Unstoppable pioneers of Web3: 16 women spearheading the change
While men still dominate in the nascent metaverse, women creators in Web3 are now leading the path and rising to the top.
Singapore crypto exchange Bybit to cut up to 30% of workforce
The firm is “building smaller but more agile teams” to improve efficiency, with role and function reviews taking place starting this week; Bybit has grown its workforce by 300% since 2020, swelling its ranks to 2,000 employees.
Singapore’s crypto hedge fund 3AC considers asset sales, bailout
3AC invested about US$200M in Luna but the sum was effectively wiped out when TerraUSD and Luna both became worthless in mid-May; The two cryptocurrencies lost a total of US$60B in market capitalisation last month.
Crypto payments firm TripleA secures US$4M led by Razer’s VC arm
The MAS-licensed TripleA helps businesses increase their revenue by enabling crypto payments and payouts; Its clients include e-commerce merchants, retailers, game providers, PSPs, fintech, marketplaces and tech companies.
Crypto platform Finblox caps monthly withdrawals at US$1.5K amid 3AC turmoil
The firm has also paused reward distribution on its platform, including those for referrals and deposits. It has disabled creating crypto addresses for new users.
Kakao Games partners with blockchain-based Mythical Games for Asia push
The deal will see Mythical integrate Kakao’s affiliate Boranetwork, a Layer 2 and proprietary blockchain ecosystem, into its operations; US-based Mythical will also join Bora’s governance committee to boost P2E gaming in Asia.
Philippines, Vietnam study feasibility of CBDCs
The spread of Alipay, WeChat Pay and similar Chinese apps has raised monetary authorities’ interest in CBDCs; The Philippine and Vietnamese central banks’ partners in the feasibility studies will include Japan’s Soramitsu, which helped Cambodia develop Bakong.
Ampverse launches Web3 business division following Series A funding
In March, it raised US$12M Series A funding; Ampverse owns prominent e-sports teams in SEA, and it also operates a talent division and fan-driven products and gaming merchandise.
Zilingo founders propose to buy out shareholders, incorporate new entity
If the proposal goes through, it would mean that former CEO Bose – who was fired from Zilingo last month – will return to the company; The proposal comes ahead of a board meeting to decide the company’s future.
Singapore’s office design firm Space Matrix buys Indian B2B marketplace Pursuite
The acquisition will allow Space Matrix to offer a more seamless office design process by leveraging Pursuite’s e-commerce platform; It also plans to employ AI and ML technology to mine design data and provide insights for its future projects.
Singapore e-commerce roll-up firm Rainforest bags US$45M
Investors include Canopy Tropics, Monk’s Hill Ventures, Insignia Venture Partners, and January Capital; Rainforest’s annual revenue climbed over US$30 million in its first year of operations, and the firm said it will be profitable by the end of 2022.
Indonesian virtual restaurant firm Dailybox raises US$24M
Investors include Northstar Group, Vertex Growth, and Vertex Ventures SEA & India; Dailybox has over 150 outlets in more than 20 cities; The firm will use the money to expand across the country and add more F&B brands.
Govt-backed Startup Studio Indonesia alumni snag US$22.7M funding
Since its launch in 2020, 65 startups have joined the SSI programme; About 30-40% of participants in each batch receive seed or pre-seed capital following the completion of the programme.
Nium’s SOCASH acquisition valued at US$12.5M
The deal provides an indirect exit to SOCASH investors, who will get to own Nium shares; The SOCASH SPV is 38.4% owned by Vertex Ventures SEA & India; Other shareholders include Glory Ltd, SC Ventures, and SPH Ventures.
Flash Coffee raises Series B1 round
The funds raised amounted to US$30M+ catapulting the company’s valuation to US$175M; Data shows a number of investors participated in the round; It operates around 82 outlets in the Greater Jakarta Area.
Indonesian social commerce enabler Desty raises funds in Square Peg-led round
The undisclosed raise followed a US$5M pre-Series A round held in November 2021; Desty helps creators, influencers, and merchants promote and sell their products.
F&N leads F&B automation startup ROSS Digital’s US$3M Series A+ round
ROSS Digital will use the money to accelerate product enhancements, expand into Thailand and Malaysia, and scale the team; It will partner with F&N to implement and distribute its suite of robotic, automation, digital and AI solutions in SEA.
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