Sales automation firm Novocall lands US$500K from 500 Durians, others
Novocall, a Singaporean startup that automates sales processes for agents, has raised US$500,000 in a round led by 500 Durians, the Southeast Asia-focussed fund of 500 Startups.
Other participants in this round include 500 Startups Thailand, Expara Asia Ventures, and Exabytes founder and CEO Chan Kee Siak.
The funding will be used to support the company’s expansion plan, according to a press statement. While Novocall already has clients in Singapore and Malaysia, it is looking forward to expanding to Indonesia and Thailand.
The B2B SaaS platform claimed that its services are currently used by over 2,000 businesses across 42 countries, more popularly among small- and medium-sized enterprises in the education and travel sectors.
Honestbee slashes a big chunk of its staff yet again
Singaporean delivery startup Honestbee is laying off around 100 employees which make 80 per cent of its workforce, according to a Deal Street Asia report. The exact number of layoff remains undisclosed.
Also Read: honestbee to get US$7M to repay its creditors: Report
“Due to several external commercial pressures that have resulted in the closure of habitat by Honestbee, the company has made the strategic decision to reduce its staff force. As a result, the company has decided to reduce its non-core staff as it does not foresee operating habitat in its full strength over the next few weeks,” said an Honestbee spokesperson.
Honestbee’s court hearing on restructuring itself will be held on March 26.
Singaporean healthcare venture fund invests in lung cancer detection company Breath Diagnostics
Breath Diagnostics announced today that it has raised a “significant” amount of capital from Singaporean healthcare venture fund HealthXCapital, according to a press statement.
The two organisations plan to collaborate to pursue pan-Asian investment, conduct clinical studies, and execute market penetration strategies across the US and Asia.
“Despite the region’s dramatic growth in recent decades, cancer screening in Asia is still a challenge thus exposing the vast majority of the population to cancer risks,” said Seemant Jauhari, Partner at HealthXCapital.
Revolut introduces new countries for currency transfer across Southeast Asia
Revolut will be launching new and direct remittance routes to major countries across Southeast Asia, including India, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, according to the company statement. The exact date of the launch has not been confirmed yet, and the feature will be available for all cards.
The fintech company will also be offering other perks like one per cent cashback in 28 currencies, on domestic and international transactions, however, this will only be available for metal card users.
Also Read: Following its recent debut in Singapore, Revolut launches Metal Visa card in the market
“Since Revolut launched in Singapore in October 2019, we have understood this nation’s rich cultural and demographic mix, making cross-border transfers one of the most valuable features to our customers. We’ve only just begun – these new routes demonstrate our commitment to put our customers first and indicate our next steps towards breaking down financial borders,” said Eddie Lee, APAC Regional Director of Operations at Revolut.
India’s Unbox Robotics secures US$500K to bring parcel sorting solutions for logistics providers
Bangalore-based startup Unbox Robotics has raised US$500,000 from Arali Ventures & CIIE.CO, The Innovation Continuum at IIM (Indian Institute of Management) Ahmedabad today, according to a press statement.
Founded by ex-Flipkart employee Pramod Ghadge the business aims to eliminate the inefficiencies in current warehouse automation solutions like space utilisation, installation time, and capital involved.
Also Read: Morning News Roundup: Proptech investments in Southeast Asia grew to US$72.9M in 2019, says study
“The leading e-commerce players across the globe compete to draw in demanding customers with same-day deliveries, discounts, and simplified returns. Warehouse efficiency and lowered costs could prove to be key enablers for the growth of robotics and AI in the logistics sector. Unbox’s space-efficient robots and AI software will make the warehouse powerful and smaller, bringing them closer to customers to offer faster deliveries,” said Vipul Patel, Partner – Seed Investing at CIIE.CO.
Trax closes retail service platform Survey acquisition
Singapore-based retail tech unicorn Trax announced that it has acquired mobile data collection technology for retail, Survey.com at an undisclosed amount according to Tech in Asia.
The startup has made acquisitions all across China, Europe, and North America with Paris based Qopiuss being the most recent one.
Trax aims to create a “closed-loop merchandising system for physical retail,” according to a statement. With the acquisition, the company targets wider reach across CPG (consumer package goods) brands
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Image Credit: Novocall
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