Vietnam’s e-commerce forecast to grow 20% in Q4 to reach US$12B by year-end; E-commerce revenue in H1 declined 6% y-o-y despite the number of transactions increasing by 25%; The market size is expected to reach $35 billion by 2025, ranking third in SEA. Vietnam News
Singapore’s Temasek, ABC World Asia join Australian startup v2food’s $55M Series B: V2food will use the Series B funds to complete its production facility in Wodonga, Victoria, as well as to expand its team and to take its products into new markets; The plant-based meat company’s goal is to build “version two of meat” using legume-derived protein to create a product that looks, tastes, and cooks like minced meat. AFN
Traveloka to break even in 2021 if sector recovers to 50% of pre-COVID-19 levels by year-end; The OTA’s backerEast Ventures claims Traveloka has seen its revenue regain ~ 80-90% of the pre-pandemic number in Vietnam, ~50% in Thailand, ~10-15% in Indonesia; In late July, it raised US$250M funding. DealStreetAsia
Singapore’s TurtleTree Labs wins Entrepreneurship World Cup, US$500K cash prize; TurtleTree, the first biotech company to develop cell-based milk, competed against 175K entrants from over 200 countries; Beyond cultivated dairy milk, the company is one of the first in the world to create high-value, nutritionally matched lab-grown human breast milk for infants as well. GreenQueen.UK
Plant-based egg producer Eat Just to build a factory in Singapore; The US firm has partnered with a consortium led by Proterra Investment Partners to build the plant-based protein production facility; The consortium will invest up to US$100M and Eat Just will invest up to US$20M to build and operate the factory. Channel News Asia
Singapore’s Propseller raises US$1.2M seed funding; Investors include Iterative, Hustle Fund, XA Network, Rapzo Capital, Lazada co-founder Stein Jakob; Propseller combines the use of an online platform with in-house, salaried property agents to help ease property sales and rent for its customers. e27
SEA wants to love wind energy but shouldn’t bank on it; A realistic scenario is for each country to pick a mix of renewable energy sources combined with grid infrastructure reinforcements and technological innovation that keep pace with their energy needs, geographical strengths and cost concerns. Channel News Asia
How SGInnovate plans to further support the deep tech ecosystem; Its mission is to pave the way for the next generation of ‘Creatives’, ‘Teslas’, and ‘SpaceXs’, says CEO Dr Lim Jui; Singapore has all the key ingredients of success for deep tech growth – a strong education system, a robust pool of scientific and technical talent and thought leadership in medicine, finance and engineering, he says. e27
Pitching from home: How to get investors’ attention in a virtual world; According to Golden Gate’s Vinnie Lauria, to make an online pitch engaging and conversational, it has to be kept short, sweet and paused to check in after every major point; Founders should think of pitching as a play of seven acts — market, problem, solution, product, traction, revenue model and team. e27
GFC-backed Klikdaily plans to launch IPO in 3 years; It is a one-stop solution for traditional mom ‘n’ pop stores to get various products from multiple brands with a competitive price; In May, Klikdaily secured Series A led by Global Founders Capital; Its business claims to have grown more than 900% between Jan 2019 and Sep 2020. e27
20 Indonesian startups selected for Startup Studio’s new batch; It is an accelerator programme run by the Indonesian Ministry of Communications and Informatics; Startup Studio said that it has received 668 applicants from 32 provinces in Indonesia. e27
Inside the changing landscape of Asian cryptocurrency exchanges; Asia has always been the most active and important region for the industry, as deep-rooted technology and gaming prowess create a natural fit for digital currencies; This has led to many exchanges, service providers, and ancillary companies being set up in Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan, and other top markets. e27
Clean energy in Malaysia: Opportunity amidst uncertainty; Big players who see potential in clean energy are jumping on the bandwagon, as they see the possibility that it could one day replace traditional oil and gas; National oil company Petronas is already pivoting to clean energy after it posted a US$5B loss due to weak oil prices. e27
How to build organisational resilience; Organisations need to embrace changes such as digitalisation and evolving customer behaviour and preferences, develop early warning systems and reporting processes; They should make it compulsory for all functions across the organisation to have risk management on their agenda and develop business contingency plans. SGSME
Singapore organisations adopt AI, ML amid COVID-19-induced uncertainties; They are embracing AI and ML at a much faster pace than their international peers, with 78% of organisations already using AI to cope with today’s marketplace unpredictability while 79% are leveraging ML. Fintech News
How Singapore builds tech so quickly; Its steady investments over the years in digital was a key factor; Singapore also has a common repository of tech tools that agencies can use to build their own digital services; The city-state also set up Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO) to cut across several ministries, as “digital projects are by nature multi-disciplinary. Gov Insider
B2B fintech startups descend on Singapore; Their number increases by 70% over the past year to more than 1K; There were only 50 fintech companies in Singapore 5 years ago, but the number has jumped, with 400 emerging just in the past year, according to MAS. Nikkei Asia Review
Kasikorn Line unveils social banking platform Line BK; It allows customers to save/transfer money and apply for/avail personal loans, and aims to tap underbanked and unbanked users as the first social banking service in Thailand; Line has 47M users in the country whose average time spent per day on the platform is 63 minutes; KBank has 16.5M users, 13M of whom use the K Plus app. Bangkok Post
MDEC launches digital skills training directory to assist job seekers in Malaysia; The directory will act as a guide for Malaysians in selecting digital courses that meet their career needs; About 173 courses and certifications offered by 43 training partners on the directory have been reviewed and endorsed by a panel of digital industry experts. Malay Mail
Malaysia’s Astral Asia to diversify into e-commerce business; It will invest US$120K to set up website, build storage equipment, for inventory and marketing cost; The diversification provides an opportunity for the company to venture into the e-commerce business and diversify its earnings base by providing an additional income stream, thus reducing dependency on its existing businesses. Bernama
Luring tourists here with 3D models of Singapore icons; Prospective tourists will soon be able to view 3D models of the likes of Merlion from their living room, as part of an AR push by the Tourism Board (STB); It’s working with the National Heritage Board to create 1K 3D models of cultural and heritage items, among other things, that can be viewed through a user’s phone camera. The Straits Times
MaGIC, MDEC, Microsoft launch the ‘Highway to a 100 Unicorns’ initiative; Top startups from Malaysia will stand to gain from a year-long mentorship programme, access to enterprise clients, engagement opportunities with Microsoft experts and industry leaders; This is in line with the goals to develop a sustainable startup and social enterprise ecosystem in the country. Digital News Asia
Thailand’s plant-based meat startup battle intensifies as the annual Vegetarian Festival kicks in; There are 3 notable homegrown startups in this segment — Meat Avatar, More Meat and Let’s Plant Meat. Major supermarkets are displaying local animal-free meat brands alongside imports and now the locals just took over the majority of the shelf space. e27
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