TechNode Global Staff

With the world hopping onto the non-fungible token (NFT) craze, Taiwan has taken the lead with the launch of 0x0, the world’s first metaverse music label. Created by a group of music enthusiasts, the artists that 0x0 represents exist in the form of NFT characters, putting out music and MVs with the characters as their identities. This maximizes the…

Mekari, an Indonesia-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup, announced Friday its latest funding of $50 million led by Money Forward Inc, the largest SaaS provider of financial planning and accounting applications from Japan. This funding was also followed by the participation of previous investors.

Volopay, a Singapore-based corporate cards and payable management fintech firm backed by Y-Combinator, announced Thursday it has signed a partnership with Visa to be part of Visa’s Fintech Fast Track Program which will significantly expand Volopay’s offering of financial management solutions in the Australian market.

Zeals Co., Ltd. (Zeals), a Japan-based Chat Commerce provider, announced Thursday that it has raised a total of ¥5 billion ($38.77 million) in funding.JIC Venture Growth Investments led the ¥3.5 billion ($27.14 million) Series E round with participation from Z Venture Capital, a venture investment arm of Z Holdings, Japan Post Capital, and Salesforce…

Chainalysis, a United States-based blockchain data platform, announced Thursday a $170 million Series F financing led by GIC, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, bringing its valuation to $8.6 billion. Previous investors Accel, Blackstone, Dragoneer, and FundersClub increased their investment in the company, and the Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Melon) and…

Ather Energy, an India-based electric two-wheeler company, announced Thursday the completion of its Series E round of funding with signing of investment agreements amounting to $128 million with National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited’s (NIIFL) Strategic Opportunities Fund (SOF), and Hero MotoCorp.

Investree Singapore Pte Ltd (Investree Group), a holding company of Southeast Asian fintech lending platforms for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), is set to acquire 18.4 percent minority stake in PT Bank Amar Indonesia Tbk (Amar Bank), a licensed commercial bank and digital banking pioneer in Indonesia. Investree has signed a transaction…

Supabase, a Singapore-based open-source database-as-a-service (DBaaS) company, announced Tuesday that it has raised $80 million in Series B funding led by Felicis, with participation from existing investors Coatue and Lightspeed. This latest round follows Supabase's $30 million Series A round announced in September 2021, and brings the company's total…

Grab, the Singapore-based superapp, announced Thursday three goals to drive sustainable and inclusive growth in Southeast Asia. The new goals are doubling the number of marginalised individuals earning income on its platform by 2025; reaching 40 percent female leadership by 2030, and achieving carbon neutrality by 2040.

Indonesia-based insurtech startup Qoala, said Wednesday it has successfully raised Series B funding of $65 million led by Eurazeo.The round also saw participation from several existing investors including Flourish Ventures, KB Investment, MassMutual Ventures, MDI Ventures, SeedPlus and Sequoia Capital India. BRI Ventures, Daiwa PI Partners, Indogen Capital,…