Dear Pro member,
Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem is yet to emerge from the double whammy of the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic.
As per a Tracxn report, tech startups in the region raised a total of US$1.1bn in Q1 2023, a 69% drop from US$3.5bn raised in Q1 2022. This represents a 42% decline from US$1.9 billion in Q4 2022.
This slide is primarily due to a sharp drop in late-stage funding to US$415mn Q1 2023, which is 68% and 73% lower than the amounts raised in Q4 2022 and Q1 2022, respectively. Seed-stage funding in Q1 is no better; it fell 27% and 73% when compared with Q4 of 2022 and Q1 of 2022, respectively.
However, early-stage investments saw a slight uptick of 11% in Q1 2023 when compared with Q4 2022, but declined 69% from Q1 2022.
Late-stage funding is not expected to make a comeback in the foreseeable future given the volatility in the market. Plus, VCs are no longer mindlessly investing in late-stage startups that continue to bleed money. This means that there may be more layoffs in the region.
Have a look at the top stories.
Regards,
Sainul.
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The gist: Singapore tops startup funding in SEA in Q1
The details: A Tracxn report says companies based in Singapore drew in the highest investment value among their peers: US$516M in funding; A total of US$1.1B went to SEA tech startups in Q1 2023, down 69 per cent from Q1 2022.
The gist: Startup funding in Vietnam shrinks half in Q1
The details: As per a Tracxn report, startups raised a total of US$40.6M in Q1 2023, almost half 49% lower compared to the same period in 2022; Late-stage startup investments remained flat for three consecutive quarters, causing a decline in overall volume.
The gist: BetterPlace acquires Malaysian on-demand frontline workers firm Troopers
The details: The deal will allow BetterPlace to accelerate its presence and establish a foothold in Southeast Asia; Troopers claims to have helped over 50K gig workers in Malaysia find employment since its inception.
The gist: Indonesia’s Sayurbox fires staff amid stagnant B2C growth
The details: Several employees in its B2C team have been affected; The firm says despite its strong and growing performance in the B2B segment, the B2C market has not grown as expected during the pandemic.
The gist: Society Pass unit NusaTrip acquires VN travel marketplace VLeisure
The plans: Indonesian NusaTrip gains an operational foothold to expand its B2C and B2B businesses in Vietnam; VLeisure will market its hotel management SaaS products to hotel SMEs initially in Vietnam and then to the rest of Southeast Asia.
The gist: Court slaps US$7.3M fine on Bukalapak in office project lawsuit
Why: The e-commerce firm has been found guilty in an office project case against local property development company Harmas Jalesveva; Bukalapak has been sentenced for the losses suffered by the plaintiff.
The gist: Indonesian e-medical records startup Zi.Care attracts US$2M funding
The lead investor: Oriza Greenwillow Technology Fund
The plans: Zi.Care, which has digitised the medical record for 100-plus hospitals, looks to raise a total of US$3M in the Series A round.
The gist: SBK Tech Ventures leads Bangladeshi transport startup Jatri’s Series A
Other investors: Alsa, Genting Ventures, Distributed VC, Doha Tech Angels, Brain-Too-Free Ventures
The company: Jatri provides bus operators and owners with a single dashboard that syncs with all vehicles in the network.
The gist: Richard Li-backed Hyphen Group appoints new CEO
The details: Prashant Aggarwal succeeds Sam Allen, who stepped down from the post last year; The fintech company made at least two rounds of layoffs in 2022.
The gist: Visa partner Volopay secures major payment institution license in SG
The details: The license will help strengthen the fintech company’s position in the city-state and expand its offerings to Singapore-based firms with regional operations across the Asia Pacific.
The gist: Forge Ventures leads US$1.3M pre-seed round of Mito Health
Other investors: The founders and executives of ShopBack, Carousell, PatSnap, Glints, SingLife, Rainforest, and OhMyHome.
The company: Mito Health augments medical expertise with AI to create personalised health plans for customers based on their diagnostic results and wearable data.
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The post Ecosystem Roundup: Late-stage funding in SEA drops 68% to US$415M in Q1 | Layoffs at Sayurbox appeared first on e27.