Ardent invests $2.2m in Indonesia B2B portal Bizzy

Bizzy manages a marketplace where clients in all 34 Indonesian provinces can buy and sell a wide range of items, from office equipment to pantry supplies. Customers can also use the site to shop for office-related services, such as cleaning companies.

Ardent told Tech in Asia that it believes there is high potential for Indonesia's B2B market in 2015, despite the failure of previous efforts such as Rocket Internet's OfficeFab, which shut down in 2013 after failing to attract sufficient investment. The firm says that only 11% of all startups in Indonesia are dedicated to the B2B sector, as opposed to 91% in South Korea.

Bizzy is a partner of another Ardent portfolio company, Thailand-based e-commerce services provider aCommerce, which developed the software behind Bizzy's ordering and shipping model. Ardent launched aCommerce in 2013 and participated in its $3.1 million bridge round that year. In 2014 Ardent participated in another $5 million funding round for the company.

Ardent, which is based in Thailand, operates under a holding company model rather than as a traditional VC firm. It invests in companies across Southeast Asia, generating returns mainly through trade sales and IPOs and paying off investors according to their individual holdings.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Support services
• Early-stage
• Expansion
• Venture
• Indonesia
• e-commerce
• Growth capital
• Ardent Capital