News

East Ventures raises $550M multi-stage fund to focus on Indonesia and Southeast Asia startups

Indonesia-focused venture capital firm East Ventures has raised a total of $550 million in the final close of its latest fund. Headquartered in Singapore and founded in 2009, East Ventures has transformed into a holistic platform that provides multi-stage investment, including Seed and Growth for over 200 companies in Southeast Asia.

Malaysian Prime Minister too, tries to court Tesla to invest in the country – report

Neighbouring Indonesia has been publicly wooing Tesla to invest in the country to help develop its ambitious EV and battery industry plans. Indonesian President Joko Widodo is planning to meet Tesla Founder and Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk.

Investree to acquire 18.4 percent stake in Indonesian digital bank Amar Bank

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…

Singapore’s Supabase announces $80M Series B funding led by Felicis

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 announces three ESG goals for sustainable and inclusive growth

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’s Qoala raises $65M Series B funding led by Eurazeo

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,…

Hong Kong’s Gusto Collective completes seed plus financing round of $11M

Gusto Collective, Hong Kong-based BrandTech holding company, said Thursday it has raised $ 11 million in its seed plus funding round led by Animoca Brands and Gaw Capital. The oversubscribed round also received participation from BlackPine, YCI Limited, and several existing shareholders including ClearVue Partners. With the completion of this round, the…

YouTrip & Mastercard launch YouBiz smart corporate card for SMEs to earn unlimited cashback and save on FX fees

The development follows YouTrip’s recent $30 million Series A funding.

SC Ventures and SBI Holdings sign MOU to speed up portfolio expansion and build ecosystems

SC Ventures, Standard Chartered’s innovation, fintech investment and ventures arm, announced that it had entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with SBI Holdings, Inc. SC Ventures aims to expand their portfolio at a business and geographic level and to explore new ecosystems through this partnership.

Taiwan’s Gogoro to launch battery swapping platform & smartscooters in Israel

Gogoro Inc., a Taiwan-based battery swapping ecosystems provider, announced Thursday it was partnering with Israeli two-wheel vehicle distributor Metro Motor and Israeli gas and energy company Paz Group to launch its battery swapping platform and smartscooters in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area this summer and other cities in Israel in the future.