Most may even be surprised that some of the services they enjoy, especially in the financial sector, already employs blockchain technology. 

In the Philippines, over 500 companies now tap fintech firm Salarium’s blockchain-powered human resource services for payroll disbursement. In Hong Kong, listed firm Chong Sing Holdings Fintech Group is slowly transforming its back-end office as its new blockchain-enabled platform prove to be faster in processing loan applications. 

Truly, the blockchain has proven itself worthy of the dime and time spent by investors in the financial sector, but there are a handful of companies making a case for its disruptive potential in other industries, too.

In Singapore, a startup called Pundi X believes blockchain can pave the way for a decentralized telecommunication industry. Later this year, the startup is launching its first smartphone product—the XPhone—which can be used for calls and texts even without a service provider. Instead, the device will run on Pundi X’s blockchain-powered ecosystem called Function X. Developers envision it to be the next global mobile ecosystem as it will be opened to other smartphone manufacturers, too. 

Also Read: Realtime analytics and trends will help unlock the secrets of the blockchain ecosystem

Set to do more than just trade cryptocurrencies, the Function X can publish DApps or decentralized apps, and access websites through the Interplanetary File System (IPFS), described by the MIT Technology Review as a “peer-to-peer file-sharing network”. This platform is poised to be blockchain phones’ gateway to its own Internet, its own HTTP. Its main difference from the traditional Internet is how it shares information to users. 

Accessing websites or any online assets in the HTTP today means requesting access to the original server hosting them, which takes massive amounts of bandwidth and time.

It’s partly the reason why data services remain costly in most countries. But with IPFS, data is identified by unique cryptographic codes. Anyone who wants to access any site or data may connect with another user who may have accessed it before, the location of whom may be closer than the original server hosting it.

The process makes data access faster and more efficient. According to MIT, those codes cannot be faked, securing users from cyber attacks. 

Pundi X developers believe that as more manufacturers adopt the ecosystem, blockchain phone users will be able to create a decentralized community, completely removed from traditional web and telcos.

It’s an effort to create a mobile experience that can preserve users’ private data as Function X runs on a “trustless system”, meaning, no one entity owns the platform. On the business side, developers may run and distribute scalable apps and programs even without third-party platforms like GooglePlay and Apple’s the AppStore for example, cutting costs for game and software studios. 

Those savings could be channelled to investments that could help developers create and run more efficient and cheaper programs and tools. That’s a win-win scenario for both businesses and consumers. 

The big and small companies betting on blockchain phones

Pundi X is not alone in this effort. Last year, Israel-based Sirin Labs also launched a blockchain phone called Finney, similarly running on a decentralized ecosystem called Sirin OS. Both the XPhone and Finney can be interchanged between Android and “blockchain” modes, to cater to both mainstream users and cryptocurrency owners. 

Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer HTC is also betting on a future with a decentralized web. In January, the company, which helped Google develop its flagship phone Pexel, started selling Exodus 1, a smartphone that allows users to trade, send and store a number of cryptocurrencies on its phone through an app called Zion. 

While it still can’t run DApps, HTC is already hinting that the phone will have more blockchain-enabled functions. Even smartphone giant Samsung released its flagship phone S10 with a pre-uploaded cryptocurrency trading app.

It’s worth noting that these smartphone developers made sure that the futuristic functions their devices possess are matched with great hardware.

All of the smartphones mentioned have the features of a top-tier device: a respectable phone camera that can compete with most brands’ flagship phones, robust battery life, and sleek designs. These features somehow help blockchain phones be easily enjoyed and accepted by most, somehow democratizing their advanced functions. 

Once these devices take off to the mainstream, the decentralized web is only imminent. Remember that IPFS will only work as envisioned if there are already thousands of devices hosting data.

Not only will it create a more efficient Internet service, but it will also mean a more secure web. With thousands owning their own data, platforms are no longer at risk to massive hacks and breaches. And that’s a future that not just blockchain enthusiasts and experts will enjoy.

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How to convince people of what has never been done before – and why startups in Asia must think bigger?

Let us be honest – the world still looks to Silicon Valley for the next tech startup bringing us another breakthrough product or service to change the lives of millions forever.

The ‘Valley clearly has a monopoly on giving birth to many of the world’s most valuable technology companies.

These ‘zero-to-one’ ventures are supported by a community of investors who know that the most valuable companies do more than copy/paste what has worked elsewhere.

Nonetheless, investing in an unproven concept always requires a great deal of trust, and perhaps this is why a culture that puts faith in exploring uncharted territory is crucial to nurturing startups reshaping the status quo.

Our entrepreneurship community in Singapore is thriving, and we should also focus more on transformational innovation.

Singapore already provides world-class infrastructure for startups and a vibrant startup scene, but there is no escaping that innovation must at some point involve doing something genuinely new.

Singapore has exceptional foundations to do just that, and more ventures of this kind would further increase our global influence. We are effectively a ‘unicorn country’ that rapidly transformed into a preeminent nation.

What lessons can we learn from our history to become the launchpad for Asia’s most transformational startups in years to come? Availability of risk capital is one part of the equation, and we have a good amount of it.

Also Read: Why trust is the biggest barrier to entrepreneurship and innovation

The much more significant (and easily overlooked) factor is our motivation and risk-taking culture. Singapore startups are in such a privileged position that they need to think bigger. We need to trust in our ability to make a global impact – beyond translating good concepts into Asian markets.

While this shift is underway, it remains challenging to pitch and fund a truly transformational idea. Specifically, it requires others to trust our vision. My upcoming book is about just that – building the trust you need in order to innovate, in six simple stages.

Using this well-researched trust model, here is an effective sequence for how to pitch zero-to-one ideas the right way:

Present the right version of yourself : Stage 1, Reputation

Often it is not who you are, but how you tell your story that matters.

We are different things to different people, and is associated with the right people in the right capacities makes a huge difference.

Before your idea gets a stage, you must convince people that you are worthwhile engaging with. As the saying goes, investors put their stake in people first and ideas second.

Create a hook: Stage 2, Temptation

Before you can expect interest in your pitch, you must activate your audience. We are familiar with this process when using technology (i.e. you do not expect your car to move before you turn on the engine) but strangely seem to overlook this with people. You can do this in several ways, e.g. by talking about an everyday task or object in a new way, or with surprising insight.

Another great way to do this is by creating suspense – a simple example would be: ‘Last Friday I had an experience that completely changed my life’. The more relevant your prompt and the more curiosity it arouses, the better it will activate your audience.

Tell a great story : Stage 3, Connection

Humans are wired to connect with stories, and history has been passed on and influenced with the power of stories for thousands of years. Observe the traditional storytelling format – a likeable hero (your target user) who faces an insurmountable challenge (your problem statement) and suddenly encounters a perfect solution (your idea). You are doing it right if your audience physically reacts to your story, i.e. changes their body language as you narrate (think of the last time you went to the movies).

Throw in a supporting fact or two: Stage 4, Validation

If your audience has entertained you for this long, it is time to reward them with a fact that affirms their positive impression of you. Make sure you have hard evidence that your problem is real and worth solving, and/or experimental results that demonstrate people’s inclination to your idea. The best possible validation is pre-orders for your product or service, which you can collect in online or offline ways. Nothing makes for a better business case!

Give people more of what they like: Stage 5, Attachment

Say you have sold your audience on the content of your pitch. Now, it is tempting to go directly to the ‘ask’ – investment, resources, etc. A better way to continue from here is to repeat stages 1 to 4 in a summary of your pitch that takes your audience through the same sequence again in a much faster rhythm.

Fuse with your audience: Stage 6, Affiliation

Finish off your pitch by removing the distinction between you and them. By now, your audience should be so convinced that they want to associate with you.

Speak about how ‘we’ can have an impact, and what ‘we’ can do together. Then, go for your ‘ask’. By now, your audience will see you as part of them, and asking for funding will no longer be viewed as a one-sided request.

Instead, your value in the partnership has already been firmly established, and now the investment is framed as their contribution to a collective effort. The key is to help your audience imagine that you are already a team, before asking for any contribution – a small but essential difference.

Feel free to use this in your next pitch, and I wish you all the very best to make your ideas succeed.

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According to the 2019 Telstra Security Report, 65 per cent of Australian businesses were interrupted due to a breach in 2018. Moreover, the Ponemon Institute claims that the average cost of a data breach is USD$1.99 million, resulting from lost workplace productivity, compromised band image, and the corrupted business data.

So, why are businesses losing data?

There are many reasons for that, from a malicious email your employee opened to the issues with your servers. Irrespective of its cause, downtime can affect your business’ performance in multiple ways. Most importantly, businesses don’t invest in an incident response plan. The abovementioned Telstra study shows that 1 in 4 companies are not prepared for a cyberattack.

Just because you use antivirus software doesn’t mean you’re safe from today’s sophisticated cyberattacks.

To protect your data and ensure you can survive a data breach, you need to back up everything you do. And, one of the most effective and reliable options is continuous data protection.

Here is what it is and what its main benefits are for your business.

What is continuous data protection, and why does it matter?

Today, the migration to the cloud has become inevitable for businesses of all shapes and sizes. 

There are numerous options to choose from, depending on your company’s different needs. Public clouds are more affordable and, as such, are the choice of many young companies and small businesses operating with a limited budget.

If you want to maximise your online performance and tighten your data security, then choosing private cloud providers is right for you. There are also hybrid clouds that let you combine the features of private and public cloud infrastructures. 

However, parallel with the transition to the cloud, cybersecurity risks are growing. To maintain the utmost data security, businesses need to perform regular data backups. This is where frustrating and time-consuming snapshot-based backups may fail. 

This is why many enterprises are switching to a far more sophisticated continuous data protection (CDP) backup. 

The way it works is pretty simple – it runs in the background of your network, reads any changes made to data and backs them up almost instantly. This means more efficient data storage, no impact on the server performance, and granular data recovery. To increase your data accessibility and transparency, you can maintain your backups in the cloud environment.

Now that you know what continuous data protection is, here are a few reasons why to invest in it:

Minimal impact on server performance

One of the significant problems related to old school backups is their higher recovery point objective (RPO), as they read and store far more data. With the rising amount of data that needs to be stored, each traditional backup will become even slower and may hurt your overall server performance.

Precisely because of that, many organisations choose to schedule such lengthy backups during low-activity periods, such as weekends. This may lead to some security risks, as your data will remain unprotected in the meantime. Moreover, if your system experiences any backup failures, you will need to hire an IT team during the off-hours, meaning that the costs of the maintenance will also grow. 

This is something you want to avoid, and CDN can definitely help.

Namely, continuous data protection backups use the so-called changed-block tracking, meaning that your data is continually being replicated as it is written to your storage. Servers need to process just the incremental changes that happen between two backups, meaning that you won’t need to store massive amounts of data at once. 

More efficient data storage

Storing data using CDP is undoubtedly simpler. As no snapshots are created, continuous data protection can dramatically save your disk space. Namely, with continuous data protection backups, you’re basically performing a full backup only once.

After that, you’re recycling existing data over and over again, without using any additional disk space. Most importantly, freeing up your disk space may also impact your cloud storage plan, keeping the costs of the storage more affordable.

Improving data recovery

One of the major disadvantages of traditional backups is data security. Namely, if you schedule backups every day at 8 PM, this means that the data you create during the next day will remain unprotected until the next backup. Therefore, if your server breaks or you experience a cyberattack, chances are you will lose your data. 

CDP works differently, as it uses journal-based replication technologies. Just like I’ve already mentioned above, the data is stored as soon as it is created. Therefore, the backup system is always-on, providing more granular data storage and having lower RPOs than snapshot-based alternatives, meaning that there is no data loss. 

Providing granular backups

Now, you’re probably wondering what happens when an employee deletes a file accidentally or wants to view a previous version of a document?

Well, CDP solutions store multiple versions of each file. Therefore, an employee can roll back a day, week, or month to find previous versions of the file, without having to restore the whole system. 

Over to you

For example, you should know that the processes of data recovery, as well as backup granularity, vary a lot, based on a wide range of factors. The costs of investing in CDP may also grow, as it requires you to invest in expensive hardware.

However, this is an investment that, in the long run, may benefit your business in multiple ways. From real-time data monitoring and protection to the sophisticated data recovery processes, CDP still has numerous advantages when compared to legacy backups.

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Southeast Asia is no stranger when it comes to strategically playing the e-commerce card, Thailand as a case in point. Although yet to see its first unicorn, Thailand’s e-commerce sector has blossomed and produced a total of US$3 billion in market value in 2018, as stated in an article by Bangkok Post.

In the industry, these are the seven local players that flourish in the Thai e-commerce market

PantipMarket

Founded by Wanchat Padungrat in 1997, Pantip started off as a Thai-language online magazine, Pantip.com. The website didn’t take off, and Padungrat got inspired to turn it into an online forum for discussion.

According to an exclusive interview with Tech In Asia, Pantip started to make money from internet ads when Intel Australia took a chance to place an ad on its platform. Since then, more ad agencies came knocking for ad placement, and more people offer to invest in Pantip.

However, Padungrat said he didn’t believe an internet company needs so much money to run, so to this day, Pantip is still owned 100 per cent by the CEO.

Pantipmarket grew later, a classified listings marketplace, and now has 180,000 unique visitors per day.

Tarad

One of the oldest e-commerce in Thailand is Tarad.com, with a total of 200,000 merchants, with 20 per cent comprises of big brands and the remaining 80 per cent SMEs.

Recently in March 2019, the company announced that it has pivoted its business to include a full-service e-commerce services provider. Tarad launched U-Commerce, an integrated e-commerce management system for SMEs/merchants/vendors to help them manage a variety of online stores from a single platform.

Also Read: 5 initiatives by the Malaysia government that is spuring the growth of e-commerce

The new management system allows clients to have a single view of product management and sales on every channel. It mainly aims to serve large and mid-sized brands that are offline but eager to expand online.

Tarad was founded by Pawoot Pongvitayapanu. Tarad is 51 per cent owned by TSpace Digital Co, the digital arm of TCC Group, and was also backed by the Japanese giant Rakuten.

ShopSpot

ShopSpot was founded in 2012, launched as a Craigslist-style mobile app before shifting the business model from C2C to B2C marketplace platform for SMEs. The changes happened in 2013 after graduating from JFDI and raising its first seed round led by angel investor Kris Nalamlieng.

Shortly after, it raised an additional US$565,000 from Singapore-based Jungle Ventures as well as SingTel Innov8.

Founded by its CEO & Co-founder of ShopSpot Pte Ltd, Natsakon Kiatsuraron, ShopSpot is a mobile phone app that lets users snap a picture, tag the item they want to sell, and post it on the ShopSpot marketplace.

In 2016, it stroke a deal with King Power Group that saw it run only as ShopSpot Co., Ltd, made a change in its internal structure.

Blisby

Blisby is an online marketing website that sells handmade crafts and design products from Thai artists. It self-identifies as marketing websites to gather handmade artists into one community.

Blisby is also an online flea market for new arts and crafts. It was founded in 2013 by Phuvadol Thongthavorn, operates similar to the global handicraft marketplace Etsy, where users can sign up to create, sell, and purchase handicrafts.

In 2015, the company nabbed US$300,000 in a seed round led by East Ventures and Japanese mobile Internet giant DeNA.

Kaidee

Kaidee is a platform that facilitates a range of wares including smartphones, amulets, vehicles, and even properties.

In 2014, Kaidee joined forces with OLX.co.th to become a joint venture with 56 per cent holdings by kaidee and 44 per cent ownership by current OLX shareholders Naspers.

In 2017, Kaidee launched a dedicated car marketplace called RodKaidee, which enables users to search for cars via their make, car type, model, year, and engine type, and price range.

WeLoveShopping

WeLoveShopping is a C2C platform that caters to resellers and small merchants in Thailand. It claimed to house more than 320,000 stores in Thailand.

At first, WeLoveShopping began as a flagship e-commerce platform of Ascend Group, a privately owned e-commerce company headquartered in Bangkok, Thailand as a spin-off of True Corporation. Ascend Group also owns another notable e-commerce in Thailand, iTrueMart.

Also Read: 3 trends that will drive Vietnam’s e-commerce sector in 2019

Recently, it’s reported that WeLoveShopping has shifted to support True Corporation’s business. It worked as an arm of Charoen Pokphand Group, the largest agro-conglomerate.

iTrueMart

Another Ascend Group’s extension, iTrueMart is an e-commerce platform for home appliances and electronic products in Thailand.

In 2015, it announced its expansion into all 10 countries in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore. However, iTrueMart PH ceased trading in September 2016 and has since closed the business in the Philippines.

iTrueMart claimed to service an average of over 14,000 orders per day. iTrueMart is ongoing a rebrand as WeMall to also cater to marketplace sellers.

Thailand is full of international e-commerces that has localised its operation, presenting competition for the homegrown e-commerces.

In an article by Bangkok Post published last year, some of the local e-commerces’ players shared their insight on what’s needed for the local companies to survive amidst fierce contests. Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, founder of Tarad.com, said that companies need unique positioning and additional services instead of burning money by trying to compete with international players.

According to Google/Temasek e-Conomy 2018 report, the top five exports sold through cross-border trade in Thailand’s e-commerce are jewelry and watches, health and beauty products, auto parts, home and garden, and collectibles. Even with the fully-packed industry, both local and international players are expected to surge to US$13 billion by 2025, contributing to Southeast Asia’s forecasted account for US$103 billion in market size by 2025.
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It is true that the idea of working for a startup can be very compelling and exciting at first. They are widely popular for their unique working culture, unlike other typical well-established companies.

If you are a newbie with startups then you must be feeling a bit confused regarding how these companies operate.

You must have definitely heard a number of exciting stories about how people have become successful with startup businesses. But the truth is that for every startup that succeeds, there are a lot of them that do not thrive at all.

If you are new to the startup world then it must be difficult for you to decide whether you should actually join a startup or not at the first place.

Is there a way to identify a promising startup? In fact, if you can do some proper research beforehand you will be able to get a clear picture about the startup company that you wish to be a part of. I’m here to tell you seven things you should consider before joining a startup straight away.

1. Background of the founders

It is really important to do some background research on founders before being a part of a startup. An organisation can thrive only if it has a good founder who knows exactly what to do.

You should get to know about their academic background, professional background, vision, mission, skills, and past experiences including both successes and failures.

You can always Google, visit their LinkedIn profiles or watch some of their past interviews to get a clear picture about their overall personality.

You should join a startup only if its founders show promising characteristics of leadership.

2. Financial stability

One of the most common reasons for the failure of a startup is not having sufficient money.

If a startup does not have enough funds coming in, it will not last that much longer. It should at least have sufficient amounts of money in bank accounts if it is to survive the next couple of months.

Therefore, never forget to make sure that the company is financially stable enough to support its employees before jumping into accepting the job offer.

At least ask for some assurances for your future benefit.

3. The stage of the startup

Joining a startup that’s in its early stages is a great risk to take as it can go either way; totally down-hill or up with success.

If you are 100 per cent sure that the organisation is going to succeed eventually, then it is acceptable to take some risk.

Usually, the early-stage startups that do not receive traction for their products are more likely to fail in the future than the early-stage ones that have received initial traction.

A well-funded company with a good customer base is less likely to fall.

Therefore, you should assess the situation wisely and jump right in if it is stable and things go smoothly.

Also read: 4 tips for building a culture to help your company succeed

4. What do they expect from you?

Before joining a startup you should be confident that you are very well capable of providing the service they expect from you.

During the early stages of a startup with less resources at disposal, the responsibilities of its employees become significantly high.

Also Read: What do investors look in a startup

You should join such an organization only if you feel like you can do it.

Therefore, before joining a startup you should have a sound knowledge of its job description, key result areas, and the role you are going to play once you wade in.

5. Will the culture fit you?

You should be certain that you have the capability to fully adapt to startup culture.

If you can get used to the new working environment where you are expected to work long hours or have a sense of community, you will be able to perform well towards achieving corporate goals.

On the other hand, if you fail to do so the outcome will be unfavorable for both you and the company.

6. Compensation

Startups offer various compensation and benefits like ESOP (Employee Stock Options) to attract employees with talent. ESOP is usually paid once the startup is settled and more investments have started to come in.

If the organisation does not succeed, there is a risk of not receiving any compensation at all.

Therefore, you should be wise enough to request for a compensation package that you can be totally satisfied with.

It is always better to settle for a structure where you receive a fixed amount of payment.

Also read: How do you size employee ownership of your startup? This is your comprehensive guide to ESOPs

7. Stable management

You should join a startup only if the top management is stable and show a willingness to continue their service on behalf of the company.

There are many reported incidents where the founders have resigned from their startup as a result of internal conflicts.

Such incidents greatly distort the stability of the organization and endanger the future of its employees.

Therefore, you should never join a startup without doing some proper research on recent exits of its board members and the top management.

Trust me when I say that you’ll never want to work in a startup where everything is crumbling from its top management itself.

Joining a startup can either be your downfall or the first step towards success.

You should be wise enough to assess both risks and benefits before becoming a part of a startup.

Once you calculate the risks well and choose a startup with a promising future you will be able to work towards your own success.

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T9L Founder and CEO Fahad Moti Khan

At a glance, T9L looks just like any other startup incubator or accelerator programme.

Headquartered in Singapore with a development office in New Delhi, the company selects startups from India and Southeast Asia and support them in both execution and strategy.

But there are some factors that set it apart from other similar programmes: Its approach to help startups use their runway more effectively.

In an interview with e27, T9L Founder and CEO Fahad Moti Khan explains the three factors that determine success for a startup: Market, execution, and team.

“There is this urban legend that more than 90 per cent of funded startups failed. What we realised is that most of these failures happen in these three areas. Either they’re not entering the market at the right time, or they’re unable to execute properly,” he says.

Dubbing itself as a venture-as-a-service (“VaaS”) company, T9L helps startups grow by expanding their runway.

Also Read: Indonesian wellness startup RIDE gets US$1.25M Pre-Series A funding, rebrands into R Fitness

While a typical startup might spend approximately 70 per cent of their seed fund to take the product to market, with the help of T9L team, they can cut down the number to around 40 per cent –leaving the remaining fund to be invested in growth experiment, team-building, business model pivots, and fundraising.

This will be achieved through the following steps: Selecting the startups through a rigorous process, using pre-developed components to create and deploy product ideas, and introducing the startups to a network of partners to help them scale up.

This has been proven to work, as the company’s success stories included Docquity, which is currently known as the largest doctors’ network in Southeast Asia with around 100,000 doctors on board, and UOLO, which already secured over one million downloads.

T9L Co-Founder & COO Nitin Awasthi

By April 2019, T9L has 30 startups from 20 different verticals in its portfolio. They have a cumulative valuation of US$280 million with more than US$10 million in asset value.

From a startup to a startup studio

Despite its success, T9L has been flying mostly under the radar.

Khan points out that once at an event, an investor told them that despite looking to invest in T9L’s portfolio companies, he had never even heard of the startup studio itself.

“Our philosophy is that let your work speaks for you,” he says.

Also Read: iflix launches short-form video content production house Studio2:15

T9L itself began its journey as a startup that builds various tech solutions for other businesses. At some point, when the companies that they had been working with raised funding from notable VC firms, T9L began to consider pivoting their business.

“Instead of just doing it as a service, why don’t we start taking stakes at these companies?” Khan says.

The change seemed to work as COO and Co-Founder Nitin Awasthi notes that investors that are working with them feel “more comfortable” when they know that T9L is supporting the product.

“They know that no matter what happens, the technology is secured,” he stresses.

T9L Co-Founder & Chief Growth Officer Abhisek Mohan

T9L self-financed its operations for the first few years, but once they have started to raise external funding, the company learned that they can push for greater result by bringing in more startups.

It is currently raising for a Series A funding round, with the goal to further expand its business through talent and startup acquisition. The company is also looking forward to further investing in deep tech implementation.

Within the next five years, it aims to grow its portfolio to more than 120 companies.

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Image Credit: T9L

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Malaysia’s Oil and gas company Petronas has set up a US$350 million venture capital fund, which aims to make direct investments in technology startups around the world, as per reports.

The corporate venture capital will pick a minority stake in early to growth-stage firms.

“A US$350mil fund for investment has been allocated for Petronas corporate venture capital (CVC) to target direct investments in technology startups in industry 4.0, advance materials and specialty chemicals, future of energy as well as access into new markets,” the company said in a statement.

Also Read: Petronas teams up with 500 Startups to launch startup accelerator in Malaysia

Petronas, in partnership with 500 Startups, recently launched a startup programme, called Petronas FutureTech, which aims to discover and nurture home-grown technology entrepreneurs, scale them up to global standards, as well as build and influence the tech-driven startup ecosystem in the country.

FutureTech’s focus themes for the first batch are Industry 4.0, specialty chemicals and advance materials, future of energy, digital transformation and retail innovation. Up to 20 local startups will be selcted to undergo an intensive 8-week programme. At the end of the programme in November, the startups will pitch their to Petronas, investors, potential collaborators, and the media.

“Petronas CVC will be immersed in the venture capital ecosystem, be it in the Silicon Valley or Kuala Lumpur, to scout visionary entrepreneurs to solve critical problems in industrial and energy space through breakthrough technology and innovative business models,” the company said.

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One of the keys to success in a start-up journey is to perfect the elevator pitch.

Whether you are meeting with investors, recruiting like-minded individuals, acquiring customers or users to your start-up platform, a good elevator pitch instils the necessary confidence not just in your start-up, but fundamentally the people who are running the start-up.

Why? If you can distil the philosophy, unique selling points and execution path of your start-up in a clear and concise manner, it shows that your start-up is the brainchild of much careful planning and a clear direction.

After all, whether a start-up grows spectacularly or crashes and burns instantly is only 30 per cent the function of a brilliant idea, and 70 per cent a function of execution.

So what makes a good elevator pitch?

Know your business

It goes without saying that knowing your business inside and out sets out the foundation for a good pitch. One of the first investors that I pitched to jumped onto the idea within two sentences of my pitch.

The beauty lies in the simplicity of the pitch. In those two sentences, I explained that my start-up is aimed at allowing retailers to offer a commission to users who successfully refer customers to retailers.

The benefit to retailers is that they do not pay any upfront fees but the only reward upon customer spending (a win-win!), and the benefit to users is that they earn from word of mouth referrals and social media sharing, which are activities that they already engage in any way.

There is a clear mapping out of the benefits to both sides of the platform, and the gaps in the current market which the start-up aims to solve.

Immediately, the opportunity was clear to the investor. If private car hires are a success because they leverage on idle assets which users have, and the problem of not enough taxis on the roads when people need them, why not pay for word of mouth referrals where the idle asset is the social media presence, and the problem is not enough advertising solutions that reward for sales conversion.

Also read: The art of the hustle — in elevators, on flights, and even in the toilet

Know yourself

What makes a start-up more compelling is not just the brilliant business idea, but that the people running the start-up have a clear idea of what the flaws are, and what needs to be done to address the flaws.

A start-up that claims to have no flaws cannot be a credible one because the founders are not able to see where the risks and threats are.

Where there are these blind spots, it is very easy to be trapped in unbridled optimism and squander precious opportunities, whether it be well-meaning advice from other people in the community or areas in which partnerships could be critical to the survival of the start-up.

And no investor, employees or customers would want to sign-up with a start-up that claims to have no flaws, only to be taken by surprise and burnt when the start-up fails. Because start-ups are tough, and failure common, everyone wants to, and should, go in with their eyes open.

One of the questions I’ve had to address in my startup is knowing that as a founder, while I have a clear idea of the direction I want the company to go, I also have to recognise that I am not an expert in all the areas critical for the growth of the company.

The question is, therefore, how do I find the right people to fill in those gaps, and properly incentivise and motivate them to do their best for the company? I also have to ask myself seriously whether the market is ready for my platform.

How do I grow this new category and actively condition the behaviour of retailers and merchants to use our app when no one else is currently doing this in the market? What are the strategies that the company will need to have in place, and how is the company going to go about implementing these strategies? These questions form a big part in a realistic elevator pitch.

Know your audience

An elevator pitch may only take a few minutes, but it is still easy to lose the attention (or worse, bore) the listener if the pitch is not nuanced to the interest area of the listener.

For investors, they want to know the trajectory to growth, revenue projections and exit strategies. For employees, they want to know what the career development and mentorship would be. For customers, they want to know what the benefits are to them, and why, of all the start-up noise out there, your platform is the one they should entertain.

The struggle for the short attention span of listeners is real. Focus on keywords that you know will get the listeners to perk up. “Revenue”, “exit plan”, “training”, “scalability”, “no upfront fees”, “limited downside risks”, “ease of making cash”, “idle resources”.

These are the keywords that work in the context of my start-up. However, the same keywords do not work for all elevator pitches and all start-ups, which is why knowing your audience comes after knowing your business and yourself.

At the same time, do not throw in words that are the flavour of the month just because you think that these are what the investors, employees and customers want to hear. For example, “gig economy” and “sharing economy” – these are the hot buzz words, but do they capture the essence of what your start-up is about?

It is perhaps more important to coin a new buzz word that captures your essence than to use terms that are not appropriate. In my context, we are starting a “referral or ripple economy”. After all, it is the next new wave and opportunity that matters. Once a concept has become a buzz word, you’ll need to ask yourself whether the opportunity has already peaked, and space is starting to become overcrowded.

Also read: How to pitch your startup on Facebook without being too salesy

A final word

Finally, this is not a point for the preparation of the elevator pitch but one of implementation. It is important to make sure that the entire start-up team is clear on the elevator pitch.  I’ve had the shocking experience of finding out that a senior executive had misrepresented what our start-up is about to a customer.

This can easily happen because as a founder, we are the ones taking most of the time on the vision and business plan of the start-up, but how often do we get our own employees, and senior executives to repeat the vision and business plan back to us in their own words to ensure that they truly understand what the start-up is about?

As a founder, we cannot be everywhere all the time, and we will have to delegate. The executives represent the company and the experience has taught me to never assume that because someone has heard the same elevator pitch 100 times that the person has internalised it the same way that it is intended to be.

So practice the elevator pitch, and have your staff repeat the elevator pitch back to you whenever you can. Make sure that the people who represent you on a day to day basis are able to represent in a fairly accurate manner, or you risk undermining your start-up from the inside when there are already so many challenges in ensuring the survival of your company.

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Image Credit:  Waldemar Brandt

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Indonesian mPOS platform Cashlez announces IPO plan – DailySocial

Indonesian mobile point-of-sale (mPOS) platform Cashlez announced a plan for IPO in 2020, DailySocial reported.

Cashlez CEO Teddy Tee said that the company plans to get listed on the development board instead of the acceleration board, which was prepared for startups such as Cashlez.

He also stated that the company is currently preparing for the public listing.

Cashlez claimed to have worked with more than 6,000 merchants in Indonesian cities such as Jakarta, Bandung, Surabaya, Jogjakarta, Denpasar, and Medan.

Indian ride-hailing giant Ola to IPO in “less than two years” – Dealstreet Asia

ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd, the operator of Indian ride-hailing giant Ola, is reported to be planning for an IPO in less than two years after meeting profitability goals required for such listing in the country, according to Dealstreet Asia.

Citing two people aware of the discussions, the report also stated that Ola is expected to have turned its maiden annual profit in the year ended 31 March, the first step towards the goal of an initial public offering (IPO).

Local exchanges require companies to be profitable for at least three years before they go public.

Ola’s investor ARK Impact Asset Management has recently set up a pre-IPO trust fund.

Also Read: Aiming to add 4 new startups, Mandiri Capital Indonesia targets insurtech, investment management sectors

The US, allies call on Facebook to drop encrypted messages plan, citing concerns for terrorism and child abuse – Reuters

The United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia are to call on Facebook to drop its plan to introduce encrypted messages to its platform, Reuters reported.

The report stated that the three countries plan to sign a special data agreement that would fast track requests from law enforcement to technology companies for information about the communications of terrorists and child predators.

The agreement would enable law enforcement to get information in weeks and even days, instead of the current waiting period of six months to two years.

Facebook’s plan is being seen as a potential barrier to this goal.

The agreement will be announced alongside an open letter to Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg.

SoftBank, OYO jointly acquired Japanese rental apartment operator – Nikkei Asian Review

Indian hospitality startup OYO and its investor SoftBank Group have jointly acquired 80 per cent stake in Japanese rental apartment operator MDI, Nikkei Asian Review reported.

Citing a person familiar with the deal, the acquisition is said to cost over US$100 million.

OYO confirmed the transaction but declined to comment on the price and its stake in the company.

SoftBank and MDI had also declined to comment.

According to the report, the deal signals SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son’s appetite for new investments despite WeWork’s recent IPO “disaster.”

Also Read: Mandiri Capital Indonesia prepares fresh funds for 4 startups this year

Indonesian fishery platform Aruna raises funding – Dealstreet Asia

Indonesian integrated fishery platform Aruna has raised a funding round from SMDV and East Ventures as lead investors, Dealstreet Asia reported.

Aruna is a platform that uses digital technology to help fishermen in Indonesia improve livelihoods through better market access and fairer trading opportunities. It recently won The Alipay-NUS Enterprise Social Innovation Challenge, and has raised a seed funding round in 2017.

A spokeperson for East Ventures has declined to comment on the report.

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Image Credit: M. B. M. on Unsplash

The post Today’s top tech news: Indonesia’s Cashlez, India’s Ola reveal IPO plans appeared first on e27.