Ecosystem Roundup: Sayurbox nets US$120M+; Google’s US$6M sustainability fund for Asian startups

E-grocery firm Sayurbox bags US$120M
Investors include Northstar, Alpha JWC, and IFC; Sayurbox is a farm-to-table distribution platform for fresh produce; The startup claims it works with more than 10,000 farmers, offers more than 5,000 products, and serves around 1M customers.

Climate tech is in a chicken-and-egg situation in Southeast Asia
Developing climate tech requires a robust and collaborative ecosystem that includes top research institutes, VCs, and capable entrepreneurs, say the region’s climate tech experts.

Finch, Indogen, Tokocrypto launch Web3-focused fund for SEA
Cydonia Fund will primarily invest in pre-seed to Series B startups; The investment vehicle is led by top Tokocrypto executives Teguh Kurniawan Harmanda, Chung Ying Lai, and Nanda Ivens.

Indonesia B2B marketplace Ralali closes first tranche of Series D round
Investors include Bee Accelerate, SBI Group, ICMG Partners, Beenos Asia, and Arbor Venture; Ralali connects suppliers with SMEs through its marketplace; Last year, the company said it had more than 1.5 million business owners on its platform.

Google launches US$6M sustainability fund for startups in Asia
The fund will be disbursed to startups that are addressing the “most pressing sustainability challenges” such as pollution, waste, biodiversity, renewables, and the circular economy.

Nium raises US$5M more in new funding
Investors include Moore Strategic Ventures; Its valuation stands at US$1.97B; The new round brings Nium’s Series D+ funding to US$8M and follows a US$2.96M in February; Nium last raised ver US$200M in July 2021 in a Series D led by Riverwood Capital.

Vickers Venture SPAC to merge with US pharma firm
Scilex is a subsidiary of Sorrento Therapeutics, which produces non-opioid pain management products; The combined company will have US$140M at closing and is eyed to be worth US$1.6B.

Ride-hailer Taiwan Intelligent Life nets US$5M from Japan’s Headline Asia
Headline Asia will acquire a seat on the Taiwan Intelligent Life’s board; The investment aims to accelerate the expansion of 55688, a ride-hailing platform created by the Taiwanese firm in 2011, into a super app that offers lifestyle services.

Handprint raises US$2.2M seed funding
Investors are Thunes and unnamed angels; Handprint allows companies to select from verified impact projects, embed impact into their business functions, and track how their positive impact grows over time.

AppWorks launches dedicated accelerator, Web3 arms
It will provide entrepreneurs with resources and support Web1 and Web2 founders as they transition to the new model; The VC firm also announced that it will begin raising capital for its AppWorks Fund IV in Q2; It has a target size of US$360M.

Singapore’s BNPL players eye ground rules
The city-state is setting up a buy now, pay later working group (BNPL WG) as an industry-led initiative to develop a framework for the market; The framework will mitigate risks of consumer over-indebtedness, ensuring that BNPL offerings will have a positive impact on Singapore consumers.

Singapore Airlines, NUS set up aviation lab to transform air travel experience
The lab will co-create innovative technologies and solutions that would accelerate the digital transformation of Singapore’s aviation sector, and help redefine the air travel experience for passengers.

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