Rakuten leads $10m Series A for Singapore’s PocketMath
Rakuten Ventures, a corporate VC arm of Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten, has led a $10 million Series A round for PocketMath, a Singapore-based mobile advertising platform.
The company claims this is the largest Series A round for a Singapore-based company, and the biggest investment made by Rakuten Ventures to date. SaeMin Ahn, management director of Rakuten Ventures, has joined the company's board.
Founded in 2013, PocketMath provides a self-service mobile advertising platform for any users to place ads using a real-time bidding (RTB) system. With a team of over 40, the company said it has achieved eight-digit revenues by serving hundreds of corporate clients.
"PocketMath targets one of the most margin rich ad-tech segments for mobile," Rakuten's Ahn said in a statement. "This investment gives Rakuten a strong stake in the mobile advertising game, and we're excited to explore how PocketMath can play a role in growing the Rakuten marketing ecosystem in the future.
PocketMath will use the new funds to hire more staff and accelerate product development. It will also establish a business partnership with Rakuten.
Rakuten Ventures was formed in 2013 and counts Carousell, Visenze, Coda Payments and Send Anywhere among its investments. In June, the VC firm launched a $100 million global fund to invest in start-ups in Israel, Asia and the US.
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