ACE raises US$400K in funding from Manila Angel Investors Network

The story: Singapore-based personalised celebrity video platform ACE has raised US$400K in pre-seed funding to propel global growth of the largest celebrity shout-out platform in Southeast Asia.

Investors: Manila Angel Investors Network (MAIN), celebrity investor Max Loong, angel investors hailing from Grab, Carousell, Ayden Payments, and Google.

The plans: ACE will be using the funds to scale ACE’s talent and consumer base both regionally and globally, with domination of the Southeast Asian market in sight.

What does ACE do? Founded in November 2019 by Dene Schonknecht, ACE is a collaborative platform designed for fans to connect directly with their heroes or favourite celebrities for exclusive content. ACE aims to unite a traditionally distant celebrity-fan dynamic and revolutionise the entertainment industry with accessible, authentic celebrity connections.

Singaporean fintech startup BondEvalue launches bond exchange platform BondbloX

The story: Singapore-based fintech startup BondEvalue has launched blockchain-based bond exchange BondbloX (BBX).

BBX makes fractional ownership of bonds possible by allowing them to be traded in smaller denominations of US$1,000, which the company believes to be paving the way for many more investors to buy and sell bonds, making bond trading much faster, transparent, and at a lower cost.

Also Read: In brief: EDBI invests in Vesta; edutech startup ACKTEC raises funding

The process: Settlement on BBX is on a T+0 basis, that is within seconds instead of the normal two-day settlement cycle, thereby reducing counterparty settlement risks for investors. Investors around the world can trade on BBX via web and mobile devices by opening an account with their banks, wealth managers, family offices or robo-advisors, subject to individual country restrictions on bond trading.

In Singapore, BBX is open to accredited and institutional investors. The ability to trade bonds in smaller denominations means that investors can build a diversified portfolio without a hefty outlay.

BBX will charge a flat fee of US$2 per trade, irrespective of size and a platform fee of 20 basis points annually, while its partners can opt to charge a commission for each transaction.

BondEvalue operates from offices in Singapore and India, and recently expanded to Mexico with the appointment of Jaime Zenizo as the CEO of BondEvalue Mexico.

Shippit expands to Singapore, partners with SingPost

The story: Today, Australian logistics technology company Shippit announced a partnership with e-commerce courier service Singapore Post (SingPost) as a part of its expansion to Singapore.

Shippit officially launched in Singapore on 14 July to serve as the startup’s regional headquarters. It plans to expand into Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia in the near future.

The deal: The company plans to scale by providing users with instant access to more delivery options — including packages to be delivered directly to Pick Own Parcel Station (POPStations) and letterboxes — a service typically reserved for larger companies.

As part of the deal, Shippit will also offer SingPost’s Speedpost Express Service to SMEs, alongside discounted, pre-negotiated rates for next day and economy delivery services.
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Aruna, an online marketplace-cum-auction-platform for fishery products in Indonesia, announced today it has closed a fresh investment round to the tune of US$5.5 million from existing investors East Ventures, AC Ventures, and SMDV.

The funds will aid Aruna to scale its fisherman community ecosystem by expanding to more coastal areas and scale its operations into new domestic and export B2B markets.

Also Read: Go-Ventures, Northstar Group co-lead eFishery’s Series B round

Aruna’s deal coincides with the announcement of a Series B round of investment by eFishery, an online platform for fish and shrimp farmers in the country.

Aruna was started in 2016 by Farid Naufal Aslam, Indraka Fadhillah, and Utari Octavianty. The three graduates of Telkom University Bandung started Aruna to leverage technology to create a sustainable and fair-trade ecosystem for fish and marine products.

The startup helps local fishermen export their products to countries in Southeast Asia, East Asia, North America and the Middle East. Aruna has worked with thousands of fishermen in 31 coastal areas across Indonesia, covering multiple regions between Sumatra and Papua.

Aruna also provides fishermen more direct access to the B2B domestic market.

“Aruna’s mission is to make the sea a better livelihood for all. E-commerce helps create more fairness and transparency in the fishing industry, as well as making a more efficient supply chain. By reaching more coastal areas across Indonesia, Aruna joined the effort in building economic equality in Indonesia,” CEO Aslam.

Aruna claims it recorded an 86x growth in revenue in H1, 2020 compared to H1, 2019 as global demand for fresh sea products remains strong despite the coronavirus pandemic.

“Aruna remains optimistic to reach further growth in the middle of the pandemic. As a source of protein and a multitude of nutrients that are essential for the immune system, fishery commodities are products that consistently have growth in demand even amidst the pandemic,” Aslam added.

To cater to the spiking demand for home delivery of fresh produce and staples, the agritech company launched ‘Seafood by Aruna’, a home delivery service for fishery products. It provides fresh fish and seafood products, ready-to-eat products, and ready-to-cook products for consumers in the Greater Jakarta area, Bandung, and Balikpapan.

Seafood by Aruna is available at Tokopedia, Shopee, Bukalapak, and Grab Mart. Aruna also collaborates with Sayurbox, Nalayan, and Delisari and are open to opportunities for new resellers.

Also Read: Indonesia’s agritech industry is at an inflection point

In April 2017, Aruna had secured an undisclosed seed funding from hardware and machinery distributor UMG Indonesia.

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Image Credit: Aruna

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Airbus Ventures, a venture capital company sponsored by the global aircraft manufacturer, recently made its debut in Singapore with an investment in last-mile internet connectivity startup Transcelestial last month.

The global VC firm, with its Asia Pacific operations being managed by Partner Lewis Pinault, who is based in Tokyo, now looks to make more investments in the region.

“I’m a firm believer that Asia Pacific is rich in innovation,” Pinault told e27 in an interview, shortly after the Transcelestial funding. “There’s a tremendous amount of innovation happening in Asia Pacific, some of which may not be too obvious. Many investible companies are emerging in the region.”

Also Read: Navigate through our collection of Perks in this exciting e27 Pro update

According to Pinault, it was tough for the VC firm to choose between Japan and Singapore to base its Asia Pacific operations. Both countries have smaller but respectable VC markets and activities and have strong engines of underlying innovation that make them attractive.

“Both draw international pools of talent. We like the transparency of both the markets. There’s even a natural affinity between the two countries: we see many Japanese investors in Singapore and many Singaporean talents in Japan. So, we are so excited to be investing and becoming more active in Singapore,” he added.

While it has already a handful of investments in Japan (Carbon Fiber Recycling Co., InfoStellar, Telexistence), Singapore had always been in the VC firm’s radar.

“What is so impressive about Singapore is that while it attracts talent from around the world, there is a common language infrastructure for English. Whatever the ethnicity or origins, the people of Singapore are completely competent in the language and are often very competently multilingual, which is another asset,” he noted.

“In terms of having a view of the world, recognising that there are multiple cultures, sources of innovation, ways of adding positive diversity and complex systems is what innovation is all about. I think that’s a natural advantage for Singapore,” said Pinault.

He also thinks the city-state has a great education and university infrastructure and governmental support programme. Although it is small as an international hub, it is vibrant.

“And for me, it’s a huge privilege to be looking at this kind of access, this dynamic between Japan and Singapore because they each bring different things to the tables,” he said.

He also added that the VC firm will soon announce its second investment in Singapore in new and deep space capabilities.

Founded in 2016, the VC firm (it doesn’t call itself a corporate venture capital) operates with substantive independence and autonomy. According to Crunchbase, Airbus Ventures has so far raised a single fund, Airbus Group Venture Fund, worth US$150 million, in January 2016.

According to market sources, Airbus Ventures is in the midst of raising a new and larger fund.

It primarily invests in “extraordinary startups” whose important future impacts are set to redefine the aerospace industry. So far, it has made 46 deals across the globe.

Also Read: VCs get behind Disaster Tech in search for innovative life-saving technologies

“In the Asia Pacific, we are seeing advances in real frontier technologies like new and deep space capabilities and teleoperator robotics, and connectivity systems, which we think are special and important,” he said.

“Broadly speaking, we are focused on a thesis on autonomy and autonomous systems connectivity, as well as electrification, cybersecurity, advanced computing, robotics, AI, new space and deep space technologies. Also new material tools and design for manufacturing, particularly in Southeast Asia,” Pinault stated.

Airbus Ventures invests from its global fund and doesn’t run a separate fund for the Asia region. It invests in early-stage and growth-stage companies.

“We don’t invest from the balance sheet of Airbus. We have a separate fund. We function as a General Partner to our LP. We are a global fund and we don’t have a separate fund for Southeast Asia,” he said. “We have an expectation that a significant proportion of the fund will be spent and investing in the Asia Pacific region.”

According to Pinault, the COVID-19 has been a terrible crisis for the whole world to face. “Certainly, there will be some necessary innovations and some spectacular innovation. And I hope that we learn to adapt to different collaboratives system approaches.”

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Incomlend, a global online invoice exchange platform headquartered in Singapore, has raised US$20 million in Series A round of investment led by Sequoia India.

Existing investor CMA CGM Group, a company operating in the shipping and logistics industry, also participated.

The fintech firm will use the funds to drive expansion into Europe, Southeast Asia and North Asia, while advancing its technological development in digital invoice finance underwriting and processing.

Also Read: ‘Asia Pacific is rich in innovation’: Airbus Ventures Partner Lewis Pinault

In December last year, e27 had reported that Incomlend was in the final stages of closing its Series A fundraising with large global equity investors.

The new round comes more than two years after it received an undisclosed sum in funding from GTR Ventures, an investment and venture-building platform specialised in trade and supply chain.

Incomlend was established in 2015 by former Columbia Business School classmates Kouchnirenko and Morgan Terigi as software that could provide finance directly to trading companies from a private investor pool.

Its invoice exchange platform connects exporters and importers with institutional investors. Through Incomlend, exporters can get paid early for supplied goods and services while importers are able to extend payment terms and minimise the risk of supply chain disruption.

Investors, meanwhile, can access an attractive new alternative asset class and accelerate return on capital.

Incomlend’s innovative model is designed to solve the credit crunch hampering growth among cross-border trading companies worldwide.

More than 40 per cent of trade finance applications from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are rejected by banks, according to a 2019 report by the ADB.

The impact is acute in high-growth Asia where SMEs — which account for more than 95 per cent of all businesses and provide two out of three private-sector jobs in the region — need more financing options to meet their growing demand.

Further, low-interest rates in Asia — and negative rates in Europe — are prompting many global investors to seek alternative asset classes.

“Incomlend’s mission is to increase financial inclusion on non-recourse basis for companies of all sizes across the globe while offering investors real alternatives non-correlated to financial markets to existing asset classes,” said Terigi. “International trade is the cornerstone of Asia’s economy, and we aim to help exporters develop their business by providing alternative working capital finance when and where they need it.”

Also Read: The future is hybrid: What will events look like post-COVID-19?

To date, Incomlend claims to have facilitated over US$330 million in financing and covered invoice finance trades across 50 countries.

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Southeast Asia is home to one of the fastest rates of digital payments adoption —which is forecast to grow to more than US$1 trillion by 2025.

Reinforced by an internet economy of 400 million users and almost two-thirds of consumers in Southeast Asia choosing card over cash, it is no surprise that digital payments have become an accustomed part of everyday lives.

As the region’s digital economy continues to surge, it is a natural progression that traditional stores of value such as gold are receiving the digital treatment.

While the demand for gold has been on a one per cent year-on-year rise globally, gold consumption in the 10 ASEAN countries reached 309 tonnes in 2018, making it the third-largest market for gold globally.

In Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam together accounted for over 80 per cent of the region’s gold market. With a rich cultural and traditional importance in Asia, gold holds an important role in customary traditions such as weddings or baby showers —where gold jewellery, bullion, and coins are prized possessions that are handed down for generations as a symbol of wealth and prosperity.

The combination of rapid digital adoption and the cultural importance of gold in Southeast Asia makes the region a prime location for users to drive and pioneer the adoption of digital gold—enabling consumers to reap the enduring benefits of gold with the convenience and speed of digital payment.

Also Read: 4 ways you can capitalise on the food tech gold rush in Asia

Going digital simplifies the process of purchasing gold for mainstream consumers, as it removes the need to worry about high premiums, insurance, or safe-keeping of their gold. As a result, Gojek is also catching on to this trend and is now offering an online gold investment feature.

Governments across Southeast Asia have also played a crucial role to help emerging financial innovations, such as digital gold, to excel and thrive in the region. This is a result of progressive regulations and a favourable technological infrastructure—cultivating the growth of emerging technologies and digital innovation.

As a result, countries such as Singapore have experienced more than S$1.2 billion (US$875 million) in fintech investments in 2019, more than double the investments from the year before, further showcasing the region’s potential and growth. Understanding that digitisation is crucial to future-proof the region’s economy, governments in Southeast Asia have further legitimised new technologies through grants, funding, and piloting proof of concepts—fostering greater acceptance as users understand the benefits such technologies will bring them.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, governments across Southeast Asia remain committed to the acceleration in technology development and adoption—further driving cashless initiatives to reduce physical contact in an effort to help flatten the curve and limit the spread of the virus.

The Singapore Government allocated SG$500 million (US$364 million) to boost e-payment adoption and neighbouring Malaysian Government assigned a digital stimulus to accelerate the adoption of e-wallets, providing all eligible Malaysians a one-off MYR30 (US$7) incentive to spend via selected service providers Boost, GrabPay, and Touch ‘n Go eWallet.

As a result, countries across Southeast Asia are seeing an uptake in digital payments adoption—as Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat announced that more than 50,000 businesses have adopted Paynow Corporate since April 2020, and GrabPay Malaysia reported a 1.7-time increase in cashless transactions.

While digital payments were seen as a convenience prior to the pandemic, they are now a critical factor in the “new normal” and will be a driving force for innovation within the region—sparking the growth of emerging technologies such as digital gold which places a traditional, physical asset within the digital realm.

However, anything placed in the digital realm is open to cyberattacks which have prompted businesses and authorities to explore blockchain technology due to it’s secure, transparent, and immutable characteristics.

Also Read: Indonesia to regulate digital gold transaction by the end of the year

Organisations and governments across Southeast Asia have been strong advocates of blockchain technologies—implementing the benefits of blockchain into its ecosystem through various initiatives such as Project Ubin and the establishment of Tribe Accelerator, Singapore’s first government-backed blockchain accelerator.

Such progressive blockchain initiatives have played a key role in the development of digital gold, offering an alternative channel for consumers and industry players to purchase this shiny metal in a manner that is secure, convenient, and transparent.

The unique combination of rapid digital adoption, enduring cultural traditions, and progressive government regulations will further develop the potential for digital gold and other innovations to come.

As Southeast Asia’s digital economy continues to flourish and thrive, the region’s future shines brightly—not just as a digital gold haven but also as a global leader in digital payments.

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Daryl Lim met co-founders Yong Shin Leong and Chong Voon Foo at the Industry 4.0 networking event hosted by SG Innovate. Soon after, they decided to join a hackathon where they realised that they worked well as a team and had complementary skill sets.

Lim, Leong, and Foo soon after entered the realm of entrepreneurship by launching a robotics programming software startup that helps people develop deployable robotic systems.

Before this, Lim had founded his computing distribution startup which sold automation solutions to companies such as Seagate. This led him to understand the problems of automation which he describes as “really boils down to the deep difficulty of programming robotic systems.”

“Developed countries tend to offshore labour because of the low labour cost [abroad]. There is a lot that manufacturing jobs in Singapore that was gone already. There is a new revolution happening because of Industry 4.0. For example, US companies such as Tesla and Foxconn are hiring in the tens to hundred thousands of employees because they can have operations in local environments through robotic systems,” Lim shares with e27.

“I find it very interesting. I think that is really where I think nation-building has to go, to sustain jobs rather than just offshoring because it’s cheaper.”

How it works

Augmentus makes use of an iPad which has low computing power and a sensor camera to help individuals with no programming background develop robotic systems.

Also Read:  Best way for kids to learn coding? “They need to feel like they’re playing a game”

All they have to do is simply draw robot paths via a live video feed on their mobile or iPad device and observe how their robot moves without typing any code.

According to Lim, 70 per cent of the cost of owning a robot is in the software integration work. But Augmentus wants to eliminate the costs so that SMEs and farmers can harness the full benefits of robotic automation; at the moment only MNCs and people with deep pockets can profit from it.

Their product is set to be launched in December.

From offshoring to inshoring

Besides creating an easy-to-use robotic system, the young entrepreneurs also envision sustaining local talents in robotics manufacturing in the future –a move that was inspired by Tesla.

Singapore outsources most of its manufacturing jobs, and Lim believes in bringing many of the work back locally. Backing his argument, he gives the example of the US, which had previously depended on China for outsourcing. But now it has been making a local shift.

“As a country, I think we should be trying to sustain local talents in general,” he says.

Lim trusts that this will help create more jobs and help in building a more sustainable logistics supply chain.

Eyeing other markets

Augmentus is currently based at NUS Enterprise. In the future, the startup wants to focus on markets in South Korea, Japan, Thailand, and Australia.

Lim and Foo have mostly kept themselves free from academics and have taken a one-and-a-half year off from NUS, while Leong has been with the company full time.

Also Read: How the future technology can destroy jobs… and also create

Despite receiving scepticism from investors as a group of student entrepreneurs looking to raise funds, they are now obtaining growing interest from them.

“I am open to the idea of working on Augmentus full time if the need arises,” Lim quips.

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Image Credit: Augmentus

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Beenext, others invest US$1.4M in India’s online climate school Terra.do

The story: Terra.do, an online school for climate change, has raised US$1.4 million, according to YourStory.

Investors: Beenext’s Emerging Asia Fund (EAF), Stanford Angels and Entrepreneurs (lead), Zerodha-backed Rainmatter Capital, undisclosed angel investors

What is Terra.do?

A startup that selects individuals who care about climate change, and takes them through a 12-week boot camp to work on high-impact climate projects.

India’s Flipkart launches consumer tech-focused accelerator programme

The story: India’s e-commerce company Flipkart has announced the launch of its accelerator programme, Flipkart Leap, specifically focussed at idea-stage startups in the consumer internet technology sector, according to Economic Times.

More details: Shortlisted startups will receive an equity-free grant of US$25,000 along with a 16-week mentorship from Flipkart’s leadership from business, operations, product, and technology.

Entry requirements: Applicants should be based out of India and have a working prototype

Traveloka clears close to US$100M in travel booking refunds after pandemic hit

The story: Indonesia’s travel unicorn Traveloka has cleared up to US$100 million travel refund requests after the pandemic, according to TechInAsia.

The firm recently raised US$250 million in fresh funding from an undisclosed investor along with EV Growth.

In another interview with e27 Andhini Putri, Head of Marketing, Transport said that the company has already seen a demand for travel and staycation from countries that have ended their lockdown. Even though the industry is far from total recovery, revival is slowly crawling up.

Also Read: In brief: EDBI invests in Vesta; edutech startup ACKTEC raises funding

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Image Credit: Beenext

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SEA’s blockchain-based zero-commission ride-hailing firm TADA raises US$5M led by Korea’s Central; TADA plans to distribute and sell about 10K electric auto-rickshaws, E-TukTuk, in Cambodia by 2021; TADA says that over 81K drivers, 550K+ users have used its service in Singapore, Vietnam and Cambodia. e27

SEA to see 310M digital consumers by end-2020; This means ~70% of the population that are 15 years old and older will go digital by end-2020, and the average online spending per person will triple from 2019 to US$429 in 2025; SEA’s e-commerce GMV grew 23% per year between 2018 and 2020, faster than China, India and the US during the period. DealStreetAsia

Thai agro-industrial conglomerate CP Group to buy HK e-commerce startup Chilindo for US$18M; The acquisition by its digital arm, Ascend Commerce, will complement its online shopping WeMall platform and develop Thailand’s digital economy; WeMall competes with Lazada, Shopee and JD Central. Reuters

How COVID-19 will pave the way for deeper tech cooperation between LatAM, SEA; LatAM has much to gain from the technological know-how of SEA; The similar population sizes, economic realities, and rapid increase in internet penetration rates underscore the adaptability of digital solutions across both regions. e27

Is construction tech the next big thing in SEA?; Construction tech startups can improve productivity, diminish delays and secure safety; It is genuinely benefiting the construction sector in areas such as field productivity, collaborations and back-office management. Tech Collective

Singapore, Australia sign digital economy agreement; They have agreed to set new rules to prevent unnecessary restrictions on the transfer and location of data, improved protection for software source code, and ensure compatibility between e-invoicing and e-payment frameworks. Open Gov

After the pandemic, higher education can’t afford to go back to ‘normal’; Simply delivering curricular materials online doesn’t constitute real innovation; Unfortunately, the “sage on the stage’ from before the coronavirus has now become the “sage on the computer screen”. EdSurge

COVID-19 and the rise of live commerce in SEA; By using a combination of live-streamed mini TV shows, competitions and product demonstrations, companies such as Lazada, Shopee and Tokopedia can boost their sales and make the whole shopping experience more interactive. Tech Collective

Singapore’s proptech platform Ohmyhome to set up operations in Philippines; It provides a hybrid model of a DIY platform and full-fledged agency services; The platform has 175K+ active users, 15+ listings of real estate properties to date; Ohmyhome has raised US$2.9M from Golden Equator and K3 Ventures. Malaya Business Insight

How startups can benefit from early investment in tech; Early investment in tech with a strong vision for the future means you are more likely to make the right decisions for the long term; It will also help to avoid mistakes that limit growth and to eliminate wastage. e27

Cybersecurity threats on the rise as companies shift to the WFH model; Those working from home don’t have the bolstered security of an office environment, as most home networks usually have weaker protocols; Google reported that more than 18M phishing emails were sent through in April. e27

Why a pandemic is a good time to experiment and innovate on behalf of your customers; Most people don’t want to buy product A or service B, but rather solve a problem using product A or service B; The sale happens when the customer feels the perceived value of the solution is higher than the price he will have to pay for the product or service. e27

Kay Mok Ku of Gobi Partners thinks VCs will become like influencers in a post-pandemic world; In his view, a new concept or a big market are both important; A new concept for a small market will not attract VC funding; a big market with an existing concept has no defensive moat so VCs will be concerned. e27

Smart pitches ‘real’ 5G network for Filipino businesses; The mobile operator formally announced the activation of its commercial 5G service on July 30, with the initial phase of deployment in key business districts of Metro Manila; The firm claims it has the country’s most extensive fibre network footprint at over 307K kilometers. NewsBytes.ph

China’s WeWork rival Ucommune withdraws US$100M US IPO, eyes backdoor listing; Beijing-based Ucommune is under increased pressure to shore up investors’ confidence in its loss-making biz; There are also growing concerns ignited by WeWork’s IPO fiasco in 2019 and the more recent accounting scandal of Luckin Coffee. DealStreetAsia

How are the co-working spaces doing during the pandemic?; The industry is undergoing a fundamental shift with greater focus on ensuring safety and wellbeing of employees and guests; The WeWork spaces have been modified with staggered seating and buffer zones to help members maintain a healthy physical distance. KrAsia

Renewable energy and the new normal in Indonesia; One of the types of energy that can be cultivated and become the most prospective business fields in the future is solar photovoltaic and wind; The 2 businesses were able to restore the level of confidence in energy investment, which according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) fell 20% in 2020. OpenGov

Vietnam startup Computer Vision Vietnam (CVC) eKYC receives US$500K investment from NextTech Group, Next100.tech fund; CVS eKYC offers AI to recognise face and characters, detecting invalid papers and faces to provide a complete and fully automated eKYC solution. Vietnam News

3 Indonesian startups selected for Google Accelerator; Hacktiv8, Kata.ai, Riliv will undergo the 3-month online programme for high potential seed to series A tech startups; They will join 12 other startups that were chosen from 600 companies proposed from SEA. The Jakarta Post

OVO claims it’s now Indonesia’s largest fintech ecosystem; The Lippo-backed startup first joined the e-money boom in 2017 and later expanded to P2P lending, investment, insurance, multifinance; Lippo has 600,000 merchants, of which 550,000 are MSMEs. Jakarta Globe

How tech can transform your employee experience; In the future, the success of workplace analytics will be determined by its ability to impact the humans running the business and employee productivity, rather than real estate or its footprint. Human Resources Director

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Last month, we announced the launching of Perks, a feature of e27 Pro that gives members access to a highly curated basket of services and products across all sectors to help support their company growth. This collection of Perks is made available exclusively through e27 Pro, offered in partnership with different companies that cater to various business needs.

From software solutions to healthcare benefits, our curated basket of services and products are designed strategically to aid startups across the spectrum to achieve their respective business goals.

We recently talked about our initial list of Perks on e27, and trust and believe that we are only getting started! As part of our commitment to empowering the ecosystem as best as we can, the e27 team and its partners are gearing for bigger and more exciting things as the year continues to unfold.

Also read: 5 ways to build startup resilience and avoid failure

Since then, we have added a few more Perks to the list that our members could browse through. These additional Perks will ensure that e27 Pro members get to maximise their membership and optimise their businesses toward larger and further growth.

With these added benefits, we’ve been receiving glowing reviews from Pro members. Alex Tay, Founder of ZeusX Gaming, said “the perks from AWS and Hubspot are fantastic. More than made up the membership cost on their own.”

AWS Activate and Hubspot are only two of our partner companies offering Perks that collectively render over $10,000 worth of savings for member companies who use them. We push this ceiling further by adding more Perks and partner companies to the list.

As such, we’re happy to announce that you can now view the most up-to-date list of Perks on the e27 website. You can do this simply by going to the homepage and clicking the Perks button on the top page navigation bar. Or you can simply click here.

How does the official Perks page work?

All our Perks partners are featured in the Perks page where you can see a snapshot of the exclusive discounts and freebies they are offering to members. Simply click on the card of any Perk to expand its details and to claim it.

You will have to be logged in to your Pro account to claim these Perks. Note that each Perk would have their own terms, which are all indicated in each individual information card. This will ensure that Pro members are fully briefed before they can access the corresponding Perk they are interested in.

Also read: ZeusX to bring mobile gaming to the next level in 2020

Over the next few months, we plan to take e27 Perks beyond just software. Our team is currently hard at work to curate a variety of exciting new Perks categories for Pro members to choose from! With choices ranging from hardware solutions to even travel essentials, the Perks page is gearing up for exciting new things and is sure to spice things up for all e27 Pro members.

Check back soon to find out about other exciting developments!

Join e27 Pro

If you want to enjoy these exclusive Perks available only with Pro, be a part of the Pro community and sign up for an e27 Pro membership today! You may visit here for more details.

Stay tuned to find out what other Perks we have in store!

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The COVID-19 pandemic is driving unprecedented interest into ESG investing, for reasons including business risk preparedness, portfolio diversification, protecting local communities, and more. Companies that can play life-saving roles in natural disasters and directly strengthen the resilience of communities may stand to benefit.

We already see technology being used to track, trace and reduce COVID-19’s impact. In broader natural disasters, companies are coming up with innovative Disaster Tech or “D-Tech” solutions. These can vary from Google’s early flood warning system in India and the Red Cross’s disaster notification and first aid app, to startups such as One Concern, an AI platform for predicting earthquakes and floods, and Field Ready, a manufacturing company that specialises in 3D printing kits of essential medical devices deployed in refugee camps.

Venture capitalists see the opportunity for D-Tech

VCs acknowledge the need for D-Tech, especially in today’s environment.

Puja Bharwani, Director of Antler, commented that “D-Tech is an important vertical and it is one where corporations, governments, technologists and entrepreneurs have to work together to ensure the proposed solution has the desired impact given the scale at which it needs to be implemented.” Antler is a global early-stage venture capital firm with offices in twelve cities across six continents. Founded in Singapore in 2017, Antler aims to fundamentally improve the world by enabling and investing in the world’s most exceptional people.

With growing investor demand for ESG investments — assets have grown 14% annually from 2014 to reach US$31 trillion in 2018 – D-Tech offers opportunities to support profitable, high growth business, while providing sustainable social and environmental benefits.

Dominic Mellor, Senior Investment Specialist at ADB Ventures, added that “D-Tech has a role to play alongside technologies for planning and managing infrastructure, making local economies more diverse and resilient, and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.”

Asia Pacific accounts for almost half of the world’s natural disasters. China, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, the top four natural disaster-prone countries in Asia, are expected to lose $380 billion each year between 2016 and 2030 as a result of natural disasters. D-Tech provides a way to reduce this impact.

Minette Navarrete, President of Kickstart Ventures (KVI), a corporate venture capital firm with a focus on the Philippines and the greater Southeast Asian region, commented that “KVI has an active focus on emerging markets, which are prone to disasters. A number of invested companies have clear, immediate usefulness in disaster situations.”

Bit Santos, Portfolio Operations Director of KVI, added that developing markets like the Philippines and others in Southeast Asia offer “opportunities for startups to address fundamental problems” such as those posed by natural disasters. Examples include engageSpark, which supports messaging services in areas of poor data reception; and AIAH’s KIRA, a chatbot that shares information and automates health checks.

These are just a few of the many great initiatives spearheaded by startups that can help turn the tide for affected communities in times of disaster, and whom VCs can help support and supplement with necessary resources.

Solving industry problems

Like any venture, D-Tech companies need to pass VC’s business viability tests, while also facing challenges specific to the field of disaster resilience: slow cash flow, lack of patient capital, and the need for community sensitivity.

“D-Tech firms are particularly vulnerable to funding and cash flow problems as a result of their relatively long sales cycles”, Mellor explained. “By their nature, the positive impact of D-Tech firms cannot be immediately felt until after a catastrophe has happened. Clients may therefore feel they are not getting immediate results”. Navarrete added that “firms will also have to contend with the delicate nature of private companies selling services at a time of crisis, which could naturally create a negative impression of profiting from a disaster”.

To help D-Tech start-ups grow, VCs can play a significant role by acting as connective bridges with the government and established institutions. Furthermore, the backing of a reputable VC can provide much-needed credibility to early-stage start-ups.

“For Antler, we work with various stakeholders and entities in the tech ecosystem to ensure startups get all they need — a similar ecosystem approach needs to be taken for D-Tech as well,” said Bharwani.

ADB Ventures, KVI, and Antler noted that startups within their portfolios will gain access to important operational networks across governments, municipalities, large corporates, and even non-governmental organizations. Startups may also gain added advantages specific to their VC’s firms, such as ADB’s reputational advantage, access to Antler’s global alumni and advisory network, or introductions to large corporate networks that Kickstart Ventures is connected to (such as Globe Telecom and Ayala Corporation).

Also read: Disaster Tech innovation is key in mitigating the impact of natural disasters

Prudence Foundation supports D-Tech growth

As the community investment arm of Prudential in Asia and Africa, Prudence Foundation leverages Prudential plc’s long term commitment and geographical scale to make communities safer, more secure and more resilient, by addressing key issues in education, health and safety.

Over the years, Prudence Foundation has worked to improve disaster resilience, most recently through the Safe Steps D-Tech Awards which aims to find, fund and support innovative technology solutions which save lives before, during and after natural disasters.

Donald Kanak, Chairman of Prudence Foundation stated “We wanted to see more focus on applying technology to making disasters less disastrous”.

The D-Tech Awards has partners in both the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors, including e27, Antler, National Geographic, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN), among others.

“It is through partnerships between the private sector, governmental and non-governmental organizations that real impact and inroads can be made,” said Marc Fancy, Prudence Foundation’s Executive Director.

Through the competition, startups are invited to pitch their solutions to a panel of judges — including VCs — for the chance to win grants from a pool of US$150,000. Finalists will also benefit from expert coaching and networking opportunities. Both for-profits and not-for-profits are welcome to apply and will be judged separately. Applications for the next round will open in November 2020.

Prudence Foundation, in partnership with e27, will be hosting two private working sessions on D-Tech on 27th and 28th August and encourages VCs to offer their advice and insight into growing D-Tech startups. If you are interested to participate in the conversation, please kindly answer this survey.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Prudence Foundation.

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