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In the TechNode Global Q&A, Amra Naidoo shared her story of how she started the early stage VC firm Accelerating Asia and her journey working in the male-dominated VC industry. She also shared the challenges she met working with startups and how Accelerating Asia is positioning itself to tap into opportunities that are overlooked by others.

In face of adversity, that’s when the DNA of entrepreneurs comes into play. And the resurgence of COVID-19 is another opportunity for entrepreneurs to display their grit, tenacity, and flexibility to adapt to an evolving situation. For some high-potential Vietnamese startups, this is not the time to stand still and just plan for survival.

The company was established amid the pandemic by its founder Bela Gupta D’Souza, who saw the pain points of mothers as consumers when purchasing online. She said that it is common for mothers to spend many hours in search of the best products for their children only to end up with inferior quality products from untrusted sources.

Speedhome aims to expand regionally to 10 other metropolitan cities in the next five years, namely Bangkok, Manila, Jakarta, Taipei, Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Melbourne, Sydney, Hong Kong, and Singapore, to emerge as Southeast Asia’s PropTech unicorn.

Catcha Group will become a shareholder of the Carsome Group in exchange for the sale of its shares in iCar Asia to Carsome.

Singapore-based FinTech UNObank was granted the first new digital banking license under the Digital Banking License framework of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Manish Bhai shares insights on how digital-native banks can provide faster and more innovative services to address the needs of the underbanked and unbanked.

Goh said she enjoys setting an example that a female VC can be as logical, as non-emotional, as strong in dealmaking, as battle-tested, if not more than her male counterparts.

Allozymes plans to use its seed fund to establish its roots in Singapore and establish its manufacturing and business infrastructure in order to meet its projected demand in the APAC region.

Since its launch in September 2016, GREDU has grown its platform, which is currently being used by over 400 schools, bringing its total user base to roughly 400,000. The startup provides its users (students, parents, teachers, and administrators) with a single platform to communicate with each other and keep track of any important details.