Venture
Google Capital in debut China VC investment
Google's discomfort at the growing level of censorship imposed on US internet players by the Chinese authorities after 2008 saw the company withdraw from the M&A scene. There were no deals at all until last week, when Google Capital – a $300 million...
Ayannah banks on the unbanked
Explaining why cross-border remittances into the Philippines are not his core business, Mikko Perez points to Hong Kong’s Central district on a Sunday, when the domestic helpers are out in force. “It’s so cut throat – we are talking basis points...
Jafco commits $4.6m in Japan footwear site Locondo
Jafco has invested JPY500 million ($4.6 million) in Japanese footwear e-commerce start-up Locondo in a Series C round of funding.
GGV, Tencent invest $13m in US tracking device maker
Tile, a US start-up that makes devices used to track lost items, has raised $13 million in funding from China-based investors.
VIDEO: Yilu Zhao of Qunar
Many VC-backed start-ups are cautious about accepting strategic capital due to concerns that these large investors will exert too much influence, particularly in terms of a potential public market exit. Yilu Zhao, chief strategy officer at Chinese travel...
Rocket Internet shares close down 13% on Frankfurt debut
German internet incubator and investor Rocket Internet saw its shares close down 13% on the first day of trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange following a EUR1.6 billion ($2 billion) IPO.
Matrix India backs online food-ordering platform LimeTray
Matrix Partners India has provided a Series A round of funding for Alchemy Web Private, operator of online food-ordering platform LimeTray. The size of the commitment was not disclosed.
Gree Ventures backs Philippines payments business
Gree Ventures has participated in a Series C round of funding for Philippines-based digital payments business Ayannah. Wavemaker Labs, Golden Gate Ventures, IMJ Investment Partners and Beenos Asia also participated.
Sinarmas takes Ardent cross-border
Ardent Capital is registered in Hong Kong, but Bangkok remains its home. Previous investments by the VC firm have followed the same model – start in Thailand, then expand into other Southeast Asian markets. Now, though, Ardent is preparing to incubate...
Top-up time: VC opportunity funds
Northern Light Venture Capital would like to have participated in the recent $50 million Series D round of funding for Daojia, but it could not. The Series C round last September wasn’t possible either. As it stands, the VC firm has recorded a handsome...
Google, Lightspeed lead $38m round for China's InnoLight
Google Capital, the growth-stage venture arm of Google, and Lightspeed China Partners have co-led a $38 million Series C round of funding for InnoLight Technology, a Chinese manufacturer of cloud computing optical transceivers.
Jungle Ventures commits $1.6m to Thailand fashion site
Jungle Ventures has led a $1.6 million pre-Series A round for Pomelo, a Thailand-based online fashion retailer.
Shunwei invests $10m in Chinese female social networking site
Shunwei Capital Partners has committed $10 million in Series B funding to 520guimi.com, a female-focused social networking site in China.
Pavilion, Recruit provide Series B2 for Japan's Freee
Temasek Holdings-owned Pavilion Capital and Recruit Strategic Partners, the VC arm of Recruit Holdings, have led a Series B2 round of funding worth $6 million for Freee, a Tokyo-based provider of automated online accounting software.
Singapore supports med-tech accelerator program
Spring Seeds Capital, an investment arm of government-backed Spring Singapore, has launched an initiative that could channel up to S$60 million ($47 million) into local medical technology start-ups.
VC-backed iMoney gets funding from Australia's iSelect
IMoney Group, a Malaysia-based financial comparison start-up backed by Jungle Ventures, has received approximately MYR13 million ($4 million) from iSelect, an Australia Securities Exchange-listed online comparison service.
Accel, Ribbit lead $35m round for Australian invoice app
Australia-based invoicing app Invoice2go has received $35 million in a Series A round of funding led by Accel Partners and Ribbit Capital. The company was founded in 2002 but this is its first external funding.
KPCB leads $50m round for China video app
KPCB has led a $50 million Series C round of funding for Chinese video app Miaopai, with participation from Sina, Redpoint Ventures and StarVC, a VC firm launched by a group of Chinese celebrities.
IDG invests in Chinese mobile tech player AVOS Cloud
IDG Capital Partners has invested in a Series A round of funding for AVOS Cloud, a Chinese mobile back-end as a service (BaaS) provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Canaan's Khanna to launch India venture debt fund
Canaan Partners Managing Director Rahul Khanna is to launch a INR3 billion ($49 million) debt fund aimed at supporting early-stage and established technology ventures in India.
Lightspeed leads $10m round for China P2P car-sharing site uuzuche
Lightspeed China Partners has led a $10 million Series A round of funding for uuzuche.com, a Chinese peer-to-peer (P2P) car-sharing platform.
China food-ordering platforms: Stand and deliver
Competition is increasing in China's online food delivery market as VC investors back start-ups looking to achieve scale ahead of expected consolidation. How asset-heavy should the business model be?
Southeast Asia e-commerce: Logistics logjam
Southeast Asia is expected to see rapid growth in e-commerce over the next five years. But are there enough competent logistics providers to deliver the goods in a timely and cost-effective fashion?
Sinarmas supports Ardent Capital's Southeast Asia expansion
Southeast Asia-focused e-commerce investor Ardent Capital has received $12.5 million in funding led by Indonesian conglomerate Sinarmas. Existing backers also participated.