.
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