The tumultuous bike-sharing startup reportedly had lost its operating licence in Singapore

Due to failure in providing justification on why its licence shouldn’t be revoked, Chinese bike-sharing service ofo has been confirmed to lose its licence to operate in Singapore.

According to The Strait Times, the company’s licence had been terminated for review since February with failures such as failing to implement a QR code-based parking system that would allow its bicycles to be parked only within specific areas.

Since ofo responded to LTA that it was in the “advanced stages of negotiation” to partner another party to resume operations and fulfill the conditions, LTA extended the time for the company until March 28 to meet these requirements.

It received a notice of intention to cancel its licence from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on April 3.

In the notice, ofo was given up to 14 days to make written representations regarding the decision.
But despite the deadline extension, ofo still failed to comply with regulations.

Also Read: DOOgether secures seed funding to expand fitness merchant partnership

The authority released an official statement on Monday, saying: “As ofo has not provided LTA with sufficient justifications on why its licence should not be canceled, LTA canceled ofo’s bicycle-sharing operating licence on 22 April.

“ofo will not be able to offer dockless bicycle-sharing services in public places in Singapore without this licence.”

Operators without licence can be subjected to jail term of up to six months and/or a fine of up to US$10,000 with a further fine of US$500 for each day violated after conviction.

ofo first came to Singapore in early 2017 and grew to have more than 90,000 fleet. In March 2018, Alibaba invested US$866 million (S$1.17 billion) in the company.

However, towards the end of last year, ofo reportedly experienced cashflow problems to the point that it considered disbanding.

Also Read: Vietnam blockchain startup Utop raises US$3M from two large corporates

Mobike, Anywheel, SG Bike, and industry newcomer Moov Technology are now the remaining bike-sharing operators in Singapore, with Meituan Dianping-owned Mobike soon to pull out of Singapore market to “rationalise” operations in Southeast Asia.
–

The post ofo is officially banned from Singapore operation appeared first on e27.

By making it possible to digitally represent properties on the platform, trading real estate properties will happen seamlessly without geographical restrictions

The global real estate market is still expected to make tremendous growth in the course of 2019 despite the volatility and uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook at the start of this year, according to a report by CBRE.

The global market has been estimated to reach a revenue of over US$4 trillion by the year 2025.

Economic development in developing countries, the rising increase in demand for real estate housing, and several other factors have steadily been contributing to the increase in the market revenue.

One major driver of the market is the rapid increase in rural-urban migration which has led to urbanisation. This increase has spiked the demand for urban home spaces thus increasing real estate housing investment.

Also, investments in the global commercial retail market run into billions of dollars with real estate investors still actively exploring different countries and locations to invest.

Barriers to investing

However, despite the growth and the estimated forecast revenue, the real estate market is still plagued with a number of limitations that hinder more growth.

There are still barriers to investments in the sector especially for foreign investors, one of which is the complex process involved in buying real estate properties in foreign territories.

Also Read: Logistics tech startup Waresix shares their achievements and target

Foreign investors have to go through rigorous processes depending on what country or region they choose to invest in. Most have these investors go through agencies to purchases these properties which comes at huge costs as the agencies will also have prices fixed for their services.

Also, the huge capital requirements involved in purchasing these properties abroad which then have to be held down for a number of months depending on country laws before realising returns from the investment, discourage a substantial number of small investors who have access to no such funds.

The liquidity in the market is posing a major barrier to investors and as such should be effectively addressed for adequate growth to occur in the market.

How blockchain changes the ecosystem

Blockchain for years now, has been disrupting several sectors and industries by totally revamping traditional business models and processes. Distributed ledger technology is designed to facilitate transparency, authenticity, security, and decentralisation.

Having been leveraged in sectors like the financial, luxury, gaming and health sectors, it’s time the real estate sector took advantage of the technology and explore ways it can facilitate the market.

A number of blockchain companies have already begun such explorations. LABS Property, for instance, creates a digital representation of real estate properties on the blockchain which will allow easy access and trading. Foreigners will no longer need to go through the complex processes of purchasing assets as foreigners abroad because LABS Property will act as title deed custodian locally and investors can then purchase directly from their platform. This eliminates the tedious paperwork process and middlemen challenges.

With the LABS Property framework, investors will be able to purchase real estate properties in fractions, i.e., fractional ownership. This will be similar to owning a square foot of a property. Investors will not need to acquire a huge amount of capital for single ownership rather, with the current funds at hand, they can purchase via the LABS. Its property platform is a somewhat property swap market and, properties can be bought and traded as the investor wills.

For instance, an investor is willing to invest in real estate property in Vancouver but has no access to huge capital funding and does not desire to go through the documentation, requirements, and agencies to secure the property. All they need to do is simply purchase via LABS Property.

Since the property is digitally represented on the blockchain, the investor can choose to purchase a fraction of the property they can afford and it automatically becomes theirs. The same fraction purchased can further be traded with other interested buyers on the blockchain and earnings will be received almost instantly.

Fractional ownership of properties is a major boost to the real estate market, as small investors will now have access to real estate investments without restrictions of huge capital. Fractional ownership also means investors don’t have to wait for months or years to earn returns, trading and transfer of rights can be done on the blockchain platform.

Blockchain technology proves the capacity to facilitate effective growth in the real estate sector. By making it possible to digitally represent properties on the platform, trading real estate properties will happen seamlessly without geographical restrictions.

The room created for small investors to participate in the market will certainly impact the overall revenue in the market.

The future of real estate investments disruption

Blockchain is creating a new future for business operations whilst giving equity and fairness to all players. With the new developments the technology brings to the market, smaller-scale investors will have unrestricted access to real estate investments.

The exciting factor here is investors can purchase real estate properties in foreign countries as if they were local — no complex documentation processes, no middlemen or agency hassles, all direct investments, thanks to blockchain technology.

Also Read: What Southeast Asia’s gaming companies can do to stay ahead of foreign competitors

In addition, the thrilling idea that properties will be bought in fractions without having to purchase the whole is one that will boost growth and revenue in the market. Real estate ownership just got redefined.

The disruption of the market by blockchain is one that stands to boost investments and open more doors of opportunities to potential investors. Blockchain is redefining and democratising the real estate sector for the better.

—

e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

The post Blockchain is revolutionising the real-estate market through fractional ownership appeared first on e27.

Also, GO-VIET names new Manager and HappyFresh raises US$20 million

honestbee puts pause on Philippines operation — [yugatech]

honestbee, the regional online grocery delivery startup, temporarily suspended its operations in the Philippines, according to yugatech.

The company sent out materials over the easter holiday that said it would be “bee right back”. The closure coincides with the layoff of around 70 people, as reported by TechInAsia.

The company also released a statement that it was “working with its headquarters” to get the company on more sustainable footing. The Philippines Country Manager said the layoffs did not impact the local business and the 200 employees will continue to report to work.

HappyFresh raises US$20 million Series C — [e27]

HappyFresh, an online grocery startup headquartered in Jakarta, has closed US$20 million in a Series C round of funding, led by South Korean VC firm Mirae Asset-Naver Growth Fund, which is also an investor in e-commerce and fin tech startup Bukalapak.

Other investors of this round include strategic partners such as LINE Ventures, Singha Ventures and Grab Ventures, which reportedly also made an investment in the startup in July 2018, following a partnership.

The fresh investment will be used for both city and country expansion, as well as to invest in technology and further support the team in a number of specialist functions such as data science and omnichannel technology.

Go-Jek names new country manager for GO-VIET brand — [Go-Jek]

Indonesian ride-hailing giant Go-Jek announced today they have named Christy Le as the new general manager for its Vietnam operations under the brand GO-VIET. She was previously the country director for Facebook in the nation.

“I’ve seen how the success of GOJEK’s multi-service platform has transformed the lives of so many people in Indonesia and want to see the same happen in Vietnam,” she said.

Glife raiseus US$1.18 million for more sustainable restaurants — [e27]

Singapore agritech firm Glife announced today that it has raised S$1.6 million (US$1.18 million) in seed funding from Global Founders Capital and 500 Startups. A few groups of angel investors took part in this round, including F&B and tech veterans such as Royston Tay, the co-founder of Zopim.

The digital business-to-business (B2B) agritech firm said that it will use the funding to enhance the user experience for restaurants. This includes building a consolidated invoicing system to deal with perishable goods and greater traceability of produce from farmers. It is also pilot-testing an on-demand logistics technology for last mile delivery fulfillment, as well as to scale and strengthen the technology team in Singapore.

Glife’s farm-to-table platform seeks to redefine end-to-end agricultural food supply chain. It claimed that it has got more than 150 local F&B businesses connected directly with farmers within their ecosystem for fresh produce needs.

Huawei sees 39 per cent increase in Q1 revenue — [Huawei]

Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei announced today its revenue rose nearly 40 per cent in Q1 to US$26.78 billion while it shipped 59 million smartphones.

It also claims to have signed 40 5G contracts and shipped more than 70,000 basestations, a number that is surely to be politically sensitive amidst tensions with the United States.

The company was also profitable, reporting a net profit margin of 8 per cent.

—

The post Today’s top tech news, April 22: honestbee suspends Philippines operations indefinitely appeared first on e27.

The company sent out email notices last April 19 to customers

In an official notice sent out last Friday, the grocery delivery service honestbee Philippines announced that it will temporarily stop its operation locally, as reported by Yugatech.

The company said that it experiences a funding issue with the headquarters, with the email stated below:
“At honestbee Philippines, we value the relationship we have built with you.

As we work with our HeadQuarters towards bringing the total business to a healthy and sustainable level, we, unfortunately, need to temporarily pause our local operations until further notice.

Thank you for understanding, and we apologise for the inconvenience this may have caused…”

The email was also followed by a message shown on its app showing: No other details of the closure are available as of the moment.

In January, the Singapore-originated delivery and concierge company announced that it will “temporarily pause” the partnership it has with FairPrice with no specifications on the period of time.

However, according to Vulcan Post, the ‘shopper bee,’ honestbee’s concierge shopper said that it will be a permanent arrangement.

Also Read: Agritech startup Glife secures US$1.18M seed funding for farm-to-table logistics service

A report by Dongshen News said that honestbee allegedly owes money to its partner vendors in Taiwan and that it has been delaying payments, while another said that it has not received any payment from the firm since January.

honestbee Taiwan responded and emphasised that it doesn’t face any cashflow problems.

Today’s report released by Tech in Asia stated that “multiple sources within the startup” revealed that honestbee has laid off at least 50 to 70 people out of its 1,000-strong staff across several markets last week.

In Thailand, 30 staff were let go, while more than five people were axed in Indonesia following the resignation of several key executives, including co-founder Isaac Tay, Malaysia country managing director Pulkit Manchanda, and Singapore managing director Chris Urban.

honestbee expanded in the Philippines around the first quarter of last year.

Also Read: Myanmar fintech secures additional capital for its Series A round

Customers in the Philippines reportedly reached out to honestbee’s social media pages questioning their pending orders with the firm. honestbee has since responded that all credit and debit card payments will be refunded.

–

The post honestbee halts local operation in the Philippines appeared first on e27.

On the Future Stage of Echelon Asia Summit 2019, we will dig deeper about the prospects for e-sports athletes in the region

Already excited for Echelon? Buy your tickets here! Enter promo code ECHELONFUTURE for free tickets!

When it comes to e-sports, Asia is that one opponent that the global e-sports community need to beware about.

While the industry has gone through a long history in Southeast Asian countries, it has recently touched a new milestone when China was crowned gold medal winner in the first of six e-sports demonstration events taking place at the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia.

Various governments in Southeast Asia have begun running state-sponsored competitions in preparation of the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games 2019 in the Philippines. Major tech companies such as Go-Jek have also begun investing in e-sports through its investment arm; more and more e-sports startups in the region were also raising significant funding, as their ability to compete with similar platforms from US and China were finally proven.

With all this exciting development, it is no wonder that Asia is considered as the next red hot arena for e-sports athletes. But what are the available opportunities for e-sports athletes in the region? How can they tap into it? What are the remaining challenges that they are facing?

To answer your burning questions, e27 has prepared a panel discussion called E-sports: Why Asia’s newest cool kid on the block has become an arena for professional athletes on the second day of Echelon Asia Summit, held at Singapore Expo on May 23-24.

Also Read: Singtel to back Singapore’s SEA Games e-sports team

The session will feature the following speakers:

Alan Chou, CEO, meta.us

As CEO of social marketplace platform for competitive video game and e-sports community meta.us, Chou has more than 10 years experience in the gaming business with over a dozen AAA game titles launched and credited.

Prior to meta.us, he was Director of Publishing for Southeast Asia at Blizzard where he led the team to 5x growth in revenue four years

With a strong background in building businesses and leading teams, Alan enjoys the challenge of pushing boundaries and in his own words “creating something from nothing”.

Benjamin Rynjah Goh, Regional Brand Manager, AirAsia

Goh started off his career in the finance industry before moving into advertising from Bloomberg TV Malaysia to BBDO. After two years at BBDO, he moved to AirAsia where he began by working on the branding operations in Singapore but has now shifted to managing the sport portfolio for the group.

Handling key sponsorships with organisations such as the UFC (professional e-sports team), Team Mineski, The KL2017 SEA Games as well as the recently concluded AFF Suzuki Cup, Ben also works closely with individual athletes that the brand use as ambassadors –from Roberto Carlos, Azizul Awang, to Tai Tuivasa– activating them in Malaysia, the region and beyond.

Also Read: DailySocial moves forward with launch of Hybrid, an Indonesian e-sports news platform

Rai Cockfield, CEO & Co-founder, BITREP.me

Prior to BITREP.me, Cockfield served as Director – Asia Pacific at global live streaming giant Twitch. For more than two years, he was responsible for expanding Twitch’s APAC Community of Broadcasters and Viewers. Combining previous community building and international operating experience, he developed an initial growth strategy for Twitch through content expansion, international product development, sales, corporate expansion, and infrastructure development.

The role had enabled him to develop his passion for supporting the rapidly growing community of digital content creators and “fall back in love” with popular game titles in his youth such as Street Fighter.

Prior to joining Twitch, Cockfield had lived in several countries in Asia and North America and has worked in various sectors from wine e-commerce, C2C marketplace, and even real estate developer.

Jason Ng, Vice President Strategic Partnership, Garena

Ng has worked in Garena for almost a decade, starting off Senior Project Manager in 2010. He has been holding the Vice President, Strategic Partnerships title for two years.

Prior to joining Garena, he had experienced working at several government institutions, starting as Senior Manager at Ministry of Manpower, Singapore. He was also a Consultant at Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore.

—

Already excited for Echelon? Buy your tickets here! Enter promo code ECHELONFUTURE for free tickets!

Image Credit: Andre Hunter on Unsplash

The post Asia is a red hot arena for e-sports athlete. Find out why in this Echelon Asia Summit panel appeared first on e27.

RWDC develops cost-effective biopolymer material solutions, which are naturally produced by bacterial fermentation of plant-based oils or sugar

Singapore-based biotech startup RWDC Industries has raised US$22 million in the third tranche of its ongoing Series A round of funding, led by early-stage investment firm Vickers Venture Partners and US-based Eversource Retirement Plan Master Trust — its first institutional investor.

Others who participated in the round include cross-border VC firm and existing backer WI Harper Group.

This is a follow-up to the US$13 million that RWDC raised in the second tranche of its Series A round in October last year.

Founded in 2015 by Wee and Daniel Carraway (CEO), RWDC develops cost-effective biopolymer material solutions. In particular, RWDC produces medium-chain-length polyhydroxyalkanoate (mcl-PHA) biopolymers that are designed for use across a broad range of applications.

Also Read: This Indian startup makes cutlery using sugarcane waste

PHAs are linear polyesters naturally produced by bacterial fermentation of plant-based oils or sugar and are widely recognised as the only commercially viable biodegradable bioplastic. RWDC claims its PHA is fully biodegradable in soil, water and marine conditions (i.e. all potential end-of-life scenarios), fully biodegrading within weeks with no toxic residue.

The fresh investment will primarily be used to increase PHA production capacity in Georgia, USA, as well as to support its R&D efforts into prioritised applications. The company expects its first commercial batch of PHA straws to be available in the market in 2019.

The PHA resin formulated by RWDC for these straws is designed as a drop-in replacement of Polypropylene that can be used on existing extrusion machines.

“The world finally recognises the urgent need to build a green and sustainable future. Plastic waste pollution in our oceans is a real threat to societies and global growth. RWDC’s biopolymer materials are fully biodegradable, durable and functional. Our goal is to replace single-use plastic and create meaningful impact. We are very proud to partner with RWDC’s team, creating awareness to replace plastic use, while also raising the standard for the smart cities of future generations,” Peter Liu, Chairman of WI Harper Group, said.

Governments around the world are beginning to legislate more aggressively on plastic waste, with the EU leading the way with a new directive on single-use plastic articles. However, current responses focused on ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’ are inadequate to alter the growth trajectory of plastic waste, risking serious consequences.

RWDC believes a better solution is to replace single-use plastics with PHA.

—

Photo by John Cameron on Unsplash

The post Biodegradable plastic startup RWDC Industries raises US$22M in fresh funding appeared first on e27.

Adyen will support the airlines in providing payment experience for customers across the globe

Singapore Airlines announced today that it has partnered with Adyen, the global fintech platform that assists companies for digital payment. With the partnership, Adyen and the airlines will seek to provide enhanced payment experience every time customers book flights online or in-app.

Furthermore, the partnership will include the use of Adyen’s direct credit card acquiring capabilities which eliminates the need to run payments across multiple third-party platforms. The airlines will leverage on Adyen’s RevenueAccelerate.

The solution taps on Adyen’s global, cross-industry data network to block fraudulent transactions, leaving the genuine travelers unobstructed. With this approach, Singapore Airlines can identify legitimate customers.

“At Adyen, we have seen that payments data can be the jet fuel that powers global expansion for airlines. Payments data remains a valuable resource for companies who seek to understand their customers better and improve revenue. We aim to provide just that for Singapore Airlines, to give their customers a great booking experience from the get-go,” said Warren Hayashi, President of Adyen, Asia-Pacific.

Also Read: Japan plans to increase internal security in crypto exchanges

Singapore Airlines said that since working with Adyen, it has enjoyed “an increase in authorization rates, flexibility on fraud risk management, and richer data insights”. ,
–

The post Fintech Adyen partners Singapore Airlines to facilitate digital payment appeared first on e27.

New Acting CEO Juliana Jan has been with Cradle Seed Ventures since 2004

Cradle Seed Ventures, the venture capital (VC) arm of Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd, today announced the appointment of Juliana Jan as Acting CEO.

The appointment is effective immediately from April 15, 2019.

CSV will continue its operations in the interim period under Jan’s stewardship.

Jan is set to replace Dzuleira Abu Bakar, whose service ends after two and half years as CEO.

She has more than 15 years of experience in senior management experience, including a decade of involvement in venture capital funding as well as in market research and grants.

Also Read: MaGIC pulls top talent from Cradle to be new boss

The new Acting CEO has been with Cradle since 2004 and is very passionate about helping entrepreneurs and startups.

“We are fortunate to have someone of Juliana’s caliber and experience stepping up to lead CSV,” said Razif Abdul Aziz, Acting Group CEO of Cradle, in a press statement.

“We are at a critical moment and need someone who is able to continue implementing our key strategies and take advantage of market opportunities ahead. Juliana is a technology visionary with a proven track record of execution. She has the right operational, management and leadership skills to provide the necessary stewardship and governance necessary to ensure the confidence of CSVs portfolio companies and partners,” he added.

—

Image Credit: Cradle Seed Ventures

The post Cradle Seed Ventures names Juliana Jan as Acting CEO appeared first on e27.

eBay and Amazon wouldn’t be where they are now if Pierre Omidyar and Jeff Bezos had just ‘stood still’

The e-commerce scene has evolved and grown exponentially since the first wave of product and service-focused online marketplaces, and of course, the ubiquity of the smartphone.

They’ve paved the way for technological innovation within online marketplaces and inspired many startups to launch their own.

There are still great opportunities for online marketplaces to enter new verticals and disrupt legacy industries. New and emerging startups have entered almost every niche or vertical, but only a small percentage make in the long haul. In fact, certain niche markets, more than others, are saturated with competitors.

The fact that innovation occurs at a virtually unprecedented speed in the Internet era makes the future of your own marketplace even more daunting. Who knows, one moment your marketplace could be thriving, and the next, without any warning at all, it could be obsolete, just like MySpace or Friendster.

In such a competitive landscape, what can the entrepreneurs of today learn from online marketplaces that managed to beat their competitors and make it big? What has enabled them to stay at the forefront of e-commerce?

Anticipate the future, but do your research

You may see what others don’t, or you may have an idea of the next big opportunity, but nothing will make that idea more focused and viable than research.

In the early 90s, many people knew that Internet businesses would be the next big thing, but Amazon founder Jeff Bezos took it a step further by researching the top 20 mail-order businesses in the U.S. He identified one key product — books — which suppliers already had electronic lists for and would benefit most from being sold through the Internet instead of mail-order.

Also Read: RHL Ventures launches US$24.3M sector-agnostic fund to invest in Malaysian startups, SMEs

Bezos entered the online market with this original focus, and following Amazon’s initial success, Bezos was able to expand the site’s offerings, which brings me to my next point..

Never stand still

Bezos could’ve been satisfied with Amazon’s US$20,000/month book sales, and eBay founder Pierre Omidyar could’ve been satisfied with just selling collectables, but they weren’t.

Sure, eBay and Amazon were already big back then, but they really became household names when they broadened their product categories.

Not only did they expand worldwide, but they also began acquiring companies that would complement their core business. eBay bought PayPal, which facilitated its online payments. Amazon bought Zappos, which enabled it to establish itself as a major player in the footwear category. These examples are only two of these marketplace giants’ strategic acquisitions.

Another success story of the dot-com bubble, Alibaba, has beginnings in its B2B platform. Today, Alibaba operates a number of China’s most successful sites, including China’s largest C2C marketplace Taobao; Tmall.com, the country’s largest B2C marketplace; and Alipay, a third-party online payment platform.

In short, when building a marketplace, stagnation is your worst enemy, and innovation is key to long term success. After all, there’s always room for improvement.

Focus on the users

The user experience is everything. It determines whether or not customers will come back to your site and how passionate people will be about what your brand. The most successful marketplaces have these few things in common:

1. Personalisation

Features such as “Follow”, “Recommended for You” and “Related” are a great way to keep your offerings relevant to the user. eBay even has geo-targeting to make sure the items that show up on a user’s page can be shipped to their location.

These features let the customers be involved in choosing what they want to see. The more relevant it is, the more likely the user will find value in your marketplace, and the more likely the user will visit your site again.

2. Speed

Part of creating a positive user experience is to make it as fast as possible for the users to find what they’re looking for. This can be done through minimising the time it takes for a webpage to load, and by making the site search-oriented — either by using a search bar, search autocomplete, or suggestions of popular categories.

3. Allow feedback and reviews

Give the users as much information as possible to help them make informed decisions before purchasing an item or service. Displaying ratings and reviews from other customers usually does the job.

Sites such as Booking.com send out emails to solicit reviews from customers, and the feedback helps other Booking.com users to see how reputable the provider is so they can choose the best product or service experience.

Also Read: Will Asia’s booming digital economy lead to an inevitable rise in cybercrime?

In addition to boosting bookings, this provides extra value to the customers.

4. Fast and efficient communication

Give your customers assurance by sending them e-mail updates and confirmation. Amazon leads in this category as it offers real-time package tracking. Early startups may not be able to afford this luxury, but you should still cover the basics, including a dedicated customer support team and confirmation emails and updates.

Social media and newsletters are also effective ways to communicate general updates and promotions to your customers.

Be persistent

To make it to the top, you have to be persistent. As in Amazon’s case, it could take years before your marketplace can finally become profitable. Take the time and effort to test out what works and what doesn’t, and most importantly, never give up on your vision.

—

This article was written in collaboration with Clarissa Santoso, a Content Strategist for Arcadier, a SaaS company that powers next generation marketplace ideas. Follow Arcadier on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for news and updates on the sharing economy.

e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

The post The things online marketplace veterans can teach us appeared first on e27.

Aruna aims to help fishermen in Indonesia improve livelihoods through better market access and fairer trading opportunities

The Alipay-NUS Enterprise Social Innovation Challenge, which was jointly launched by Chinese e-payment giant Alipay and the National University of Singapore (NUS) entrepreneurial arm NUS Enterprise, has named Indonesian fishery startup Aruna as winner of the event’s grand final round.

Aruna is a platform that uses digital technology to help fishermen in Indonesia improve livelihoods through better market access and fairer trading opportunities.

The startup aims to “dramatically” reduce transaction cost by connecting fishermen and potential customers, helping fishermen raise selling prices by as much as 20 per cent while buyers can pay up to 15 per cent less.

The startup has served 1,701 fishermen in 16 provinces in Indonesia.

In a press statement, Aruna CEO Farid Naufal Aslam said that the startup is “very excited” to win the awards.

Also Read: Fishery platform Aruna raises seed funding, aims to reach out to more fishermen in Indonesia

“This is the first time we have won international recognition for our work. We will next work on further growing our team and help more fishermen out of poverty,” he said.

Aruna will receive a total of S$60,000 (US$44,000) as grand finals winner while the other eight finalists from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia will receive S$10,000 (US$7,000) each.

These nine startups will also be given support from NUS Enterprise, Alipay, special partner International Finance Corporation (IFC), and other supporting partners to further develop their ideas.

In addition to the cash prize, the winner and all other finalists will benefit from the 10×1000 Tech for Inclusion programme, jointly established by IFC and Alipay.

The training programme aims to support the cultivation of 10,000 technology experts in emerging markets from both public and private sectors over the next 10 years.

Since its launch in October 2018, the 10×1000 programme has conducted preliminary surveys to optimise its training modules and has hosted a number of training and exchange activities.

—

Image Credit: Alipay-NUS Enterprise Social Innovation Challenge

The post Indonesian fishery platform Aruna wins Alipay-NUS Enterprise Social Innovation Challenge appeared first on e27.