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Hustle Fund has invested in Singapore-based moving logistics startup Moovaz

Moovaz champions the digital nomad lifestyle providing easier transition by handling all headache-inducing moving process

San Fransisco-based venture firm Hustle Fund has just financed the Singapore-based moving-logistics startup Moovaz for an undisclosed amount.

The funding will be used mainly for building a product team and for setting up the company’s go-to-market in Melbourne, Australian, which will be done in Q3 this year around August, said Lee Junxian, Co-founder and CEO of Moovaz.

Junxian added that, considering what Moovaz does in logistics is really niched, the company’s choice of Australia as their next go-to market is essentially a corridor to the rest of the world.

Also Read: Having the right team is the single biggest determinant of your success: 123RF Co-founder Stephanie Sitt

Moovaz primarily targets digital nomads, with the belief in location-independent working lifestyles for everyone. To champion the lifestyle, Moovaz’s service allows people to more easily relocate to-and-from Singapore, partnering with the destination country’s local logistics players.

“Moovaz works with our network of contractors and partners, the result of being in the moving industry for eight years. So let’s say you’re moving to Paris from Singapore. You only need to tell us the origin and the destination. What will happen next is that our contractors will come help you pack your stuff, followed by a container that would have been arranged to pick up your stuff, then a freight-forwarding partner of ours will take care of your stuff to get it safely to Paris, where our French partners will take care of the moving-in, all the way to the unpacking,” explained Lee to e27.

Lee mentioned how stressful the moving process can be, and Moovaz offers to take care of all the needs via several options of service that customers can choose from.

“Our main goal is to tackle lot of waiting and unpleasantness when managing travel visas, accommodations and bank accounts. Global citizens don’t want to deal with that. It’s down to the entire seamless experience of moving for our customers and partners,” said Lee.

True to Lee’s words, Moovaz’s services range from next-day sorting at higher prices. Cheaper options range from seven or 21 days.

“We are solving all things moving-related, like choosing the best rates of freight forwarder and warehouses in specific areas in your destination city,” Lee added.

Over the eight-years-long operation in offline moving industry, Moovaaz has assisted 12,000 moves in every major city in the world. Once an offline business, Moovaz just went online a year ago and has since facilitated a little under a thousand move with their new digital platform.

“Moving is an extremely fragmented industry which has often neglected customer experience and been slow to adopt technology, and Moovaz is doing it in a way that builds relationships with digital nomads from the start of their move into a new geography,” said Shiyan Koh, Hustle Fund’s Managing Partner who’s based in Singapore.

Also Read: Blockchain gaming platform PlayGame secures funding from TRON

Hustle Fund is a venture fund investing in early-stage startups in the US, Canada, and Southeast Asia. The fund was co-founded by two ex-500 Startups partners, Eric Bahn and Elizabeth Yin, and are backed by Shanda, a global investment firm focussed on the online gaming industry, messaging, and communications company like LINE, Korean search engine Naver, and others.

Previously, Moovaz raises seed funding from MOJO Partners in June 2018.

Image Credit: Moovaz

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How to bounce back from a failed startup

If there’s a will, there’s always a way

The year was 2014 when I was a college senior.

As a computer major, having my own startup was always on my mind. I really had some brilliant ideas.

Finally, in the last year of college, I managed to find some initial funding from my parents and friends to start my own thing.

From the many startup ideas I had, one of them was a digital couponing website.

Since 2015, there had been a few similar websites plus my brother had experience in this field, so I chose to move forward with this idea.

My brother was a coupon specialist and taught me different ways of utilizing coupons in order to save money. I took advantage of his skills and gathered a few other specialists to start my very own startup named SavingBro.

Now when I look back, it seems almost impossible — and it somewhat was.

But the adrenaline I had at the time had fogged every possible reality check.

It did not take long for me to realize that how I had anticipated it to go down was far from reality.

In just two months, I was struggling to keep a balance between work and classes. There was so much to do that I had to hire professional developers. And this meant finding office space.

Finding office space meant spending more rent in addition to my already expensive room.
We were burning through our money, which was not a lot to begin with.

I was running back and forth from different cities looking for more funding. Right when the SavingBro website was ready to launch, two of my best developers quit.

I had zero bank balance to spend any money on promotional activities. Before it could even pick up, I knew there was no way I can salvage it.

As much as I hated the fact that my very first startup idea has failed, I knew there were lessons to be learnt.

Soon after, I graduated from college and used my failed startup experience as a new starting point.

After careful consideration and analysis, I found three things that resulted in my startup failure:

Not every idea is a good idea

There were some serious flaws in my startup idea.

I did not weigh the technical expertise such a complex idea would require. There was no feedback or discussion with friends or people from the tech industry.

Just because an idea seems good to you does not mean it is and it never hurts to ask for a second opinion.

No money, no honey

If you do not have enough money to complete something you want to do, do not bother starting it.

You need to have funding for at least the first six months of operation.

This includes everything you will need to set up the business. Do not expect to get free services from friends or just ask around for money.

No strategy means more risks

When I started designing the app, I had absolutely no strategy.

I was treating it as one of my class projects. My entire focus was on the product.

There was no strategy for the future. There was no vision about what the startup would be like in a year or five years.

This lack of strategy made me overlook the possible risks.

So, how do we bounce back?

If you are reading this, you might have probably faced a failure like I did.

Maybe you are afraid to return to such a position in the future.

However, you need not worry as it is possible to bounce back from your failed startup.

Just because you failed once does not mean you will fail again. In fact, if we have learned anything from the most successful businesses is that those earlier failures do lead to eventual success.

If you are struggling to recover from a failed startup, here is what I recommend from my own experience:

Analyze the problems

The very first step is to analyze.

Also Read: This year, be a good friend and bring your BFF to Echelon Asia Summit 2019!

In fact, investigate what went wrong. Look back at every tiny detail, spreadsheets, programs, customer feedback etc.

Get to the bottom of the matter.

Learn the skills you lack

After your business failure analysis, you need to do a self-analysis.

Your own shortcomings may be a cause as well.

Do you lack leadership skills? Are you not good at managing money? Is there a new technology you need to master?

Work on the skills you lacked during your first startup.

Do not hide your failures

Many people are afraid to write about their failed startups on their resumes, professional profiles, and social media.

Your failure shows that you persevered and that you have learned your lessons.

In the professional world, this would be deemed as a learning experience which it obviously is.

Start thinking like a businessman

Many tech startups fail because there is no one with the business acumen on the team.

Things like marketing on social media, promotions through coupons, participating in conventions, and networking with established businesses are often overlooked.

Also Read: Why the world needs deep generalists, not specialists

They develop great products that no one knows about.

When you restart, you need to act like a businessman. If you lack such expertise then hire people who excel at running businesses.

Inspire yourself

You may be tempted to give up after your failure.

However, you need to keep yourself inspired to keep working towards your goal.

There is plenty of reading material about failures.

Another way is to surround yourself with people who matter most to you and who bring positivity in your life.

Before you know it, you will be ready to start again with your next great idea.

Conclusion

My failed startup was not the end of the road for me and neither is yours.

You must have heard many times that failure leads to success. There is a reason why this saying is so common — it’s true!

For some, it may take just one attempt, for some it may take many.

However, if you keep struggling and treat your mistakes as lessons, you too can succeed in the crazy world of startups.

Pat yourself on the back for making it through the tough times and start prepping for the next venture. Now that you know what can go wrong, it will be easier to dodge the pits.

e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

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Medtech startup See-Mode secures US$1M funding from Cocoon Capital

The startup is specifically aimed at people who are at high-risk of having a stroke

See-Mode, a medtech startup based in Singapore, has raised a total of US$1 million led by Cocoon Capital, also from Singapore. SGInnovate and Australia-based Blackbird Ventures join the round.

“We in particular invested in the multidisciplinary background of the See-Mode team and how they came up with a solution that is already creating strong interest in all corners of the world,” said Will Klippgen, Managing Partner at Cocoon Capital, who recently joined See-Mode’s board of directors.

Also Read: Hustle Fund has invested in Singapore-based moving logistics startup Moovaz

Inspired by the fact that stroke has been the second leading cause of death and the main leading cause in preventable disability, Dr. Milad Mohammadzadeh and Dr. Sadaf Monajemi co-founded See-Mode in 2017. Both founders have PhDs in biomedical engineering.

See-Mode uses AI, computer vision, and computational modeling that’s turned into a medical software to equip clinicians in predicting and preemptively treat stroke in patients.

See-Mode believes its method can help clinicians to save time, objectively interpret ultrasound images, and assess blood flow patterns in patients based on a routine CT scan or MRI and doctors to detect vulnerable plaques, setting the precedence for creating better stroke screening and treatment planning, something that’s currently inaccessible in clinical practice.

Its treatment planning mostly relies on tracking conventional risk factors of stroke that has a whopping number of 15 million sufferers in the world with one-third of that statistics ended up dead or permanently disabled.

In Singapore, See-Mode collaborates with the likes of National University Hospital, Changi General Hospital, and the National Neuroscience Institute of Singapore. The company is also starting a multi-centre clinical study with leading hospitals in Australia and USA.

Also Read: Co-founder Affi Assegaf leaves Female Daily Network management team

See-Mode was an alumnus of Singapore-based talent investor Entrepreneur First.

Regarding the innovation the company brings, Niki Scevak, Partner at Blackbird Ventures said that See-Mode’s technology essentially presents a new world where the collective intelligence of the medical community can be employed systematically via computers on every patient whose life has been affected by a stroke.

Image Credit: Entrepreneurs First

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Co-founder Affi Assegaf leaves Female Daily Network management team

Having been non-active in the past one year, Assegaf left Female Daily Network due to personal reason

female_daily_network_cofounder (1)

Left to right: Female Daily Network co-founders Affi Assegaf, Novita Imelda, Hanifa Ambadar

Following collaboration with Co-Founder and CEO Hanifa Ambadar, Female Daily Network Co-Founder and Business Director Affi Assegaf announced her resignation from the company’s management team.

Ambadar told DailySocial that Assegaf’s decision to leave the company had been made two years ago. In the past one year, Assegaf no longer actively working at the Female Daily Network office.

“The point is that Assegaf’s decision to leave the company is due to personal reasons. Assegaf, who was in charge of content on the Female Daily Network platform, could no longer contribute fulltime to the platform,” Ambadar said.

When asked about whether Assegaf’s resignation will affect operations at the company, Ambadar stressed that her resignation will not disrupt business and managerial activities. The CEO also stated that the company currently has no plan to recruit a new executive to replace Assegaf’s position as Business Director.

“We will remain focussed on recruiting young talents to host the Female Daily segment on YouTube and our own site,” she added.

Also Read: Indonesia’s women lifestyle portal Female Daily Network acquires mobile developer JTECH

Gaining popularity among Gen-Z

While the platform maintains its focus on beauty information, Female Daily Network claimed that it has begun to be visited by users of Gen-Z.

Millennials are no longer the target of startups and major brands; secondary school students have started reading and enjoying the content on Female Daily.

The Female Daily app itself is currently available on both Android and iOS apps.

“At the moment we have two million users, in line with our commitment to focus on 99 per cent beauty content since 2014. It is expected that the number of our users will continue to increase,” Ambadar said.

Female Daily also plans to announce its most recent business plans and updates in the year 2019.

The article Affi Assegaf Keluar dari Jajaran Manajemen Female Daily Network was written in Bahasa Indonesia by Yenny Yusra for DailySocial. English translation and editing by e27.

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Marketing tech startup SilverPush secures US$5M Series B funding

The Singapore-based company got backed by the global marketing company FreakOut Holdings

SilverPush, the marketing tech based in Singapore has announced the injection of US$ 5 million Series B funding into its company led by Japan-headquartered FreakOut Holdings, Inc., a global marketing technology company.

Also Read: Medtech startup See-Mode secures US$1M funding from Cocoon Capital

SilverPush shared that it will use the funding to expand business globally and enter new markets in the APAC region such as Hong Kong, Australia, and South Korea. It seeks also to increase it’s AI capabilities by applying the technology in industries outside of advertising.

The company plans to explore the possibility of tapping into the OTT space with its new product called Mirrors, followed by the relaunch of another product called Prism, as a brand reputation monitoring platform.

“We’ve expanded into Southeast Asia in 2018, and we’ve seen rising customer appetite for on-demand and multi-screen viewing across the APAC region. At the same time, advertisers and brands have become more open to integrating new technologies in their audience outreach strategies,” said Hitesh Chawla, CEO of SilverPush.

Although categorically being in the marketing sector, the company differentiates itself with the use of AI to improve the engagement between brands and consumers.

Its product, Mirrors, was launched in late 2018 to help contextualise ads when people are viewing video content on their devices with the intention of tackling the misplaced online advertising problem. To do so, Mirrors detects context in video content that aligns with an advertiser’s core communications objectives, allowing more effectively targeted ads using AI with computer vision.

With its products, SilverPush has supported the campaigns of APAC-based brands such as Indofood, Unilab, and Tiger Beer. Its international brands’ repertoires include Unilever, KFC, Coca-Cola, Samsung, Johnson & Johnson, and others.

Also Read: Hustle Fund has invested in Singapore-based moving logistics startup Moovaz

Outside of India and Southeast Asia, SilverPush is available in South Africa, Tanzania, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates.

Image Credit: YouTube SilverPush

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3 things to note before expanding your business overseas

You need to score at least two out of three to qualify for a good case

What are the justifications for doing this?

When is the timing right?

What is the best way to do this?

These are three of the most important questions to ask when it comes to overseas business expansion.

This post aims to answer these questions and offer insights on how to make the most out of the globalized business landscape.

Why should you consider expanding?

There are three possibilities:

  1. You want to generate more revenue.
  2. There’s demand in a new market that matches the products or services you are offering.
  3. The local market is getting too crowded and local customers no longer favour your brand.
    Businesses naturally expand to make more money.

It’s inherent among businessmen to seek more. It’s not necessarily being greedy.

It’s just illogical to forego opportunities for growth, especially when the facts on the ground are favourable.

It is also instinctive for determined and astute businessmen to branch out to a new market with a high demand for products similar to what they are selling. Businesses typically spend time and resources to discover new markets.

It does not make sense not expanding when a new viable market has been found.

Moreover, it’s only commonsensical to expand when a surfeit of competitors have entered the present market for your business.

When your products are no longer preferred by the customers you used to call frequenters or patrons, it’s high time to consider expanding overseas.

These three reasons for expanding are generally interrelated. You need at least two of them for you to put up a good case for expansion.

It’s not enough that you just want to generate more revenues. There should also be demand in the new market you want to expand into, or you are forced to find other greener pastures as stronger competitors slowly eat away your customer base.

When is the right time to expand?

You may have encountered eager pundits who would say that the right time for business expansion is “now” or “as soon as possible.”

Know that haste almost never gets you to the best outcomes.

Expanding your enterprise overseas needs to be meticulously planned and should only be done once you are ready.

How do you know when you are ready for expansion? The following circumstances should be good indicators.

  • Your customers are asking more from you and you have a growing customer base abroad.

They could be looking for a product that is related to your present line of products, and something you are capable of offering. Not responding to the clamour or demand can make your customers go to your competitors.

  • You have regular customers and steady profits.

It’s not a sound business decision to be satisfied with a constant stream of revenues and profits. If you are already on a comfortable point in your business venture, it’s the best time to explore other opportunities and reach out to new markets.

Also Read: e27’s Daily Digest is that sprinkle of humanity in your email inbox

  • The sector or field your business is in is expanding or evolving.

You can’t be stagnant when the industry your business is operating in is advancing. Refusing to level up will not only mean sustained stagnation but will most likely result in falling revenues and profits. Your business may even head to devolution or irrelevance.

  • You have a lot of unused cash.

If your business is too liquidy, it’s only logical to find ways to put the free cash to good use. Expanding internationally is an ambitious endeavour but definitely worth considering.

  • A new market, especially overseas, presents a tempting scenario of high demand and profitability.

This does not mean that you have to instantly grab an opportunity you deem feasible. Make sure you study the new market carefully. Be cautious but have some optimism to try uncharted grounds after seeing high potential demand, good purchasing power among prospective customers, and overall market receptiveness to what you are offering.

How should you expand your business?

Is there a formula for expanding your brand overseas? Nope.

The how’s of business expansion are dependent on the kind of business you have and the market you are trying to exploit. However, the following guidelines should be helpful.

  • Meticulously and scientifically study the new market and carefully plan your strategy.

This sounds cliché, but it’s still worth repeating. You can’t just go to war without the knowledge of the terrain, opponents, preparations, and the right weapons.

Conduct thorough foreign market research and feasibility study to find out if it’s really worth expanding to the market you are considering, or if you should try other new markets. Arm your venture with accurate and relevant information about the competition, potential customers, and the most suitable business tactics and marketing campaigns.

  • Localize or make your branding and promotions compatible with the new market.

Yes, the process of adapting your strategy for a foreign market you want to capture is also called localization. You have greater chances of success in your attempt to go global by thinking local (at the standpoint of the new market you want for your business).

Also Read: Can fintech resolve the healthcare crisis?

Localization, however, is not just about translating your product labels, slogan, advertisements, or brand jingle into the language of the prospective customers in the new market. It’s a more sophisticated form of language-to-language as the resulting translations have to be culturally sensitive, appropriate, not offensive, and relatable to the target customers.

To achieve the best results for your marketing campaigns and to make it easier for potential customers to get accustomed to your products, it’s important that everything is localized.

  • Form a committed and proficient team.

For any business activity, human resources are a vital component. If you want success, you have to make sure that the people you work with are competent and convinced in the goals you seek to achieve for your business.

  • Develop solid plans and contingencies.

You should have all the standard business plans and more, from the financial to the strategy, operations, and even the growth plans. It’s important to have details and projections to work with, so you can formulate courses of actions in case events don’t turn out as expected.

Study how you should deal with the government or regulations in the new market. Learn the best tactics for setting prices. Don’t forget to carefully organize your logistics. Find the best ways to lower operating costs while maximizing profits.

  • Consider all the leverage you can use.

Moreover, it is advisable to use everything you can to facilitate success. You can forge tie-ups or collaborations with local players (in the foreign market). See how far your business network or connections can take you to cushion the difficulties you may encounter.

Once you have solid answers to the why, when, and how questions for your overseas expansion, it’s safe to say that you are on the right track.

Expanding overseas entails major capital outlays and challenges that can test the limits of your business acumen and management skills. You need to plan and be prepared for the many hurdles that may come your way.

Image Credits: imtmphoto

e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

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Can fintech resolve the healthcare crisis?

‘Health is wealth’ but who has health without their wealth?

Technological innovations in the financial sector have brought about a global bloom in the industry.

In the past three years, the industry has managed to amass US$31 billion and remains promising.

Similarly, the healthcare industry is also looking to advance in technology to bring about innovations in its service.

In our current climate, it is obvious that the rich are getting richer and the poor are living paycheck to paycheck — finding it increasingly harder to pay off loans.

That is why fintech should aim to solve the unaffordable healthcare crisis.

The parallels between fintech and healthcare

The financial environment has changed significantly.

This is due to the increasing popularity of decentralized currencies, tech payment options, digital wallets offered by companies like Apple, Samsung, Google, and online reviews.

The traditional financial institutions like banks are now struggling to prove their ongoing value to the consumers and strive to provide high-quality services at a low price.

On the other hand, the healthcare industry has been reluctant to embrace such technology at a similar magnitude.

However, fintech has the ability to bring significant change in this sector and make healthcare more accessible and affordable for the masses.

Also Read: Cambodia catches up with launching of startup professional service alliance

It can help the patients as well as the medical staff in the following ways:

Data and performance tracking

The worldwide wearables market is increasing by 16.9 per cent every year. Around 310.4 million wearable devices are sold in a year, generating a revenue of US$30.5 billion.

This success is owed to the monitoring of personal health and wellness.

The relationship between tracking fitness and the larger health issues is undeniable and the success of such products has direct implications on the healthcare sector.

Access to information

Providing 24 hours of access to important information has been exclusive for financial institutions — until now.

But its importance cannot be denied in other sectors too, thus, fintech should be utilized to introduce this in healthcare as well.

Through blockchain applications, one can store data, improve functioning with the help of AI, and help individuals in accessing the data.

Removing confusions from billing systems

The payments and billing systems in the healthcare industry are full of trouble, so a change is not just desirable but necessary here.

Fintech startups should help in finding ways to facilitate payments by offering online billing and bill payments.

The interest of the masses is to create a retail kind of experience in healthcare and introduce blockchain for easier and facilitated transactions.

Personalized programs

As individuals have become more open about sharing their personal details and lifestyle choices, it’s possible to formulate personalized programs.

Also Read: How to give your small business a boost with budget advertising

Depending on your age and health condition, these programs can actually lead you to a healthier lifestyle and help in keeping the problem areas under control.

Conclusion

Healthcare should be innovating itself with time and must be working for the betterment of the individuals.

Serving the health-related needs of individuals should be prioritized by different industries and they must work together to ease up the healthcare processes.

Image Credits: jjvallee

e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

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Go-Jek funding round aims for US$3 billion

The company is recruiting investment banks to act as advisers during its fundraising efforts

go_jek_funding

In a round that has already bagged US$1 billion, Go-Jek is reportedly driving towards US$3 billion, according to Bloomberg.

No final decision has been made on the total goal for the round, but the number reported sounds like the current internal target.

As part of the funding drive, the company is wooing investment banks to act as an adviser in the ongoing round.

The US$3 billion number is equal to the number rival Grab raised in 2018. Grab made its US$3 billion funding push fairly public towards the end of the year.

As Go-Jek has expanded into Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, the ride-hailing industry has seen a flood of investments as the two companies battle for supremacy in Southeast Asia.

However, data suggests this town is big enough for the two of them. According to Bloomberg, the ride-hailing industry is expected to be worth US$28 billion in 2025. It was estimated at being worth US$7.7 billion in 2018.

Also Read: e27’s Daily Digest is that sprinkle of humanity in your email inbox

Go-Jek’s regional expansion has not been 100 per cent smooth sailing. Most important was the decision by the Philippines government to reject its application to operate in the country.

However, the acquisition of Coins.ph gives Go-Jek an alternative revenue stream (payments) in the Philippines.

In Singapore, the biggest moment was a viral video of a woman faking her own kidnapping, and subsequently being mocked by a large portion of the population.

Yesterday, the company announced it has hired Lien Choong Luen, a former executive at the National Research Foundation, to be its Singapore General Manager.

Vietnam may be the success story for Go-Jek’s foray into Grab territory. The company says it has nabbed 40 per cent of the two-wheel market in the country, according to the South China Morning Post.

Also Read: Bullied to succumb: Should tech companies bow to society’s homophobic demands?

At the current moment, Grab is still the dominant ride-hailing app outside of Indonesia, but US$3 billion could go a long way to evening the playing field.

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Blockchain-based information curation startup Band Protocol secures US$3M seed funding

The funding is led by Sequoia India and will be focussed toward product development

Thailand and Singapore-based startup Band Protocol announced today that it has raised US$3 million seed funding led by Sequoia India. Joining the round was Dunamu & Partners as well as SeaX.

Band Protocol describes itself as a startup that “harnesses wisdom-of-crowd and incentivises its digital community of users to curate reliable information”. With the funding, the company plans to further its product development and its go-to-market this year.

Also Read: Astrology-agnostic? Wait. Here’s a startup that can predict whether your startup will fail or not

The investment made by Sequoia India into Band Protocol also marked the global VC’s first blockchain investment in Southeast Asia.

The premise of Band Protocol is that it offers users an opportunity to create a token-curated community that’s specific on a topic or category. The users then will be able to issue personalised tokens as an incentive to encourage data and information curation within that community.

This way, the power is given back to active users and content creators as data owners.

“There’s growing unavailability of trustable data on the internet, coupled with the rising trend of fake news,” said Soravis Srinawakoon, co-founder and CEO of Band Protocol. “Our vision at Band Protocol is to bring online and digital communities together by creating an online platform for the curation of transparent and reliable data.”

With the company’s approach, Band Protocol can serve customers ranging from entities such as credit bureaus, fraud detection, KYC and identity verification – as well as any service or site that offers online discussion, recommendations, and rankings.

Band Protocol was founded in 2017 by Soravis Srinawakoon, Sorawit Suriyakarn, and Paul Chonpimai. All three founders have histories with investing in cryptocurrencies since 2013 and have created a crypto game in 2015 that is said to have garnered over 300,000 users.

Band Protocol’s believed to be able to solve the problem of lack of regulation that arises from issues like biased ranking, inaccurate reporting of token metrics, to scams that part retail investors from their money.

Also Read: Blockchain is paving the way for something new: Smart Companies

To promote the adoption of Band Protocol and demonstrate its application, the team is creating CoinHatcher, that serves as a decentralised portal that aggregates reliable news, research, token-economic information, and a comprehensive directory of crypto projects, founders, and other related ecosystem players for education and data accuracy in the sector.

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Personal finance startup DollarsAndSense buys insurtech fundMyLife

The acquisition aims to provide all-around financial advice for Singaporeans

DollarsAndSense.sg, a personal finance media startup based in Singapore, announced today that it has acquired fellow local financial planning startup fundMyLife.

By acquiring fundMyLife, DollarsAndSense will add insurtech platform to its media business. DollarsAndSense stated that it also seeks for better insights into what consumers are looking for, in terms of financial planning knowledge for Singaporeans and what’s still missing.

Also Read: Ofo operating license suspended in Singapore

During the transition, fundMyLife co-founders Jackie Tan and Wesley Goi will remain on board to aid a seamless transition.

fundMyLife was founded in 2017 to provide consumers with answers to financial planning or insurance question from a curated pool of trusted financial advisors via a private Q&A platform. The approach gave users a reliable source of knowledge, privacy, and choice to opt for follow-up financial consultation.

On the other hand, financial advisers who utilises the platform can access leads of potential customers and make their past accomplishments a portfolio alongside client testimonials. It also allows these advisers to value-add to prospects who have already shown an intent to make a financial planning decision, rather than offering those who are still in the stage of deciding the need of insurance.

DollarsAndSense.sg was founded in 2012 and has remained focussed on addressing personal finance through publication in Singapore. It supports Singaporeans in making better financial decisions through bite-sized articles, infographics, videos, and tools.

Prior to the acquisition, DollarsAndSense has been working closely with fundMyLife on areas like affiliate partnerships, content marketing, and improving engagement with the financial adviser community.

“I believe the acquisition of fundMyLife this will lead to better outcomes for both consumers and financial advisors. We are committed to make this platform a success for everyone involved,” said Timothy Ho, Co-founder and Managing Editor of DollarsAndSense.

Also Read: Oriente partners with Indonesia’s conglomerate Sinar Mas to launch lending platform

“DollarsAndSense brings their expertise in creating original content in the personal finance space, joined with strong branding and reach. I believe fundMyLife will achieve its growth potential in the coming months as a result of this partnership,” said Jackie Tan, Co-founder of fundMyLife.

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