As e-commerce grows, merchants and payment providers must address the need to combat fraud [Q&A with Shabab Muhaddes]

There is no question about the growing digitalization of businesses across Southeast Asia. The e-Conomy SEA 2020 report by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Co., reported that a third of all digital transactions since the start of the pandemic were from new customers. E-commerce has also ensured the sustainability of businesses that would have otherwise not survived or thrived, such as food and…

5 Consumer benefits from increased e-commerce investment in Singapore’s logistics industry

With reports of Korean e-commerce giant, Coupang, hiring senior executive staff in Singapore, here are the top 5 benefits Singaporean consumers enjoy with more e-commerce competition and investment into local logistics. Today e-commerce dominates Singapore consumerism with an estimated 3.3 million users. It is no surprise that Singapore is a hot market for domestic and foreign e-commerce…

With $11M Series B, Intrepid empowers brands in executing their omnichannel e-commerce strategies [ORIGIN Innovation Awards Q&A]

Editor’s note: In addition to coverage of Intrepid's Series B fundraise, the below interview is part of a Q&A series with winners of the ORIGIN Innovation Awards 2020. Intrepid is a winner in the category Startup Awards--e-Commerce. Intrepid, which provides a one-stop-shop solution for global brands that seek to accelerate their e-commerce business across Southeast Asia, has raised…

Philippines startup Great Deals E-Commerce secures $30M Series B led by Fast Group

Great Deals E-Commerce, a Filipino end-to-end e-commerce service platform that handles everything from digital content, web design, analytics, and chat support, has just announced that it has raised $30 million in a Series B round led by Philippine logistics firm Fast Group. The round was also participated in by global private equity and investment advisory firm CVC Capital Partners and returning…

5 E-commerce fraud prevention trends taking shape as the pandemic accelerates digital transactions

Online transactions around the world have increased largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic where most people stay home. This is no different in Southeast Asia, where the e-commerce sector grew 63 percent to reach US$62 billion in 2020. By 2025, online retail is projected to reach US$172 billion. With more online purchases comes an increased risk of fraud incidences. Last year, card not present…

Una Brands raises $40M Seed fund to consolidate small e-commerce brands in APAC

Una Brands Singapore-based Co-Founders (L-R): Tobias Heusch, Kiren Tanna and Kushal Patel E-commerce roll-ups have become quite popular over the past year. In this trend, small e-commerce brands are being acquired, so they can be scaled up into more profitable businesses. Companies like Branded Group and Thrasio have been buying up smaller companies in the leading online commerce…

How Komerce bridges micro SMEs with e-commerce capability and community impact [ORIGIN Innovation Awards Q&A]

E-commerce has provided opportunities for small and micro-enterprises to expand their potential customer base. However, not all small businesses have the capability to go digital. Indonesian startup Komerce (formerly Kampung Marketer) has capitalized on the trend and started providing e-commerce services to such small businesses by hiring talent from kampungs or small villages in Indonesia,…

Hobby lifestyle e-commerce platform Mercular raises $3M Series A led by Kairous Capital

Mercular, the hobby lifestyle vertical shopping platform based from Thailand, has raised its Series A investment amounting to approximately $3 million. The funding round was led by Kairous Capital with participation from Cyber Agent, 500 Startups (through its 500 Tuk Tuks fund) and the Government Savings Bank through SMEs Private Equity Trust #1 (N-Vest Venture) and SMEs Private Equity Trust #3…

ORIGIN: With fast cashbacks, community impact, and livestreaming, here’s how e-commerce is reshaping the way we buy and sell

E-commerce is a several-decade-old industry, but its impact is growing in significance with increased digitalization. The global retail e-commerce industry is worth $4.28 trillion according to Statista. "As millions of people stayed home in early 2020 to contain the spread of the virus, digital channels have become the most popular alternative to crowded stores and in-person shopping. In June…