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Ecosystem Roundup: LionsBot raises US$17M, IDX may allow listing of overseas firms, Jack Ma to give up Ant Group control

Singapore robotics firm LionsBot scores US$17M Series A
The investors are TransLink Capital, Superteam APAC, and Freny Firoze Irani; LionsBot develops cleaning robots for commercial applications; Its main offering LeoBot can vacuum, scrub and interact.

Jack Ma to give up control of Ant Group
Ma controls Ant through his investment arm Hangzhou Yunbo; On Jan 7, he agreed to restructure Hangzhou Yunbo into two separate entities and transferred some of his ownership to other executives of Ant Group and Alibaba.

IDX mulls new rules to facilitate listing of overseas tech giants
Only a company with a legal entity in Indonesia can list on the exchange; Foreign firms can currently list on the IDX either by forming a listed subsidiary or acquiring a locally listed company.

SG healthcare firm Qritive raises US$7.5M funding
The investors include MassMutual Ventures, Seeds Capital, and Exfinity; Qritive uses AI to provide interpretations of whole-slide images used in pathology within seconds, reducing treatment time and increasing cancer care accuracy.

Crypto lender Genesis lays off over 60 employees amid liquidity issues
The US-based firm currently has 145 employees following the layoffs; Genesis is facing “hundreds of millions in losses” from its exposure to Three Arrows Capital and Babel Finance; Genesis’s parent firm is backed by GIC.

AC Ventures, Indies Capital, Penjana ink deal for cross-border investments
The partnership will also facilitate tech transfer in sectors such as data centres, education, hospitality, mobility, and waste management involving Indonesian and Malaysian startups.

Indonesian checkout solution startup Flik bags US$1.1M
The investors are East Ventures, Init 6, GMO Venture Partners, and Saison Capital; Flik helps brands strengthen their direct-to-consumer transactions by unifying the checkout experience across different sales channels.

Tencent-backed WeDoctor may file for IPO by April
The firm tried to list its shares in Hong Kong in 2021; However, the application lapsed due to China’s strict regulatory crackdown on private companies, including those that handle sensitive data such as medical information.

Malaysia-based enterprise solution bags US$1M in seed money
WorqApp helps teams and businesses implement enterprise execution; It uses tools to assist in communicating, collaborating and boosting engagement for high-impact initiatives.

ProfilePrint invests in Brazilian image recognition firm Csmart
Csmart’s image recognition tech will complement the Singaporean startup ProfilePrint, which predicts the quality and profile of a food sample “within seconds” using AI technology.

Indonesian manufacturing hub platform Imajin raises funding
The investors are Init-6, East Ventures, and 500 SEA; Imajin connects local manufacturers with potential customers; As of July 2022, the startup had 400+ local factory partners and 80 customers.

Grab inks partnership with ZaloPay in Vietnam
The digital wallet will be available for Grab’s services, including transportation, food, grocery, and parcel delivery; Grab also supports cash and other cashless solutions through its e-wallet Moca and payments through linked cards.

SEA’s IPO market fares relatively well amid global downturn: EY report
There were 137 IPOs that raised US$6.5B in the region in 2022, compared to 134 at US$13.2B in 2021; Indonesia led with 60 listings that raked in US$2.2B, followed by Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore.

Audi-backed startup Holoride is bringing VR to the car
Holoride, launching in the US at CES 2023, uses AI to analyse the car’s motion in real time, combining that with the head movements of the wearer to smooth out the experience and ensure any barf bags stay in the seat-back pocket.

What are generative art NFTs & are they worth collecting?
Generative art is a term used to refer to art created using software; The programme randomly creates shapes, patterns, and colours arranged into an artistically enjoyable piece of digital art.

What can local companies do in 2023 for workplace mental fitness?
Companies should create an inclusive work environment that nurtures happy and healthy employees through the three core pillars: energy, calm and focus.

Maximising resilience: CIOs leading the way in economic downturns
CIOs must maintain IT strategy alignment and assist the company in cost-cutting objectives throughout the current economic downturn.


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