The future of MSME financing will be collaborative, says IFS Capital’s Renchun Zeng [Q&A]
Micro, small, and medium enterprises or MSMEs are the backbones of economies in the Asia Pacific. An ADB whitepaper, Asia Small and Medium Enterprise Monitor 2020, states that small to medium enterprises comprise a majority of enterprises and workforce in the region, as well as a big part of the respective national economies. "Based on national classifications, during 2010–2019, MSMEs in the…
Southeast Asia’s top 50 rising women in tech 2021 [Updated]
Southeast Asia has seen its fair share of unicorns--23 at last count if we include startups that have already gone public like Sea and Razer. A quick scan of these billion-dollar startups reveals that only three of the region’s unicorns have female founders or are led by women.
The three are Grab Co-Founder Tan Hooi Ling, JustCo Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer Lu Liu, and PatSnap…
Hong Kong’s Pickupp expands Malaysian footprint with first regional hub in Penang
Pickupp Malaysia, the Malaysia unit of Hong Kong-based logistics startup Pickupp, announced on Monday its expansion beyond the Klang Valley through its first regional hub in Penang.
Pickupp will service the northern region with one warehouse, with plans to expand its warehouse footprint in the coming years to fulfill the demand for last-mile delivery to support the soaring growth of e-commerce…
SGX-listed iFAST Corp to continue digital bank ambition in Malaysia [Q&A]
Editor’s note: This interview is part of a Q&A series with some of the contenders vying for a digital banking license in Malaysia.
Losing out the bid for a digital wholesale bank license in Singapore last year has not stopped Singapore-listed wealth management firm iFast Corp Ltd to continue its digital bank ambition.
The company announced on June 30 that it has submitted an…
Starting up? Here’s why you need contingency funds planning
You may have often been advised by your financial planners to invest a certain portion of your capital in emergency funds that enable you to meet unexpected monetary emergencies.
Emergency funds (also known as contingency funds) are that portion of your money that is useful at any given time when you are faced with sudden financial emergencies like medical expenses, travel plans, or temporary…
Vietnam healthcare marketplace Thuocsi.vn raises $9M in Series A funding round led by Smilegate Investment
BuyMed, the operator of Thuocsi.vn, the largest online pharma distribution marketplace in Vietnam, announced on Friday a $9 million Series A financing round led by Korean venture capital fund Smilegate Investment.
The financing round also saw participation from B Capital Group and existing investors Cocoon Capital, Genesia Ventures, Sequoia Capital India’s Surge, and Nextrans, Thuocsi.vn said…
Facebook, Bain & Co Report: Southeast Asia’s digital consumer population to reach 380M by 2026
Southeast Asia’s digital retail share grew 85 percent year-on-year, outpacing China (5 percent), Brazil (14 percent) and India (10 percent), according to social media giant Facebook and consultant firm Bain & Company’s recently published annual SYNC Southeast Asia report.
According to Bain & Company, there will be 350 million digital consumers in Southeast Asia at the end of 2021…
How Mighty Networks pulled in 10,000 highly engaged customers
Serial entrepreneur Gina Bianchini, CEO of Mighty Networks, shares a variety of marketing gems as she recounts the journey from zero to 10,000 customers.
In recent years, the ‘passion economy’ has gained substantial ground. Across platforms, indie content creators are building their own niche communities and serving up multimedia that resonates with highly focused audiences--all while…
Indonesia’s Ayoconnect raises $10M in Pre-Series B funding round
Indonesia’s financial Application Programming Interface (API) platform Ayoconnect has closed its $10 million Pre-Series B funding round from strategic investors.
New investors in Ayoconnect include Mandiri Capital Indonesia (the corporate venture arm of the country's largest financial institution, Bank Mandiri) and Patamar Capital (Southeast Asia’s impact venture capital that invests in…
Malaysia’s Carsome raises $200M in financing round, valuation hits $1.3B
Southeast Asian used car trading platform Carsome Group announced on Wednesday the close of its $170 million Series D2 round of funding, bringing the company’s valuation to $1.3 billion and cementing its position as Malaysia’s largest tech unicorn.
This is complemented by new credit facilities of $30 million, bringing total funds raised to $200 million, Carsome said in a statement.
The…