In 2021, the pandemic pushed technological advances forward faster than ever before, but significant changes are in store even more.

Over the past year, we saw the concepts of Web3 and the metaverse go from a distant aspiration to an accepted fact. In 2022, for the first time, a significant and growing number of people will learn what it’s like to live daily with these fast-emerging technologies.

A brief history of the internet

In the mid-1990s, the early forms of the internet were focused on providing universal access to centrally managed information and services. You might search property on propertyguru.com, read news on thestar.com.my, or look up directions on Google Maps. 

Giving every person on the planet access to the sum of all human knowledge, as Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales put it, is what we now call Web1. 

Web2 began with the rise of social media and intelligent messenger platforms such as WeChat and WhatsApp, which allow consumers a bilateral interaction. While the term was coined in 1999, this model began to impact around 2005 significantly.

With Web 2, consumers could access central information repositories, just as before. But they could also create and share their content. In the Web1 model, users mainly were just consumers of information. In Web 2, they became creators of Facebook posts, blogs, YouTube videos, and much more.

The advent of Web 2.0 unleashed new business models and a torrent of creativity. Yet, the transformative potential of Web 2.0 has been limited because interactions among users still largely happen on a central platform.

Today, user-generated content is king, but that content is almost exclusively shared on a handful of large social media platforms worldwide. These platforms have become the most important lead generators for many industries.

Also Read: Hashed launches US$200M Fund II to back Web3 technologies

A challenge to the power brokers

We still live in a world of Web 2, but Web 3 is already emerging more quickly than either of its predecessors. Web3 is a catchall term for many ideas and technologies that lead to eliminating the middlemen that today manage your online interactions.

Your data and account information will belong exclusively to you. It will travel with you as you move from online shopping to news, to social media and so on.

Under Web3, information is no longer collated centrally by huge, gatekeeper companies such as Google, Facebook, and Grab.

Instead, it is generated and stored, decentralised, on and by your devices. Content can be shared among consumers and businesses without the involvement of a central platform. 

Web3 will take the intermediary role away from institutions that have long exploited their position. In the future, data, home videos, and even legal contracts such as those embodied in NFTs will be protected and communicated by blockchain technology. This change will shake up our existing power structures in ways we still can’t entirely foresee.

The need for a central repository of information will be gone. Traditional financial institutions, classified websites, social media platforms and other pillars of society that have benefitted from their central roles in the flows of money and influence will all feel the impact. 

The user’s experience will also be wildly different. Information will be shared in real-time through blockchain technology. Rather than waiting days for bank transfers, deposits, or other financial transactions to be completed, they will be instant and cost little or nothing.

Web3 will give users a multitude of new dimensions for access. One person may have multiple versions of themselves (digital twins) in the new virtual worlds that make up the metaverse. Large companies are responding by creating virtual worlds where their customers can engage, and invitation-only private domains are rising.

Digital-first countries will thrive

Dismantling central control will pose challenges to society, business and politics. Trust is an essential element of commerce that will have to be reset and redefined in the new era. 

Change is unavoidable. How we respond to it will be essential. The evolution to Web3 will also give new and significant opportunities to those who embrace it. That includes governments, businesses, and individual consumers. 

The companies that I advise are already exploring the potential of Web 3.0 and understand that it will create new challenges but also opportunities.

Also Read: The different ways the Web3.0 is enabling marketplaces

Countries such as Malaysia and Singapore, which have always been at the forefront of technological development, will benefit through faster economic growth and greater resilience against the shock caused by future events such as pandemics, extreme weather, and economic downturns.

And, when we think we have Web3 all worked out, the next shake-up will be just around the corner: quantum computing.

One well-known explorer has made their motto, “To infinity and beyond!”

–

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: smshoot

The post To infinity and beyond: Why 2022 will be the year of Web3 appeared first on e27.

Creating and nurturing investments that have a meaningful impact on society and the environment is a new year’s resolution that more investors will be making as the world comes together to achieve net-zero.

The commitment to sustainable impact investments will be integral to the growth of new transformative industries and climate technologies.

My interest in this emerging area of sustainability stems from my personal experience. During my time in the Singapore military, I witnessed the potential of technologies such as manned and unmanned field sensors.

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations at the time were used for strategic purposes such as defence operations that tracked an enemy’s activities via surveillance, real-time imagery, and surveys.

But beyond their military application, these sensors can be used to monitor, report, and verify what corporations are doing to contribute towards climate action positively. 

Fighting for nature

As an ex-soldier who used to train and fight in nature, I like to think that I’m now fighting for nature through the investments we are making that positively impact the environment.

It’s been encouraging to witness the rise of a growing number of successful startups providing solutions for things like tree-tracking and forestry conservation by leveraging technologies such as geospatial data services.

Many of these solutions use specialised drones and UAVs. They are now part of the fast-growing ecosystem called ‘climate tech’, a term encompassing a broad set of sectors tackling the challenge of decarbonising the global economy.

The goal is to meet climate goals agreed by the international community at conferences such as the recent COP26 – climate tech represented just 6 per cent of global annual venture capital funding in 2019 but has grown more than 3,750 per cent in absolute terms since 2013, according to PwC.

The question arises of how climate tech investing can be scaled up, a significant challenge my partners and I are helping corporations solve: we know delivering real environmental change over the long term will require massive action by both government and the private sector.

By working hand-in-hand with forward-thinking companies and being committed to operating more sustainably and responsibly, we are more likely to save the wonders of nature from being lost forever to future generations.

Helping corporates succeed in sustainability

When we founded Gunung Capital, we were frustrated by the lack of climate-conscious investment options in the market and wanted to leverage our own experiences to guide companies on their sustainability journeys.

Also Read: Why is impact investing suddenly so hot?

Gunung means “mountain”, and we chose the name because it reflects our commitment to helping others ‘climb mountains’ to reach new heights on their ascent towards sustainability.

An essential part of this sustainability journey for most companies will involve carbon markets (and specifically carbon credits), which we believe will emerge as an established asset class in the decades to come.

As corporations transition their operations away from fossil fuels and towards clean energy sources, voluntary carbon credit markets will increasingly play a role in their transition plans.

Hence, carbon markets will grow in importance and gain momentum despite being relatively small at present.

The important role of carbon markets

Factors including limited liquidity, insufficient market size, non-standard transaction processes, and a lack of transparent price mechanisms mean that voluntary carbon markets have not been viable for institutional investment at scale, but that is starting to change. 

Another challenge is that there are still very few startups focused on solving the challenges infrastructure developers must overcome to grow the supply of high-quality carbon removal projects.

Investing in high-quality carbon markets should be top of mind for investors in the coming years ahead who want to support and finance new technologies, innovative businesses, and much-needed carbon offset projects here in Southeast Asia and internationally.

We’re excited to be offering services across the carbon value chain with a focus on decarbonisation and conservation of natural resources and developing, implementing, and investing in comprehensive emission reduction projects, strategies, and technologies.

Our carbon offset procurement and trading have been launched to build a carbon credit portfolio through a mix of opportunistic spot purchases and forward contracts.

Also Read: A wave of change: What sets impact investing apart from traditional investing

For example, we recently bought our first batch of carbon credits in partnership with the global carbon credit exchange and marketplace Climate Impact X (CIX). We’re also building an investment portfolio of private equity funds and exploring opportunities with a strong focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG);.

At the same time, we are actively seeking entrepreneurs and startup founders with an intrepid spirit and grit who are building the next generation of innovative climate tech.

Finally, we are evaluating entering the carbon offset project development space to develop projects with a visible impact on the environment and generate high-quality carbon offsets to be traded on voluntary carbon markets.

As we close off one year and begin another, safeguarding and growing value for our stakeholders through ESG and impact investments is our top priority: as the planet changes, so must the responsibilities and actions of the private equity world. 

We will all be held accountable for the state of the environmental and social impacts we leave behind to the next generation, so we encourage all corporates and institutional investors to make the environment central to their new year’s resolution in 2022.

–

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: agnormark

The post Why corporates and investors must climb the mountain called sustainability appeared first on e27.

As we approach the digital decade- a new era in the 4.0 revolution, online presence is becoming increasingly important for brands, founders, entrepreneurs, VCs and arguably anyone who wants to be seen at all. There is no dearth of digital marketing avenues, and it is becoming difficult to stand out in the digital noise. 

One way to position yourself as a peer leader and stand out in the crowd is through thought leadership articles. Before we delve deeper into why these articles are so important and how they can help you and your brand, let us first explore what thought leadership means.

What is thought leadership?

In 1994, Joel Kurtzman, editor-in-chief of Strategy & Business magazine, said, “Peers recognises a thought leader, customers and industry experts as someone who deeply understands the business they are in, the needs of their customers and the broader marketplace in which they operate. They have distinctively original ideas, unique points of view and new insights.” 

Today, in its simplest form and according to the Oxford dictionary, thought leadership refers to “intellectual influence and innovative or pioneering thinking”. 

So, thought leadership would mainly entail creating and sharing content that taps into the experience, talent, and passion you have for your business or community. Pair that with extensive research and try to answer the biggest questions in the minds of your target audience, peers or even competitors on a particular topic.

Now that we have established what thought leadership means, let us bust some common myths around this. More often than not, I have come across young executives and even startup founders who believe that they are not ready to be writing a thought leadership article. 

The fact is that anyone can be a thought leader- a startup employee, founder, entrepreneur, VC, researcher, academician, a government official, a student- anyone who has a point of view that speaks to a set target audience and answers their questions.

How to go about leveraging thought leadership articles for branding

Bryan Rhoads, former Head of Content at Intel, always says, “you have to win the internet every day.” And, thought leadership articles can help you do that. You can leverage this type of content to speak directly to your audiences, answer questions that matter in your industry, comment on trends and bring in your personal experiences and lessons you’ve learned. However, when writing a thought leadership article, you need to keep a few things in mind:

• Do not fall into the “unique POV trap”

Many aspirant authors of these articles keep waiting for that unique point of view that they think will help make their articles stand out. It is important to note that the audience isn’t necessarily waiting for something new and unique all the time. They are seeking value. 

And, the fact that you are talking about something you have experience, expertise and exposure, automatically makes it unique because your experiences and takeaways are yours alone. 

So, don’t wait for something “out-of-the-box” because you won’t have those ideas all the time. Just pick up that laptop and start typing on that one question you want to answer for your audiences today. A McKinsey & Company research proves that the 3 Cs of customer satisfaction are “consistency, consistency, and consistency.” So, keep writing.

• Video, visuals and audio are trending, but research says written content is king

Lately, with the rise of podcasts, YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and of course, TikTok, a lot has been said about the importance and effectiveness of audio and visual content. 

However, a report by Social Media Examiner reveals that 58 per cent, i.e., more than half of marketers prefer “original written content”, which includes blog posts, articles, and ebooks over visual content. So, if you have any doubts about the best way to establish yourself as a thought leader, know that written content is king. 

• Be subtle, do not hard sell

Another extremely important rule to follow when writing a thought leadership article is to avoid sounding too promotional. The hard sell is a turn off for everyone alike- the media giving you the platform (because they want to add value to their readers over simply selling your product), as well as your readers seeking answers and insights.

You can use thought leadership articles to promote your brand but do not hard sell. Remember, a product feature is not thought leadership. 

Here are some quick tips on how to promote your brand via thought leadership articles without sounding like a salesperson- 

• Maintain a consistent tonality and voice
• Keep your brand’s key messaging and pillars in mind while drafting the content.
• Do not try to sell everything in one article- pick one challenge, explain why it is relevant to the people you are speaking to and present a solution.

At e27, we value thought leaders and our reader base. If you are keen on embarking upon your journey of becoming a thought leader in Southeast Asia, join our Contributor Program today. 

–

Image credit: nexusplexus

The post A beginner’s guide to thought leadership appeared first on e27.

BandLab, a Singapore-based social music creation platform, has announced a US$53 million fundraise, led by Vulcan Capital.

K3 Ventures and existing investor Caldecott Music Group also participated.

The new capital will allow BandLab to expand its team and refine and grow its offerings to music creators and aspiring artists worldwide.

This round brings the startup’s post-money valuation to US$303 million.

Launched in 2015, BandLab is a next-generation social music creation platform, which aims to support creators of all kinds, from first-time creators to Grammy-winning producers.

Also Read: Singapore music collab platform BandLab acquires music live-streaming service Chew

Its cross-platform creative ecosystem offers users everything from its Mix Editor to a royalty-free Sounds library, as well as Mastering, newly announced AI-powered SongStarter.

Beyond creation tools, it also offers artist services like distribution and direct fan subscriptions. The upcoming integration of its recently acquired independent artist services platform ReverbNation into BandLab will further expand the suite of services available to independent artists.

Its parent BandLab Technologies also runs the professional-level digital audio workstation, Cakewalk.

“Our vision is a future where there are no barriers to making and sharing music. In particular among independent musicians and creators, and among mobile-first users, the billions with smartphones and original musical ideas,” said BandLab CEO and co-founder Meng Ru Kuok.

Also Read: YouTube co-founder, Alpha JWC, AC Ventures back Otoklix’s US$10M funding round

“We’re not only doubling down on our market-leading creator tools but also prioritising compensation for artists and protection for rights holders. If creators aren’t being paid fairly, it’s a major barrier to their development and growth as artists,” Ru Kuok added.

In September 2017, BandLab had acquired London-based music live-streaming service Chew.tv. A year earlier, it had bought a 49 per cent stake in Rolling Stone magazine.

—

The post Vulcan Capital leads social music platform BandLab’s US$53M Series B round appeared first on e27.

Modern technological advancement allows people worldwide to live longer, resulting in ageing populations everywhere. Moreover, studies indicate that in Asia, where around 60 per cent of the world’s population live, people are ageing faster than in the west.

For instance, the over 65s in Asia are expected to increase an incredible  314 per cent from 207 million in 2000 to 857 million in 2050. As people age, the world is witnessing a decline in the working-age population from another perspective. Asian workforces, in particular, are expected to reduce by hundreds of millions of people in the coming years.

China expects to see a 170 million decline in its working-age population in the next three decades. Likewise, in Singapore, the over-65 population is predicted to surge from 14 per cent in 2019 to 25 per cent in the next decade.

Meanwhile, Selina Seah, Director at Singapore’s Centre for Healthcare Assistive and Robotics Technology (CHART), said that the country is significantly exposed to the “three tsunamis” in healthcare– an ageing population, a shrinking workforce, and rising chronic diseases.

Thus, healthcare is a particularly vulnerable area, with the World Health Organization (WHO) predicting a shortfall of 18 million health workers by 2030, primarily in low and middle-income countries.

The situation is further exacerbated by the drastic fall in population growth in the region, which is already negative in Japan and projected to be zero for the entire Asian region by 2050.

Meanwhile, the robotics industry is on a rapid rise, with robots handling everything from doctors to firing employees. So, it stands to reason that the proactive Asian countries, especially Singapore, Japan, China, South Korea, and Taiwan, should focus on robotics technology to handle their citizens’ healthcare needs in the challenging years ahead.

Also Read: We are a coding and robotics school. This is how we prepare for COVID-19 outbreak

Asia is therefore using an estimated 65 per cent of the world’s robots, also becoming the region with the highest robot production. Japan is the world’s leading adopter of robots and its leading producer and exporter of robots, at 55 per cent of total manufacture.

Furthermore, Japan’s innovative strategies are combining AI and robotics to enable robots to solve complex social issues and increase economic growth. One project focuses on developing service robots to ensure adequate services for elderly homecare needs and for caring for seniors in healthcare settings.

Moreover, Toyota’s Human Support Robot (HSR) is an existing platform that combines robots with human factors to offer basic care and support nursing in long-term care facilities.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s Changi General Hospital (CGH, a 1000-bed, academic medical institution caring for over 1 million people, has installed over 50 robots as staff members, engaged in a diverse array of duties, from performing surgeries to handling administration.

As CHART’s Selina Seah said, “we thought the aged patients would not take well to the robots. However, we discovered in our research that elderly patients look at robots like life-sized toys. So, they are brought back to their childhood and, in fact, able to interact and respond better to therapy with robots than they do with a human.”

Likewise, South Korea’s Seoul Medical Center engages three types of robots to help medical staff treat coronavirus patients. One robot type checks visitors’ temperature before allowing them in; the second robot type sterilises negative pressure rooms. The third robot delivers clothes and other soiled and used items to a disposal area.

In Taiwan, a startup, Brain Navi Biotechnology, has created surgical robots for brain surgery. The platform uses machine vision, robotic technology, and algorithms for real-time imaging, precise surgery, and minimally invasive surgical procedures.

Also, through robotic technology, the machines recognise surgical instruments within seconds and register patients through a contactless machine vision process.

With the pandemic uppermost in all activities, Thailand too has engaged AI and robotics innovation to support medical professionals. Innovations by Thai companies have created a 3-in-1 negative pressure patient transport capsule that generates negative pressure, removes harmful particles in the air, and disinfects itself.

Another innovation, the IoT Cold Chain monitors and controls the icy temperatures required for vaccine storage, while the CARA Robot assists medical staff to deliver medicine and food supplies within hospitals and isolation venues, and the Xterlizer can disinfect 25 square meters and destroy bacteria and fungi with UV-C light within five minutes.

Also Read: A true living AI is adaptive, conscious, caring and ethical: Dr David Hanson of Hanson Robotics

China too has stepped up its robot use following the pandemic, using robots to deliver food to ensure social distancing, monitor mask-wearing,o monitor temperature of people, and guide patients while promoting public awareness of preventing epidemics.

In the same vein, Southeast Asian countries appear to engage exoskeleton rehabilitation robotics for patients’ physiotherapy sessions. Singapore’s National University Health System spent US$1.34 million to buy exoskeletons and to train twelve physiotherapists for two years.

The exclusive challenges each country in the Southeast Asian region faces and its unique culture are reflected in the projects undertaken by each country. However, what appears to overwrite all of it is that Southeast Asian nations significantly outperform other regions of the world, especially the US. and Europe. 

Equally apparent is that these service robots are a key mechanism to boost productivity, global competitiveness and enhance living standards. And the widespread adoption of these service robots is recognized as a positive sign of growth and progress.

Moreover, as CEO and co-founder of iRobot, Colin Angle, said, “People are fascinated by robots because they’re machines that can mimic life.”

–

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: niserin

The post Southeast Asia paves the way for new value in robotics appeared first on e27.

E-commerce enabler aCommerce files for IPO in Thailand
aCommerce plans to list its shares on the main board of the Stock Exchange of Thailand and looks to sell up to 40 per cent of its shares; It has appointed Siam Commercial Bank as is its lead underwriter; To date, aCommerce has secured US$118.8M in venture funding.

Grab to buy Malaysia’s Jaya Grocer
Grab has agreed to buy all the ordinary shares and 75% of the preference shares of Jaya Grocer; The retail grocery store started back in December 2007 and has since grown to run 40 stores across Peninsular Malaysia, according to Grab.

Indonesia to launch US$300M Merah Putih Fund for ‘soonicorns’
Merah Putih Fund is backed by state-owned enterprises; Some of its initial investors are Mandiri Capital, BRI Ventures, MDI Ventures, and Telkom Mitra Inovasi; GudangAda, Kopi Kenangan, SiCepat, Social Bella, Ruangguru, and 20 more firms are estimated to be soonunicorns.

HK accelerator Brinc lands US$130M funding led by Animoca Brands to foray into Web3
Brinc will launch new blockchain-focused accelerator programmes across culture, music, art, collectibles, gaming, decentralised finance and data; In 2021, Brinc and Animoca jointly unveiled the blockchain and NFT accelerator Launchpad Luna, which is in the process of funding 30 Web3 firms.

‘Bloomberg for digital assets’ Nansen bags US$75M Series B
Investors are Accel Partners, GIC, a16z, Tiger Global, and SCB 10X; Nasen helps investors make informed decisions around project discovery, due diligence, and trading; It analyses on-chain data points, wallet labels, and entities on blockchains such as Ethereum, Polygon, Binance Smart Chain, Fantom, Avalanche, and Celo.

Vulcan Capital leads social music platform BandLab’s US$53M Series B round
K3 Ventures and Caldecott Music Group also participated; BandLab is a next-generation social music creation platform, which supports creators of all kinds of sophistication levels, from first-time creators to Grammy-winning producers.

Binance, MDI Ventures form JV to set up new crypto exchange in Indonesia
Binance will provide asset management infrastructure and technology to support the development of the new exchange platform; Last year, Binance acquired a controlling stake in Tokocrypto, a government-approved platform for trading cryptocurrency assets in Indonesia.

Bukalapak, BRI Ventures back Yield Guild Games SEA’s US$15M financing round
YGG SEA will support locally developed play-to-earn games in Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and Thailand; So far, YGG SEA has helped more than 2,500 players and investors in the region to generate additional revenue streams, including over 600 in Thailand.

1982 Ventures hits US$12.5M initial close of Fund I, to back 30 seed-stage startups
Its investors include US-based Carta, Genting Group’s venture arm, First Close Partners, and Trihill; 1982 Ventures, which targets to raise a total corpus of US$15M, has already invested in 11 companies, including Brick, Infina, Homebase, Bluesheets, and Wagely.

YouTube co-founder, Alpha JWC, AC Ventures back Otoklix’s US$10M funding round
Otoklix allows vehicle owners to discover services at any recommended independent workshop nearby and receive a warranty for any transactions at its partner workshop in Indonesia; It plans to establish its own O2O managed flagship workshops throughout Indonesia.

Sustainability-focused social commerce startup abillion nets US$10M Series A
Investors include 1/0 Capital, Mamoru Taniya and Bradley Busetto; The startup plans to build a P2P marketplace within the abillion app that enables consumers to sell sustainable products and services to each other.

Reciki raises funding from Circulate Capital to set up new waste management facilities in Indonesia
Reciki recovers and distributes almost all materials: high-value plastics, low-value plastics, organic waste and other recyclables; With the new funds, Reciki plans to set up several more facilities across Indonesia, with the ambition to process more than 1,000 tonnes of waste per day.

East Ventures backs Indonesia’s data-powered supply chain solution startup Praktis
Triputra Group also participated; Praktis helps D2C brands manage their backend operations, covering sourcing and production activities, logistic and fulfilment, and order management systems.

Foodpanda, HungryPanda brawl over trademark dispute
Foodpanda said that HungryPanda’s trademarks are visually similar to that of its own; The former added that the panda visual is distinct for Foodpanda because of heavy advertising and its usage over a long period.

Women-only social media startup Eve World buys SG femtech firm Femcy
Femcy offers a digital solutions platform for Asian women to improve their menstrual health; Eve World, scheduled for a public launch by the end of Q1 2022, will feature multi-format content and communities around women-centric issues, along with elements like social commerce, e-commerce, and brand stores.

Zoomcar to pump US$25M into Philippine launch
The startup has picked Gene Angelo Ferrer, the former country manager of logistics firm MrSpeedy, as its country head; Earlier this month, the firm launched its operations in Vietnam; This rollout is part of its US$100M expansion plan into the SEA market for the next 2-3 years.

—

The post Ecosystem Roundup: A US$300M govt. fund for Indonesian soonicorns; aCommerce files for IPO, Brinc nets US$130M funding appeared first on e27.

Singapore-based Nansen, a provider of an analytics platform for blockchain, has received US$75 million in a Series B financing round led by Accel Partners.

GIC, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Tiger Global, SCB 10X, Amplify Partners, L1 Digital, Cristóbal Conde (chairman of Fimatix), Skyfall Ventures, Folius Ventures, Old Fashion Research, Adam White (president of Bakkt), Ryan Rabaglia (Libra Capital Ventures), Prabhakar Reddy (co-founder of FalconX), Anastasia Andrianova (CEO of Akropolis), and Ameet Patel also joined this round.

Nansen will utilise the capital for growth, hiring, and developing new product offerings for retail and institutional customers. It also plans to expand its global presence by adding innovative platform features and multichain integrations.

“We’re ready for a new phase of growth, accelerating our international expansion, scaling up our data capabilities to support the wider blockchain ecosystem, and providing global investors with a world-class product to explore the latest crypto trends and make more informed decisions,” said Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik.

Also Read: Blockchain and Bitcoin for business 101 with Justin Renken

Nansen is a blockchain analytics platform that enriches on-chain data with millions of wallets labels. It lets users see where funds are moving to, identify new projects or tokens, and trace transactions down to the granular level. This way, it enables them to make informed decisions before investing in a new crypto project or token.

In addition, the platform lets users create smart alerts and track when and where a wallet address has been moving their funds. They can also analyse the real-time behaviour of the largest crypto investors.

The firm claims it analyses and labels over 100 million Ethereum wallets and their activity.

In June this year, Nansen raised a Series A round of investment. Since then, it has expanded its blockchain support from Ethereum and Polygon, including Binance Smart Chain (BSC), Fantom, Avalanche, Celo and Ronin. It also claims to have increased its coverage to 100 million-plus wallet labels across multiple blockchains.

Nansen has also added a new institutional product line, including Nansen API and Nansen Query.

“This is just the beginning, and we plan to introduce product lines for new audiences and scale even further. Institutional customers will be able to access market-leading on-chain data programmatically via Nansen API and Nansen Query. Protocol teams will be able to publish and access on-chain product analytics via the Nansen Ecosystem offering. Individual investors and crypto funds will see major improvements to Nansen Standard and Nansen Alpha, including support for 10+ blockchains,” Svanevik added.

—

The post Nansen raises US$75M to help users make informed decisions before investing in crypto, tokens appeared first on e27.

On Wednesday, music tech startup Soundbrenner announced that it had raised a US$1.5 million funding from Choco Up, a Singapore- and Hong Kong-based revenue-based financing (RBF) and growth platform. 

Originally founded in Germany, Soundbrenner has built the world’s first wearable device for musicians, and it intends to use the funding to support its global expansion plan. This development is among the latest investments that Choco Up has announced.

Founded in 2018, Choco Up offers flexible non-dilutive funding solutions across eight countries and ten sectors. It builds a data-driven fintech platform that leverages data analytics to automate growth fund deployment and risk management –while not losing the human touch that it provides for its portfolio companies.

But how exactly do they achieve that balance? 

In this interview with e27, CEO and co-founder Percy Hung explains how Choco Up sets itself apart from similar platforms, the kind of support it gives to entrepreneurs, and what is next for the company. He also explains the story behind its unique name.

A human touch

RBF is an alternative financing model in which companies raise capital based on future revenue. In this concept, RBF platforms such as Choco Up put up funds for companies’ growth in exchange for a regular share or a certain percentage of the recipient companies’ revenue.

Hung begins the interview by explaining the difference between RBF platforms in mature markets like the US, Europe, and Asia.

Also Read: In brief: Taiwan’s XREX rakes in US$17M, Malaysia’s Poptron raises funding from Choco-Up

“The big difference is that, in the Western world, [the fundraising process with RBF] is already fully automated. People go to the platform, apply, plug in their own API, draw some data … then they will be offered options of funding. It’s very seamless and very quick,” Hung explains. “Whereas in Asia, it is still something new. It takes a bit of time for Asia to catch up with what the West is doing.”

In short, there is still urgency for trust-building through face-to-face interaction in Asia.

“Because for an RBF platform user in Asia, if we receive an email or SMS [saying that we have secured funding], we probably think it is a scam. So the trust level needs to be built before people will use an automated system,” Hung says.

He also stresses how founders go through different kinds of problems –which is not something that a machine can solve right away. “So we have the automated part where smaller clients can just go on the platform and apply … but we also have an investment manager who reached out to clients that are a bit more complex.”

This human element also plays a crucial role in promoting the platform in an environment with relatively low trust where the Choco Up team still has to reach out to potential investments. 

While the quantitative elements of the business are being taken care of by the digital platform, the qualitative elements –such as reference checks– are done by the team.

Lastly, besides providing funding for companies, Choco Up also supports them by building an ecosystem of different partners to offer services to their portfolio companies at a discount. The services range from cloud hosting to marketing consultancy.

“We are creating some value chain in this whole ecosystem, not just providing funding for them to work and expand … So we’re a little more holistic [in our approach],” Hung says.

Their role in the ecosystem

This holistic approach also affected Choco Up’s views on its position in the regional startup ecosystem: Hung does not see other investors as their competitors. In contrast, Choco Up see VCs as their partners in building up the ecosystem as they have referred companies to VCs for a potential investment.

“Because we can take some companies past a tough time or go to a different level until they become eligible to use a bank loan, or they become eligible to get funded by VCs,” Hung says.

“I think of them as friends. Because of how we execute and run [our business], we are very different from them as well,” he continues. “In the business world, we are not trying to be your primary form of capital. We could be your complimentary, we could be your safety net, we could be your third option. We’re happy to be there when you need us. So this is what we’re trying to build.”

Also Read: Meet Mars Growth Capital, the next in Asia Pacific to offer debt funding for growth stage tech startups

The founding of Choco Up itself was inspired by the co-founders’ own experience in starting their own companies.

“We did a lot of research and found out that the RBF model could potentially help us. While we were trying to apply for RBF, we both felt like many friends and entrepreneurs around us could use the same service. So we’re like, ‘Hey, why don’t we just try to do it ourselves?’” says Hung.

Choco Up has done around 150-160 deals by the time this interview is published.

When it comes to searching for a potential investment, it is also open to investing in all stages and verticals. The platform typically invests between US$300,000 and US$3 million.

“As much as we prefer all those digital-native businesses, we’re also happy to look at traditional SMBs or offline businesses as well. Because a good business is always a good business, we try not to limit ourselves to which sector or what stages. We funded companies from seed round to pre-IPO. And we have helped some companies to go through the last mile successfully, and they went public after that,” Hung elaborated.

Lastly, would they be able to share the story behind their name?

“Chocolate is an energy booster,” Hung explains. “[The name] also doesn’t mean anything, so it is easier for us to trademark.”

—

Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

Image Credit: Choco Up

The post What Choco Up wants you to know about running a revenue-based financing platform in Asia appeared first on e27.

Sleek, a Singapore-based startup providing incorporation and accounting services for SMEs and entrepreneurs, has announced a Series A extension, bringing its total funding raised in this round to US$25 million.

EDBI and existing investors participated in the round that came in both equity and debt.

This tranche comes a month after Sleek’s US$14 million funding co-led by Jungle Ventures and White Star Capital. 

Sleek intends to utilise the new capital for technology and product development and to scale the team for worldwide expansion in existing and new markets.

Also read: How automation and innovation will boost SME success in Singapore

Founded in 2017 by French entrepreneurs Julien Labruyere and Adrien Barthel, Sleek assists business clients in managing back-office operations and seeking expert advice from qualified professionals. 

It automates and integrates company registration, financial and regulatory reporting, bookkeeping, and banking services, enabling entrepreneurs to “go from an idea to an operating company in a day.”

According to the company, the Sleek app allows SMEs to open a deposit account in a day. Businesses can access account data and other company metrics on the Sleek dashboard to streamline bank reconciliation for accounting and bookkeeping purposes.

The startup recently developed Sleek Business Account to simplify opening bank accounts for SMEs. 

As per a press statement, as of November, Sleek has managed a portfolio of over 5,000 businesses that produce US$700 million in sales and complete over 1.4 million accounting transactions in 2020.

Since its inception, Sleek has made inroads into Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, the UK, and the Philippines. The firm now targets to expand to markets such as Australia and Europe, where it recently acquired Ltd Companies, also known as Fresh Startups (an incorporation management service provider in the UK), for an undisclosed amount.

Sleek plans to integrate its products and technology stack with Fresh Startups’s existing offerings to create a comprehensive SME-operating system for UK entrepreneurs and enterprises. 

The business also targets to launch solutions that deal with remittances and card issuing.

—

Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

Image Credit: Sleek

The post Singapore’s SME services platform Sleeks bags US$11M more to Series A round appeared first on e27.

The world is undergoing a significant shift in the energy sector, from a system based on fossil fuels to renewable sources. Global greenhouse gas emissions have reached a tipping point and are changing the world’s climate.

Singapore responds to various challenges, such as climate change, energy security, and rising energy costs. Over the last 50 years, the country and large parts of the world have moved from oil to natural gas for cleaner power generation. It has also seen an increase in the use of solar energy, particularly on rooftops and reservoirs.

Climate change is reshaping the way people use and produce energy. And energy demand is expected to rise further with accelerating economic development. Singapore’s energy sector will need to evolve to achieve our vision of a clean and efficient future.

Climate change remains high on Singapore’s priority lists, even though Singapore produces just 0.1 per cent of the world’s global greenhouse gas emissions: as an island nation with limited land and people resources and alternative energy sources, deploying renewable energy sources such as solar and wind becomes particularly challenging.

The country’s officials have also been working on carbon market rules, more stringent national emissions reporting, climate action and multilateral discussions on reducing international transport emissions.

Over the next decades, the power industry’s transformation will affect consumers’ daily lives in numerous ways. One of the initiatives under the Singapore Green Plan 2030 aims at encouraging the use of electric vehicles with the provision of 60,000 charging points at public car parks and private premises by the end of this decade.

However, high prices and a lack of charging stations might delay a large-scale switch to EVs for now. There are also only a handful of electric car models available for sale in Singapore, and they come at a high price.

Many moving parts

To address climate change, Singapore will need to direct efforts at harnessing energy from solar and low-carbon alternatives. Petroleum products make up 60 per cent of the primary energy consumption, according to Statista.

Over 96 per cent of electricity is generated from natural gas. By 2030, the city-state aims to achieve at least two gigawatt-peak (GWp) of solar energy—enough to power around 350,000 households for a year, according to National Climate Change Secretariat Singapore.

With open land being a challenge, most solar PV deployments will go on housing buildings, canopies and car parks, and commercial centres, as well as some floating solar PV parks.

Becoming more energy efficient is central to the country’s sustainability efforts.  Singapore is on track to complete the installation of advanced electricity meters for all 1.4 million households by 2024, enabling consumers to monitor their electricity usage via the Singapore Power Utilities mobile app.

Singapore’s approach to alternative energy

Singapore is investing in research and development as well. It is looking to improve the performance of solar PV systems and develop innovative ways of integrating them into the urban environment.

The Housing and Development Board install solar panels on high-rise public housing developments rooftops. The Economic Development Board and Public Utilities Board are building floating PV projects to pilot solar panel installations on water surfaces at reservoirs.

Also Read: KiWi New Energy: Making green energy available to all

To safeguard energy security, the city-state is exploring a variety of different options, including regional power grids standard in other parts of the world like the United States to gain access to cleaner energy produced in neighbouring countries, and the usage of emerging low-carbon alternatives such as low-carbon hydrogen, as well as carbon capture and storage.

Searching for predictability

More renewable and diverse energy sources and increasingly stringent environmental requirements call for clever use of data. Similar trends are playing out in other parts of the world and can offer insight into what Singapore’s power future will look like.

As in Singapore and other parts of the world, extreme heat or cold, major weather events, and demand fluctuations can still cause outages. Utilities need to know where and when to get power to maintain the required grid frequency, particularly if the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing.

Renewables are variable. Grid operators must compensate for that variability with as little dependence on fossil fuels as possible.

To meet this complex array of demands, global utilities use data to determine where to allocate their budget for new projects, predict which assets are most likely to fail, and replace them before that happens.

A European multinational power company uses data analytics to predict failures of wind turbines before they happen.

It has built models from past projects and fine-tuned forecasts using live monitoring data. This approach eliminates “gut feel” decisions and reduces maintenance and downtime costs.

Utilities are also turning to analytics to understand the supply and demand, price points, and infrastructure needs to be updated or deferred. The data from a smart meter in a customer’s home or a business premise is being merged with customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) data that the utility has on the customer. This may include billing details, rates, and tariffs, as well as historical credit card information.

Analysing that collected data can help utilities understand whether the customer’s energy usage is going up or down or whether they qualify for rooftop solar. Sifting through demographic information might indicate whether someone is a likely buyer of an electric vehicle.

As the power industry becomes greener, more competitive and complex than ever, the industry must also become smarter. And that can only happen through smarter use of data across the organisation.

At Hitachi, we are working to address some of our time’s biggest social and environmental challenges.

In Singapore, Hitachi Energy is developing a project with Nanyang Technological University and Singapore’s Energy Research Institute to supply battery energy storage and smart controls to Singapore’s first virtual power plant (VPP) to validate methods for integrating more renewable energy onto the city-state’s electricity networks.

The project will help integrate electricity from different distributed energy resources (DERs), including solar, in a way that simulates the workings of a utility-scale power system.

–

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: elxeneize

The post Why sustainable power starts with data appeared first on e27.