Dear Pro member,
Last week, I had a casual chat with a startup founder in Myanmar, whose startup ecosystem is in dire straits. The COVID-19 breakout, Feb 2021 coup, and the economic downturn hit startups the hardest. Over 70-80 tech companies have shut down, and the junta is least bothered about startups.
Feeling neglected and with no way out, local startups and even big IT companies moved to neighbouring countries, such as Thailand and Vietnam.
I am gathering more details to write a piece about Myanmar’s many problems. If you know someone who can share some details about the issues faced by the country’s startup industry, please let us know.
Separately, we are working on a new feature series for founders to speak about their failures/failed startups. Some big “fishes” in the region have agreed to talk to us about this. Wanna be part of this series?
In today’s ER edition, we have many funding stories, Echelon 2023-related articles, features, and interviews.
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Vietnam Oman Investment (VOI) to fund financial services firm F88
According to sources, the new investment could be at least US$30M; VOI is a JV between the two governments focussed on sectors such as healthcare, education, agri, renewable energy, infra, highways, and clean water plants.
Ex-Ninja Van PH country head Martin Cu joins 500 Global as partner for SEA
It has also boarded Saemin Ahn (Founding Managing Partner at Rakuten Ventures), Shahril Ibrahim (ex-Director of Investments and Head of Khazanah Americas) as partners; Over the past decade, 500 has invested in 340+ firms in SEA.
Carsharing startup GetGo bags US$15M to bring 10K greener vehicles into SG by 2030
The investor is family-backed investment group Treïs; GetGo operates over 2,100 vehicles across 1,400 locations, serving over 50,000 users and making over 150,000 bookings monthly.
Grab aims to hit adjusted EBITDA breakeven sooner than expected
Grab logged a revenue of US$502M in Q4 2022 – a 310% jump from the same period a year ago; The growth comes on the heels of a comeback in mobility, a reduction in total costs, and the launch of new products.
Alibaba’s net income returns to positive in latest quarterly results
The Chinese e-commerce giant reported a net income of US$6.6B for the quarter ended on December 31, 2022; This represents an increase of 138% from the same quarter in 2022.
Hong Kong earmarks US$6.4M for Web3 expansion
The city-state aims to enable industry players and enterprises to better grasp the frontier development of the Web3 ecosystem and to promote business cooperation across sectors.
Vietnam’s FPT Software acquires US firm Intertec’s IT services unit
The deal’s size was not disclosed; FPT Software will build on Intertec’s delivery centers and operational experience in Costa Rica, Colombia, and Mexico.
FTX Japan to allow withdrawals via local exchange
Account holders of FTX Japan who already have access to Liquid Japan can link their accounts to transfer assets from the former to the latter; Crypto and fiat assets can then be withdrawn from Liquid Japan.
Malaysian SPAC AEI CapForce II files to raise US$100M in US IPO
It intends to focus its search on target business in Asia and SEA, particularly in the ‘new economy’ sectors, including globalisation, IT, and communication revolution.
HK may allow trading of digital tokens on licensed exchanges
Under the new proposal, all centralised virtual asset trading platforms in Hong Kong – or those active in the market – will need to acquire licenses and be regulated by SFC.
Bintang Capital invests in Involve Asia
The investment will support Involve Asia’s expansion across SEA and Australasia; The Malaysian firm provides a platform to help brands market digitally through ads attribution, partner workflow management, and creative distribution.
Proglix secures US$1.35M to make raw material procurement easy for Indonesian SMEs
The investors include 500 Global, Number Capital, Magic Fund, Arkana Ventures, and MDI Arise; The B2B e-commerce startup connects SMEs with raw materials at competitive prices and delivers them with shorter lead times.
Strive raises US$1.3M to transform the way kids learn to code
The investors include Goodwater Capital, President of MasterCard Asia, and the founder of Sequoia India; The edutech startup aims to ignite kids’ passion for coding and pave the way for a career in technology.
Ledgerowl raises pre-seed funding round from Init6, Investible
Ledgerowl’s AI-powered platform leverages machine learning to automate many of the tasks involved in bookkeeping, such as data collection, data entry, reconciliation, and classification of transactions.
We’ll start to see more solo-GP VCs emerge in SEA: Wing Vasiksiri of WV Fund II
The solo-GP VC model has certain advantages, including empathy for founders, speed and transparency, and elimination of the principal agent problem.
Singaporean startup PixCap wants to be the Canva of 3D designs
PixCap lets users tap on 3D assets and templates, from simple to professional, and access everything through a browser-based interface; It recently raised US$2.8M, led by Sequoia and Surge.
‘Venture investing isn’t simply injecting money into a firm hoping to multiply it’
Benedict Tan, an Associate at Vertex Ventures, talks of having a voracious appetite for learning about entrepreneurship and new business models.
Wanted: SEA soonicorns, future change-makers to share their stories at Echelon 2023
For soonicorns, as they are closing in to the much-coveted unicorn status, there might be more that is at stake; The summit will happen from June 14-15 at Singapore EXPO.
6 different ways to explore growth at Echelon Asia Summit 2023
Check out the exciting features we have in store for Echelon Asia Summit 2023 that can help you achieve your business goals.
H3 Dynamics decarbonises global aviation industry with multiple aerial mobility products
The startup has 4 business units in real estate maintenance management, robotics, hydrogen refuelling, and hydrogen propulsion; H3 was the winner of Echelon 2019.
How to navigate layoffs and come out stronger
Surviving a recession and layoffs requires a combination of financial preparedness, adaptability, and a positive mindset, says Vaibhav Aggarwal of Coinbase.
Everything you should know about the future of futuristic food tech
In the future, predictive analytics will emerge stronger, given its possible widespread impact, from predicting market disruptions and managing surplus inventories to facilitating faster food deliveries.
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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 brings together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here. Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups can pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like a chance to connect with investors, visibility through e27 platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.
The post Ecosystem Roundup: Vietnam-Oman JV to invest in F88; GetGo scores US$15M; 500 SEA gets 3 new Partners appeared first on e27.
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