Also, two tech companies announce new senior hires today, and Grab Financial to launch Singapore-Philippines cross-border remittance service

AngelHub and WHub raises US$3M funding from Kharis Capital, TNG Fintech Group [Press Release]

WHub, Hong Kong’s startup community platform and power connector with over 3,000 startups, announces that it has received investment valued at US$3 million led by Kharis Capital, a VC that builds and manages direct investment partnerships backed by and dedicated to families and entrepreneurs. Joining the investment is Hong Kong’s fintech unicorn TNG Fintech Group.

Along with the investment, WHub has also launched AngelHub as a new way to invest in vetted startups that are building the future. WHub said it will deploy the investment across both AngelHub and WHub to further develop the business through geographical expansion, technology upgrades, and talent acquisition as both companies build their offering and attract more customers and new investments to the platform.

“AngelHub’s experienced team and partners provide investors worldwide with a way to startups scaling in Asia. Investors can now be part of this digital (r)evolution and invest in innovative technology companies in a regulated, fully digitalised, and efficient way,” said Karen Contet Farzam, Co-founder of AngelHub and WHub.

Online event marketplace EFFRO relaunches new platform in Singapore [Press Release]

B2B events hiring technology platform EFFRO announces that it has officially relaunched in Singapore with a new look and platform. It aims to help businesses organise their events by minimising delayed payments and mediocre talents, ensuring that time or money is not wasted in each event-planning process.

The new platform, the company said, will connect clients with talents and vendors via a chat-to-hire function and a review-and-rating system.

Also Read: Grab reportedly wants to merge OVO with Ant Financial’s DANA. What does it mean for the rest of us?

The Singapore-based company was started in 2014 by Adam Tan, brother of ex-Mediacorp actor Andie Chen, who is also actively involved in EFFRO as an advisor and investor. It currently has 1,200 talents and 300 clients on its Singapore platform and has recently launched its platform in Thailand and Malaysia.

Razer Fintech adds Lim Siong Guan into company’s board of advisors [Press Release]

Razer Fintech, the financial technology arm of Razer Inc. and one of the Offline-to-Online (O2O) digital payment networks in Southeast Asia, has appointed Lim Siong Guan as an Advisory Board member.

Lim will add his experience from his past careers that include serving as the Group President of GIC Private Limited (GIC) from 2007 to 2016 and subsequently, Advisor to GIC’s Group Executive Committee to March 2019.

Lim also previously served as a board member of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and as Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board, focussing on enhancing Singapore’s position as a global business center and as a critical hub in the global supply chain. In addition to that, Lim was the first Principal Private Secretary to Singapore’s founding Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, and has served as the Head of the Singapore Civil Service, as well as Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Defence.

Hong Kong-based blockchain insurtech Galileo appoints Simon Copley to Board as Independent Director [Press Release]

Galileo Platforms Limited (Galileo Platforms), a blockchain-based insurance technology company, has announced the appointment of Simon Copley to the Board of Directors as an independent director.

Copley’s appointment made him the first independent director to join the Galileo Platforms board.

Galileo Platforms has a business-to-business (B2B) operation, and this appointment signifies its readiness for fresh funding and a pending product launch. The move also ties in with the company strategy to expand the use of blockchain across more sectors of the insurance industry and in a greater number of markets, partnering with challenger insurers, incumbent insurers, distributors, and reinsurers.

Also Read: P2P lending fintech Validus closes over US$15.2M Series B funding led by Dutch bank FMO

From the UK originally, Copley worked for more than 30 years advising many of the leading financial services groups in Europe and Asia, mostly on insurance, risk management, banking, and capital markets. During 21 years as a partner at PwC in Hong Kong, he led the firm’s regional insurance industry practice in what was a period of huge sector growth and transformation in the region.

Grab Financial to launch Singapore-Philippines cross-border remittance service [DealStreetAsia]

Grab Financial, Grab’s financial arm, announced that it plans to launch its first cross-border remittance service targeting Singapore and the Philippines in the fourth quarter of 2019, DealStreetAsia has reported.

Since remittances play an important role in Southeast Asia’s economy and the Philippines is the fourth-largest remittance market in the world, Grab believes that the move is necessary. The service will allow users to remit money using their GrabPay wallets securely and instantly.

“This represents both a clear opportunity and an issue to resolve, as remittance is often a lengthy and laborious process from sender to agency to receiver. We are also looking to launch other remittance corridors in the near term,” said Reuben Lai, senior managing director of Grab Financial Group.
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Photo by Helena Lopes on Unsplash

The post Today’s top tech news, September 11, 2019: AngelHub and WHub raises US$3M funding from Kharis Capital, TNG Fintech Group appeared first on e27.