Posted on

e27 partners with Wholesale Investor to help startups raise funds

It’s a match made in startup fundraising heaven

wholesale_investor_e27

For years, we have been privileged to be at the center of it all – we have seen how Southeast Asia’s tech ecosystem has grown with the explosion of new ideas, and we have done our best to make sure that everyone gets the chance at the spotlight.

But for us at e27, empowering entrepreneurs with the tools to build and grow their companies is both mission and ethos; the very reason that we exist.

Our mission dictates that we do more than just feature, more than just announce, and more than just cheer on. Because while yes, we can do all that, we also need to do something about the fact that for most startups with great products, lack of funds and resources hold them back.

That’s why in Echelon 2019, we featured a Capital Stage to talk about the funding landscape of the region. We also deviated from the previous “speed-dating” format and made Echelon Connect investor-startup meetings longer to open the opportunity for deeper discussions.

But we also understand that a single event is not enough. We understand that while fundraising is about potential, it is also about relationships.

That’s why we’re happy to announce that we have partnered with Wholesale Investor to help us get you access to over 21,000 investors.

Get in front of investors

Wholesale Investor is APAC’s leading investment platform that showcases private, pre-IPO, and small cap listed opportunities to their network of high net worth, professional, and international investors and investment groups.

Startups who sign up with us will also get their significant milestones highlighted to both e27 and Wholesale Investor network – it’s a great way to get into the radar of potential investors and partners.

This partnership between e27 and Wholesale Investor utilises the recently launched Capital Raising Intelligent Investment Secondary Platform (or CRIISP), an end-to-end SaaS capital raising platform that digitises the capital raising process.

According to Wholesale Investor and CRIISP Managing Director and Co-Founder Steve Torso, CRIISP was built on the foundations of the belief that the most important component of raising capital is to get in front of investors.

With CRIISP, startups not only get access to a vast investor network but also to build and manage their relationships by engaging in question and answers through direct messaging, promote dealrooms to interested investors, and track investor interest.

We are looking forward to everything that this partnership would offer. Interested? Curious? Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to know how e27 x Wholesale Investor can help you get the funding you need.

The post e27 partners with Wholesale Investor to help startups raise funds appeared first on e27.

Posted on

He dropped out of school to travel around the world and is now founder of a startup with presence in 26 countries

With 45 employees and with no office, Johannes Larsson’s two-year-old startup Financer.com generated US$1.69-2.25M in revenues in 2018 itself

Johannes Larsson, Founder of Financer.com

“As a child, I didn’t like going to school,” he says. “I was more interested in traveling around the world.”

And Johannes Larsson not just fulfilled his wish, but his globetrotting has also led him into the world of startups, or rather the world of uncertainties.

A Swedish by birth, Larsson stumbled upon online marketing when he was just 15 years old. He started learning about it and building websites. He sensed a huge opportunity in this space. This is when he felt there was no point wasting time studying in school and college when he could make money at a very young age.

“However, it was hard to make any money out of this business, but I was intensely curious and continued to experiment with different methods,” he recounts his story for e27. “I worked hard but I couldn’t still earn enough money until I turned 18. The money was still considerably less than a thousand euros per month. However, I was happy and this small amount kept me going,” he goes on.

Larsson continued down on this path for one more year. When he turned 19, he started making enough money to meet both ends. It was this year he moved to Malta and decided to work full-time on digital marketing.

Also Read: How the son of a humble watch repairer became the owner of a multi-million dollar realty tech startup

“Although it was hard to get by with less than EUR1,500 per month in Malta, I enjoyed this new life. I lived cheaply and spent most of my days working,” he says. “But what was more important was that I got to meet new entrepreneurs, who had many more years of experience than I did. I learnt a lot from them.”

By the time he turned 21, his business reached a level that he made his first hire. Shortly after, he hired one more person. He also rented an office, which was something he would not have thought about before.

“It felt great having an office, but a year later I started getting bored. I felt a little bit like an office rat, which was the last thing I wanted to become. I decided this lifestyle wasn’t what I wanted. So I closed the office, let go of my employees, and went out to travel the world. At that time, I wanted to build something that could scale without sacrificing my lifestyle,” he shares.

From then, Larsson decided to travel for at least six months in a row, without having a base, home or any plan, although it felt to him like going a bit backwards. He was still running the business. But at one point of time he realised he could not run the business alone; he had over 400 projects (affiliate sites) in hands and didn’t know where to focus. Time wasn’t enough to handle all of it on his own, and he felt stressed and asked himself whether he had taken the right decision.

“This is when I was forced to think bigger,” he adds. “I was fed up with having my focus all over the place, doing too many things at once, but nothing really good. I realised that I needed to create something valuable instead of dividing my energy and resources to complete many half-done projects. So I picked one project that was the most successful, and completely withdrew the focus on the other 399.”

It was a turning point in his life.

The Inception

The Financer team

Launched in 2016 in Sweden, Financer.com is a finance products’ price comparison portal. A user can compare different products such as loans, saving accounts, credit cards, insurances, and cryptocurrencies.

As the business was picking pace, Larsson realised it would be impossible to grow and scale the business without a team. However, he could not imagine going back to the 9am to 5pm office work culture, monitoring employees. Larsson decided to find a way out.

“I hired my first freelancer, who I call intrapreneur today. The idea was that instead of telling your employees what to do, you hire people with the entrepreneurial spirit to help you steer the ship and to build the business together,” he says.

Also Read: Infightings, quitting of key people didn’t deter this entrepreneur from realising his dream

“It was a success. I loved working remotely with him because it allowed more flexibility in my life. After a while, I continued to hire more freelancers, as it became apparent that it was more of a win-win, both for me and the person who I worked with,” he adds. “We built performance-based payment models that motivated the intrapreneur, and it made them inspired to push harder. They were given heavy responsibilities and were rewarded accordingly.”

As of now, there are more than a dozen intrapreneurs in the company; everyone having a stake in the game and being responsible for their own markets. As revenue grew, the company hired more people and improved its product marketing faster.

“I feel this intrapreneur model will become more popular in the years to come, as it promotes growth and development in the company because everyone in the team wants to give their best,” he sounds confident.

Now, with a team of 45 people– all remotely working —  in 26 markets across Europe, America and Asia, Freelancer is a massive success. The company has presence in Indonesia, Kazakhstan The firm generates millions of revenues annually, and in 2018 alone, Financer generated around US$1.69 to US$2.25 million in revenues.

Larsson still keeps on globetrotting, seeking new opportunities for his business and for himself.

The post He dropped out of school to travel around the world and is now founder of a startup with presence in 26 countries appeared first on e27.

Posted on

HK’s cross-border e-commerce shipping startup Buyandship raises US$2.2M

Customers can choose Buyandship for international shipping and deals, products, and exclusives from overseas merchants

Buyandship, a cross-border e-commerce shipping services company based in Hong Kong, has secured US$2.2 million in pre-Series B funding round led by existing investor Infinity Venture Partners.

Other investors include Asia-focussed VC firm SQ Capital and unnamed strategic angel investors, besides Buyandship’s key management.

The money will be used to improve operation efficiencies and also for market expansion.

In operations, Buyandship will streamline its logistics and shopping experience with an advanced warehouse automation system, simplified shopping procedures, and a new “one-click buy” tool. In market expansion, Buyandship will look to solidify its market presence in existing markets, including Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, India, and the UAE, as well as develop new markets in Southeast Asia.

Founded in 2014, Buyandship provides global shipping services for e-commerce customers. They can choose the firm for international shipping and deals, products, and exclusives from overseas merchants. Customers can pay up to HK$22 (US$2.8) per pound in shipping fees, and choose to either receive parcels at home or pick up from one of hundreds of collection points.

Also Read: Filipino K-pop fans accuse Shopee of scam over girl group meeting

It currently operates collection and export warehouses in Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the US, the UK, Italy, and Australia. Scheduled flights from these warehouses back to HK are arranged on a weekly basis, while the delivery fee will be based on the parcel’s actual weight (not parcel size).

After closing its Series A funding in mid-2017, it has expanded into China, Macau, Taiwan, Japan, India, Malaysia, Singapore, and the UAE. It boasts of more than 320,000 users.

Buyandship has already signed agreements with eBay, StockX, GLADD, Drop, and other merchants to support their Asia expansions.

As per a 2018 report by OECD, B2C cross-border e-commerce is growing fast as Asian e-shoppers look to buy directly from overseas brands rather than settle only for local options. B2C cross-border e-commerce to Asia should reach US$900 billion in value by 2021, with a CAGR of approximately 18.8 per cent. Demand from China alone will account for nearly two-third of this total, but Vietnam and Indonesia will show higher growth rates.

Wilson Chan, Co-founder and CEO of Buyandship, says that Asian e-shoppers are primarily motivated by the enormous difference in prices: “Buying a Dyson product in a Hong Kong retail store costs around HK$4,000, but only HK$1,800 from an overseas online store. At a discount rate higher than 50 per cent, customers naturally prefer to shop from overseas stores.”

“Our goal is to build a borderless, international e-commerce network for our users, so they can easily and comfortably enjoy the best bargains from around the world through our service. When they need a cutting-edge, forward-thinking e-commerce logistics service, they think of Buyandship,” he added.

The post HK’s cross-border e-commerce shipping startup Buyandship raises US$2.2M appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Filipino K-pop fans accuse Shopee of scam over girl group meeting

The angry fans of Blackpink made hashtag Shopeescam trending on Twitter last week over the allegations that the e-commerce favoured influencers over real fans for the promo-base meet and greet

Shopee reportedly could be penalised up to US$5,800 after it failed to fulfill the terms and conditions of its own shopping campaign centered around the famous K-pop girl band Blackpink, as reported by Mumbrella Asia.

The e-commerce brand reportedly promised customers that 568 fans would stand a chance of having a meet-and-greet with K-pop group, and top 40 spenders will get autographs and be on stage with Blackpink if they spent over US$76.97 on the platform during the campaign period.

Blackpink is the regional ambassador of Shopee, and now angry fans swarmed social media with hashtag Shopeescam over the sudden change in the list, claiming that Shopee removed them. The fans accused Shopee of favoring influencers over the fans and changing the contest terms midway.

The incident prompted an investigation conducted by the Philippines Department of Trade and Industry, according to media reports. If Shopee has indeed changed the contest’s terms after it has been launched, then Shopee could face fines of up to 300,000 peso (US$5,800) with additional US$5,800 per complaint if it’s found to have run a deceitful sale.

The results of the investigation will be announced within this week, Mumbrella Asia reported.

Also Read: In Photos: Pomelo opens first international store in Singapore

Shopee has released a statement on Twitter apologising and providing damage control by “reaching out to all those affected by this issue”.

The official statement in full reads:

“We would like to sincerely apologise to users and fans of Shopee and Blackpink for the issues involving the Shopee x Blackpink meet-and-greet today in Manila

“The event fell short of the high standards that Shopee users and Blackpink fans expect, and we hear our community’s feedback loud and clear. Although we took immediate steps as soon as we discovered our errors to ensure the rightful winners of our contest could claim their prizes, we know that the entire process caused confusion, disappointment, and upset for many Shopee users and Blackpink fans.

“We are reaching out to all those affected by this issue, and we are also taking steps to ensure that such an incident does not occur again in the future.”

The post Filipino K-pop fans accuse Shopee of scam over girl group meeting appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Today’s top tech news, June 12: Trading platform Funderbeam raises US$4.5M funding

Also, Amadeus Ventures to invest in travel tech startup Volantio, and Deskera partners P2P financing platform Funding Societies

Trading platform Funderbeam raises US$4.5M Series A funding [Press Release]

Funding and trading platform for private companies Funderbeam announced that it has raised a US$4.5 million Series A funding to further support its secondary market development and expansion across Asia.

The funding was led by UK-based Accelerated Digital Ventures (ADV) and also participated by new investors such as GK-Plug and Play Indonesia, Pandan Ventures, along with existing investors including Draper Associates, Draper Venture Partners, IQ Capital, and Mistletoe.

Recently launched in the UK and Scandinavian countries, Funderbeam seeks to connect venture and SME capital markets through access and liquidity to growth investments.

Founded in 2013, Funderbeam hosts startups and SME and makes them available for cross-border investment and trading. It helps founders to choose who can invest and therefore retain control of their cap table, and for investors, it provides access to a community of growth-stage companies and the option to trade their investments at any time, facilitated by blockchain technology.

Amadeus Ventures signs agreement with travel tech startup Volantio to integrate airlines solution [Press Release]

Amadeus Ventures and Volantio announce a new partnership to help airlines optimise capacity and increase revenues by integrating Volatio’s solution in identifying flexible passengers on full flights and providing them with an incentive (such as frequent flyer miles, travel vouchers, or upgrades) to voluntarily move to lower demand flights. Yana, the name of Volantio’s platform that allows bumping down the flexible passengers, will automatically rebook passengers who accept and fulfill the selected incentive through its machine learning system.

Also Read: Filipino K-pop fans accuse Shopee of scam over girl group meeting

This announcement comes just after Volantio won the Amadeus Accenture Alliance Air Pitch at the Skift Global Forum in September 2018. Volantio also won top startup pitch at Amadeus’ T3CH event in March.

Volantio already works with seven airlines including Qantas, Iberia, Alaska Airlines, Volaris, IndiGo, and others. So far, the company said, partner airlines have seen an average of 3 to 5 times returns on their investment.

Cloud-based platform Deskera partners P2P financing platform Funding Societies to support SMEs [Press Release]

Deskera, a cloud-based platform, and Funding Societies, Southeast Asia’s P2P financing platform, has entered into a partnership to support underserved SMEs to apply to the provided funds minus the paperwork. Deskera’s platform will incorporate Funding Societies’ Invoice Financing feature, whereby B2B SMEs will be able to pledge their invoices and release funding in advance, rescinding their cash flow constraints.

For SMEs, cash flow is a constant concern, especially for SMEs in the B2B sector with payment terms between 30 and 90 days with additional delays beyond that. According to the 2018 SME Development Survey conducted by DP Information Group (now known as Experian), 34 per cent of SMEs were facing external finance-related challenges with 84 per cent of them quoted delayed payments from customers as the key finance-related issue.

Through this partnership, both companies hope that they can provide a fast and effective financial solution that many SMEs are seeking as a way for their businesses to strive.

APAC Realty plans to invest in AI-based proptech UrbanZoom [Press Release]

APAC Realty Limited announced a collaboration with UrbanZoom, a startup that applies big data and artificial intelligence (AI) to the real estate sector. This is part of the company’s investment program Digital Lab initiative.

As part of the collaboration, APAC Realty has entered into an agreement to invest S$1 million (US$ 732,820) in 3-year interest-free convertible notes issued by Dots Connected Pte. Ltd.

UrbanZoom was founded in 2018 by a team of real estate professionals and data scientists utilising a proprietary artificial intelligence algorithm to analyse millions of data points derived from regulatory, industry and other public sources to predict the value of a residential unit.

Also Read: Go-Jek acquires Indian recruitment platform developer AirCTO

Going forward, ERA looks to partner with UrbanAgents in providing business leads to its agents while developing agents-facing productivity tools with UrbanZoom.

CONSENTIUM joins forces with BLUCON to launch crypto-based debit card [Press Release]

Singapore-based crypto wallet-integrated messaging app CONSENTIUM has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with payment platform BLUCON earlier last month. The partnership will see the launch of a CONSENTIUM branded Debit Card in mid-July 2019 and the collaboration of the two companies in launching a CONSENTIUM branded transport card.

The CONSENTIUM Card is expected to work across many card-accepting retailers in Asia and will also allow for cash withdrawals of the local currency at supported ATMs through the use of BLUCON’s technology.

“The partnership with BLUCON is in-line with our goals of achieving organic growth. By catering to the needs of our CSM token holders, who in turn can enjoy greater liquidity, we will also increase the value and utility of the BLUCON cards,” said Wayne Huang, Marketing Head of CONSENTIUM.

Similar to traditional Debit Cards, the CONSENTIUM branded BLUCON Debit Cards facilitate payment by connecting the users’ local banks to their exchanges through the BLU EXO-Platform. BLUCON uses existing financial networks.

The CONSENTIUM team expects to test the cards in June 2019 and will launch the cards for public use by mid-July 2019.

The post Today’s top tech news, June 12: Trading platform Funderbeam raises US$4.5M funding appeared first on e27.

Posted on

How remote augmented reality is set to change our daily life

From collaboration to immersive education, AR is set to be more integrated in our daily life

From enhancing the quality of life-saving healthcare to providing a level of inclusive entertainment that’s never been seen before, the potential for remote augmented reality is seemingly limitless.

AR’s seemingly limitless possibilities might well make it the most exciting emerging technology on the planet today. The industry surrounding augmented reality along with virtual reality is forecast to attain a value of over $25 billion by 2025.

The chances are that you’ve already encountered augmented reality while shopping online or playing gaming apps such as Pokemon Go!

Where virtual reality fully submerges users into a world that bears no resemblance to the real-life scenery surrounding them (typically via the use of headsets), AR is far more adaptable and commonly embeds a virtual layer on top of reality through the use of camera phones/tablets or eyewear.

This digital augmentation makes for an excellent visual aid, and retail outlets like IKEA have been swift in adopting the technology to enable customers to render their catalogue items and actually see what they would look like in their homes before making a purchase.

One exciting new area that enables AR to really excel is through ‘remote’ augmented reality. The beauty of manipulating your settings with other users remotely is that you can effectively offer your literal point of view to tutors, colleagues or peers and interact gain their informed insights.

To help shed some more light on the value that remote AR can bring to a host of industries, here are five game-changing developments in the technology that we can’t wait to see enter the fray.

Synergized entertainment

According toInfoholic Research, the augmented reality gaming market is set hit around $284.92 billion by 2023, and remote AR gaming will be responsible for driving profits across the industry.

One such company looking to take remote AR gaming to the next level is WATTY.

The company’s dedicated app, WATTY REMOTE, actively brings users from around the world together through embedding digital layers on real-life canvases. Users can play games via mobile devices and share their experiences and information through WATTY’s remote AR framework.

Through ‘Boo’, WATTY’s anthropomorphic racoon mascot, users can communicate with each other or even engage in battles remotely, with their digital avatars interacting with their respective real-world canvases.

Gleb Braverman, founder of WATTY highlights the potential that remote AR and its uses hold for enabling users to engage across the world:

“Imagine if you could share AR with your friend on the other side of the world with just a mobile phone. We’ll actually be able to deliver it with WATTY REMOTE. Our vision is that AR multiplayer will be as easy as online shopping.”

Effective collaboration

As traditionally office-based workforces become increasingly mobile, effective remote collaboration tools have become much sought after.

Utilising the power of remote AR, Spacial has developed a technology that’s been dubbed by Engadget as ‘the Slack of the future.”

Utilising the market’s many augmented reality headsets, Spacial operates like apparatus straight out of a science fiction film. Users can not only visualise each other but also manipulate 3D rendered objects as visual aids.

If you’re working with colleagues that need to pass judgement on structural blueprints or visualise landscapes, Spacial could be just what the doctor ordered.

Healthcare benefits

Speaking of doctors, remote AR’s influence in the healthcare industry will be felt in the coming years.

Imagine an environment where doctors can get swift second opinions before diagnosing an ailment, or where surgeons have a digital helping hand that can create visual prompts on how to approach the operation they’re undertaking.

With the use of remote AR, industry professionals from around the world can offer guidance for colleagues by sharing their viewpoint through augmented reality glasses and providing digital directions and notes that appear embedded in front of the subject’s real-life environment.

Remote AR could also improve the level of service that patients receive remotely from doctors. Patients will be capable of getting in touch with a practitioner and display their symptoms through a dedicated camera-enabled AR app before the doctor provides digital feedback within the tool.

Immersive education

Whether it’s higher education or staff training, remote AR has the ability to herald a new era of tutoring and study support – especially in practical fields.

Through educational engagement, tutors can utilise AR to actively peer in on their students’ progress during in-classroom or remote practical tasks, ensuring that nobody is experiencing difficulty or cheating in completing their work.

Likewise, when it comes to staff training throughout national and multinational organisations, staff can be appropriately tested and assessed through remote AR solutions – ensuring that all offices and warehouses are as well trained as can be.

Troubleshooting tools

The appropriately named ‘Remote AR’ app promises to be the best solution for remote business supports, and its developers have set their sights firmly on providing practical solutions to the handling of machinery.

The service is designed to provide a remote video connection between field workers and ‘remote experts’ that are capable of providing superior troubleshooting solutions that wouldn’t otherwise be possible by any other means.

The beauty of Remote AR is that it’s set to save an innumerable amount of time for workers who will be capable of providing a live visual display of the problems they are having while experts in the field can respond by utilising a digital layer of augmented reality to provide visual instructions and information.

Also Read: In Photos: Pomelo opens first international store in Singapore

The adoption of Remote AR and its ilk will not only work wonders in helping organisations hit their deadlines by seamlessly navigating around potential issues, but also improve worker safety thanks to the level of expertise than the insight that AR can provide them with.

Photo by David Grandmougin on Unsplash

The post How remote augmented reality is set to change our daily life appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Team collaboration platform Symphony secures US$165M

The Singapore and American startup raised the funding from Standard Chartered and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, among other strategic investors

Team collaboration platform Symphony Communication Services announced today that it has raised US$165 million in new capital from Standard Chartered and MUFG Innovation Partners Co., Ltd., along with a group of existing and other investors.

With the new funding, the Palo Alto-based company that also has its headquarter office in Singapore will bring the total capital raised to over US$460 million.

Starting off with a messaging platform, Symphony claims that it has expanded into a collaboration platform that facilitates the digital transformation of financial markets.

“We are pleased to welcome Standard Chartered and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group to our strategic investor community. Symphony’s community is coming together to build stronger connections, automation, and expanded customer reach as part of their digital transformation initiatives,” said David Gurlé, founder and CEO of Symphony.

The company was founded four and a half years ago and said that the investment is timely given that it’s been gaining momentum. A total of 430,000 users with license comes from over 60 countries.

Also Read: Vietnam payment startups Vimo and mPOS merge, rebranded as NextPay

In addition to the funding, Symphony also launches of Symphony Market Solutions. It is a new business that seeks to help customers speed up their digital transformation initiatives via workflow automation along with a suite of standardised, licensable software solutions.

Symphony will use the new capital to evolve its new Market Solutions business, to accelerate growth in both its current and new markets and further build out its feature stack to deliver new innovation to enterprises as they replace traditional collaboration tools.

The post Team collaboration platform Symphony secures US$165M appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Vietnam payment startups Vimo and mPOS merge, rebranded as NextPay

The two Vietnamese startups plan to raise US$30 Million and expand to Myanmar and Indonesia next year

Two payment startups based in Vietnam, Vimo and mPOS, have agreed to merge in an effort to scale. The company will rebranded as NextPay, as reported by Bloomberg.

Vimo Technology is a mobile wallet provider, while Vietnam mPOS Technology develops portable point-of-sale technology. Together the two will be combined and rebranded as NextPay Holdings.

NextPay Holdings will have Nguyen Huu Tuat, who is the CEO of mPOS, as its CEO. Nguyen Hoa Binh, who founded the two Hanoi-based startups, will be NextPay’s chairman.

In addition to the rebranding, NextPay is said to be in talks with investors to raise about US$30 million and anticipates closing the round soon. The capital will be a boost for the company as it plans an expansion into Myanmar and Indonesia in 2020.

“MPOS’s business model is quite similar to Square in the U.S., in that any merchant can accept payments easily, and Vimo is a mobile wallet similar to Alipay,’’ Tuat said as quoted by Bloomberg.

“By merging these two businesses, we provide a one-stop payment solution for merchants.’’

Also Read: Dropee partners Grab financial for SME business financing product

The combined company is going to have a presence in 11 cities across Vietnam, with more than 35,000 acceptance points that are comprised of 70 per cent tech-savvy, smartphone users population.

The post Vietnam payment startups Vimo and mPOS merge, rebranded as NextPay appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Vietnam startups to receive US$425M investments from multiple VCs

Over the next three years, venture capitals like 500 Startups and Golden Gate Ventures among others have pledged to invest into Vietnamese startups

Golden Gate Ventures, Access Ventures, Burda Principal Investments, 500 Startups, Jungle Ventures, and Cyberagent Ventures, among others, have signed an agreement with Vietnamese government to commit VND10 trillion (US$425 million) investment in Vietnamese startups for the next three years, as reported by DealStreetAsia.

The agreement took place at the Vietnam Venture Summit, a collaboration initiated by Vietnam’s ministries of investment and technology and science, with Golden Gate Ventures on Monday, June 10, 2019.

Vietnam Venture Summit seeks to connect investors to work together. During the event, it’s reported that there were several other partnerships being signed off, including an MoU between the Ministry of Investment and Planning and Golden Gate Ventures to support the growth of Vietnamese startups, followed by another tie-up between the ministry and SGInnovate to develop deep tech companies in the country.

At the summit, Vina Capital also has entered into an agreement with US$1 billion-worth Mirae-Naver Asia Growth Fund, in which Mirae Asset invests an undisclosed amount in VinaCapital Ventures and Naver to provide access to its portfolio companies to facilitate their expansion plans.

The summit also witnessed a US$1.4 million investment made by South Korean venture firm DTNI into Insignia Ventures-backed real estate platform Propzy.

Also Read: Dropee partners Grab financial for SME business financing product

“Vietnam is getting more attention from international investors and we believe there will be enough opportunities for them to deploy the committed capital,” said Pham Hong Quat, director of the Ministry of Science and Technology’s market development division.

In 2012, Vietnam had about 400 startups, and last year, it’s recorded that the number had reached around 3,000 with US$890 million funding happened in 2018.

Vinnie Lauria, the founding partner of Golden Gate Ventures, highlighted that although the country still presents challenges in the investment procedures, the number of VCs willing to commit investments into the country is a testament that Vietnam has become one of the key strategic markets in the region.

The post Vietnam startups to receive US$425M investments from multiple VCs appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Cambodia’s Meal Temple Group invests in Myanmar’s food delivery startup Freshgora

Meal Temple is looking to address more than 100M people in frontier markets by the end of the year, and grow its tech to a super app model

Meal Temple Group, a Cambodia-based food delivery and logistics company with operations in Laos, has announced a strategic equity investment into Freshgora.com, an on-demand food and grocery delivery startup in Myanmar.

As per the deal, both companies will address the market in Myanmar and expand operations nationally.  In the long run, the companies will add more services and work together for an on-demand super app for frontier markets.

Meal Temple Group is looking to address more than 100 million people in frontier markets of Asia by the end of the year, and grow its technology to a super app model.

“Instead of going on our own in Myanmar, a slightly more mature market than Cambodia and Laos, and much bigger, we decided to invest for equity for an undisclosed amount (6 figures),” Meal Temple’s Founder Maxime Rosburger told e27. “We have also agreed to invest in technology, with our new version coming, as well as in operations, leveraging on our teams, knowledge and understanding on similar markets as well as with our regional network.”

Also Read: Cambodia’s Meal Temple raises 6-figure round to grow food and delivery platforms

Meal Temple’s operations in Cambodia and Laos are breakeven, he claims. The company is looking to emulate the same model in other frontier Asian markets. “We are looking to make those frontier Asian cities greener by changing fleets to electric vehicles only, and leading a trend to zero emission on-demand apps, as we are doing now in Cambodia.”

Started less than a year ago, Yangon-based Freshgora.com offers food and grocery deliveries from restaurants and local markets in less than one hour through its own fleet of drivers. It clocks more than 100 deliveries a day in the city.

With more than 55 million people, including more than 6 million in the Yangon metropolitan area, Myanmar is one of the fastest growing markets in Southeast Asia.

Daniel Htut, Founder of Freshgora, said: “We are really excited to partner with Meal Temple Group and offer our customers in Myanmar more services, support and perks, and be guided by Maxime Rosburger and his team on how to sustain our growth in the market. After only eight months, we are already tackling the largest local players, with a clean approach on technology, user experience and interface as well as customer service. We are also really inspired by Meal Temple Group’s vision on electric vehicles and social impact ambition.”

Founded in 2013, Meal Temple Group was launched in the early days of Cambodia’s tech ecosystem. Today, its delivery services collectively makes 10,000 monthly trips in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville. Last October, the company raised a six-digit sum from private investors in Australia and Europe.

In February this year, Meal Temple acquired Laos-based food delivery platform MyDelivery.

The post Cambodia’s Meal Temple Group invests in Myanmar’s food delivery startup Freshgora appeared first on e27.