In 2021, startups in the Philippines raised a total of US$1.03 billion in funding which is a significant increase from the 2020 number of US$369 million, according to a report released by Foxmont Capital Partners and Boston Consulting Group.

Related to funding in the startup ecosystem, the report further detailed that from 2019 to 2021, the Philippine startup ecosystem has grown in both deal value and volume. Within the first half of the year, startups in the country raised US$437.5 million. It dubbed 2021 as a “watershed year” with total deals hitting a record of 92 and numerous startups getting into Series A, B, and C.

The report also stated that fintech, as well as media and entertainment, exhibited the largest funding growth in 2021. The number for the fintech vertical was primarily driven by the funding rounds raised by Mynt (which emerged as the country’s first double unicorn with their latest raise) while the media and entertainment vertical were driven by Kumu.

Also Read: Meet the 22 notable startups that have brightened up the Filipino tech ecosystem

The following is a list of the top five verticals that have secured funding in the Philippines in 2021:

For the e-commerce vertical, there is a 77 per cent increase in online shopping growth from 2020 to 2021 –the COVID-19 pandemic and related safety measures certainly contributed to this number. The Department of Trade and Industry even expects the e-commerce vertical to contribute US$17 billion to the domestic economy in 2021 and US$24 billion in the succeeding year.

Food and beverage (F&B) tech are also another vertical that was accelerated by the prolonged stay-at-home; the total value of the online food delivery market reached US$247.2 million.

What is next for startups in the Philippines

In this report, Foxmont Capital Partners also noted the progress that startups in the Philippines have made in 2022. Within the first two months of 2022, funds raised by local startups reached US$310 million, outpacing the same period in the last two years.

This indicated a “clear sign of continuous growth” in the ecosystem, according to the VC firm.

It is also seen as a sign that the ecosystem has begun to show signs of maturity with six out of eight deals in 2022 being Series B and C deals.

Also Read: A horse of another: Here’s the complete list of Southeast Asia’s 28 unicorns

The country has also become increasingly popular as a startup hub.

According to Foxmont Capital Partners in a press statement, the 2022 Philippine Venture Capital report was created as an avenue to foster the ethos of collaboration between key players in the local startup landscape.

Established in 2018, Foxmont Capital Partners described itself as the Philippines’ only independent, country-focused venture capital fund that invests in scalable startups in rapidly digitizing areas. The firm has announced over 26 investments thus far, with recent additions to its portfolio being social commerce platform SariSuki, export enabler 1Export, digital ledger and point-of-sales app Peddlr.

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