The company is recruiting investment banks to act as advisers during its fundraising efforts

In a round that has already bagged US$1 billion, Go-Jek is reportedly driving towards US$3 billion, according to Bloomberg.

No final decision has been made on the total goal for the round, but the number reported sounds like the current internal target.

As part of the funding drive, the company is wooing investment banks to act as an adviser in the ongoing round.

The US$3 billion number is equal to the number rival Grab raised in 2018. Grab made its US$3 billion funding push fairly public towards the end of the year.

As Go-Jek has expanded into Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, the ride-hailing industry has seen a flood of investments as the two companies battle for supremacy in Southeast Asia.

However, data suggests this town is big enough for the two of them. According to Bloomberg, the ride-hailing industry is expected to be worth US$28 billion in 2025. It was estimated at being worth US$7.7 billion in 2018.

Also Read: e27’s Daily Digest is that sprinkle of humanity in your email inbox

Go-Jek’s regional expansion has not been 100 per cent smooth sailing. Most important was the decision by the Philippines government to reject its application to operate in the country.

However, the acquisition of Coins.ph gives Go-Jek an alternative revenue stream (payments) in the Philippines.

In Singapore, the biggest moment was a viral video of a woman faking her own kidnapping, and subsequently being mocked by a large portion of the population.

Yesterday, the company announced it has hired Lien Choong Luen, a former executive at the National Research Foundation, to be its Singapore General Manager.

Vietnam may be the success story for Go-Jek’s foray into Grab territory. The company says it has nabbed 40 per cent of the two-wheel market in the country, according to the South China Morning Post.

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At the current moment, Grab is still the dominant ride-hailing app outside of Indonesia, but US$3 billion could go a long way to evening the playing field.

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The funding is led by Sequoia India and will be focussed toward product development

Thailand and Singapore-based startup Band Protocol announced today that it has raised US$3 million seed funding led by Sequoia India. Joining the round was Dunamu & Partners as well as SeaX.

Band Protocol describes itself as a startup that “harnesses wisdom-of-crowd and incentivises its digital community of users to curate reliable information”. With the funding, the company plans to further its product development and its go-to-market this year.

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The investment made by Sequoia India into Band Protocol also marked the global VC’s first blockchain investment in Southeast Asia.

The premise of Band Protocol is that it offers users an opportunity to create a token-curated community that’s specific on a topic or category. The users then will be able to issue personalised tokens as an incentive to encourage data and information curation within that community.

This way, the power is given back to active users and content creators as data owners.

“There’s growing unavailability of trustable data on the internet, coupled with the rising trend of fake news,” said Soravis Srinawakoon, co-founder and CEO of Band Protocol. “Our vision at Band Protocol is to bring online and digital communities together by creating an online platform for the curation of transparent and reliable data.”

With the company’s approach, Band Protocol can serve customers ranging from entities such as credit bureaus, fraud detection, KYC and identity verification – as well as any service or site that offers online discussion, recommendations, and rankings.

Band Protocol was founded in 2017 by Soravis Srinawakoon, Sorawit Suriyakarn, and Paul Chonpimai. All three founders have histories with investing in cryptocurrencies since 2013 and have created a crypto game in 2015 that is said to have garnered over 300,000 users.

Band Protocol’s believed to be able to solve the problem of lack of regulation that arises from issues like biased ranking, inaccurate reporting of token metrics, to scams that part retail investors from their money.

Also Read: Blockchain is paving the way for something new: Smart Companies

To promote the adoption of Band Protocol and demonstrate its application, the team is creating CoinHatcher, that serves as a decentralised portal that aggregates reliable news, research, token-economic information, and a comprehensive directory of crypto projects, founders, and other related ecosystem players for education and data accuracy in the sector.
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The acquisition aims to provide all-around financial advice for Singaporeans

DollarsAndSense.sg, a personal finance media startup based in Singapore, announced today that it has acquired fellow local financial planning startup fundMyLife.

By acquiring fundMyLife, DollarsAndSense will add insurtech platform to its media business. DollarsAndSense stated that it also seeks for better insights into what consumers are looking for, in terms of financial planning knowledge for Singaporeans and what’s still missing.

Also Read: Ofo operating license suspended in Singapore

During the transition, fundMyLife co-founders Jackie Tan and Wesley Goi will remain on board to aid a seamless transition.

fundMyLife was founded in 2017 to provide consumers with answers to financial planning or insurance question from a curated pool of trusted financial advisors via a private Q&A platform. The approach gave users a reliable source of knowledge, privacy, and choice to opt for follow-up financial consultation.

On the other hand, financial advisers who utilises the platform can access leads of potential customers and make their past accomplishments a portfolio alongside client testimonials. It also allows these advisers to value-add to prospects who have already shown an intent to make a financial planning decision, rather than offering those who are still in the stage of deciding the need of insurance.

DollarsAndSense.sg was founded in 2012 and has remained focussed on addressing personal finance through publication in Singapore. It supports Singaporeans in making better financial decisions through bite-sized articles, infographics, videos, and tools.

Prior to the acquisition, DollarsAndSense has been working closely with fundMyLife on areas like affiliate partnerships, content marketing, and improving engagement with the financial adviser community.

“I believe the acquisition of fundMyLife this will lead to better outcomes for both consumers and financial advisors. We are committed to make this platform a success for everyone involved,” said Timothy Ho, Co-founder and Managing Editor of DollarsAndSense.

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“DollarsAndSense brings their expertise in creating original content in the personal finance space, joined with strong branding and reach. I believe fundMyLife will achieve its growth potential in the coming months as a result of this partnership,” said Jackie Tan, Co-founder of fundMyLife.
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Ofo must remove all bikes from public spaces by March 13 or else risk having its operating license fully voided

Chinese bike-sharing startup Ofo has had its operating license pulled by the Singapore Land Transport Authority and all bikes must be removed from city streets by March 13, according to Channel News Asia.

Ofo runs the risk of having its license fully cancelled if it does not remove the bikes by the deadline.

It is possible Ofo may not be able to remove the bikes because two weeks ago the company fired all of its staff in Singapore, some of whom were let go over the phone. The LTA said it will remove the bikes on March 14 to prevent public clutter.

The LTA is suspending the license because it failed to comply with regulatory requirements in Singapore — specifically the proper implementation of their QR code system. This means the company was not following new rules that requires bikes to be parked within designated parking areas. Furthermore, Ofo did not reduce its fleet to below the 10,000 maximum requirement.

In mid-January, the LTA gave Ofo one month to comply with the regulations or risk suspension. The company missed the deadline.

Also Read: Bike-sharing startup Ofo terminates staffs over the phone without compensation

Ofo is struggling to stay afloat in China and the Singapore situation feels like a company that is fighting to survive domestically and thus is struggling to manage its international business interests.

Ofo is backed by Alibaba. Last December the CEO Dai Wai said his company is facing “immense cashflow problems”.

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Once awash in pay-per-use public bicycles, the bike-sharing bubble has popped in Singapore, highlighted by the disgraceful exit of oBike last July.

MoBike and the smaller SG Bike are the two companies left with operating licenses. MoBike appears to be benefiting from the upheaval in the Singapore market, having applied to grow its fleet in the next licensing cycle, according to The New Paper.

In China (the global bike-sharing headquarters), it looks as if MoBike has the inside track for what will be an important, disruptive and rocky year for the industry.

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Indonesia’s Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education has confirmed that it backs DANAdidik.id’s student loan service

DANAdidik.id, an education-focussed fintech from Indonesia, officially announces the support from the president of the country, Joko Widodo, through his Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education.

Also Read: Go-Jek funding round aims for US$3 billion

The ministry provides its support through the program called PPBT (Perusahaan Pemula Berbasis Teknologi) or translated as Tech-based Startup program. The program is designed to back startups with funding, mentorship, and other facilities.

The program is essentially an incubator by the ministry to encourage entrepreneurship.

“All DANAdidik team welcomes the ministry’s program and we hope that more people, hopeful students can access DANAdidik’s benefit, fulfilling our mission #SemuaBisaKuliah (translated as #EverybodyCanGotoCollege),” said Nurlaila, Head of Marketing.

The ministry’s program aims to have the trust of the government, investors, and students in the student loan industry while also making sure everyone can have fair access to education without worrying about tuition fee.

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The support through the ministry reflects the President’s mission that seeks to build student loan industry in Indonesia, announced in April last year.

DANAdidik is leveraging on crowdfunding to connect sponsor with university students under its platform. Launched in 2015, the fintech gives long term loan for four years.

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Photo by MD Duran on Unsplash

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