Financials
IFC plans re-up for A91's second India fund
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has proposed a commitment of up to $25 million in the sophomore fund of India’s A91 Partners, which has a target of $500-550 million.
Indonesia payments player Xendit raises $150m Series C
Indonesian digital payments infrastructure provider Xendit has raised a $150 million Series C round led by Tiger Global Management at a valuation of around $1 billion.
Square Peg leads $55m round for Indonesia's Pluang
Square Peg Capital has led a $55 million Series B round for Indonesian micro-savings and micro-investment app Pluang.
India's Leap Finance raises $55m Series C
US education technology specialist Owl Ventures has led a $55 million Series C round for Leap Finance, an Indian start-up that helps students pay for overseas studies.
PayPal to acquire Japan's Paidy for $2.7b
PayPal has agreed to buy Japan’s Paidy, a specialist in deferred e-commerce payments backed by several private equity investors, for about JPY300 billion ($2.7 billion).
Kyobo Life arbitration favors GPs, but resolution still elusive
A private equity consortium's right to enforce a put option against the chairman of Korea's Kyobo Life Insurance has been upheld following arbitration, though the ruling stopped short of endorsing a price for the transaction.
Deal focus: Affinity capitalizes on enforced divestment
Delivery Hero was instructed to offload Yogiyo as a condition of buying Woowa Brothers. Affinity, Permira, and GS Retail made the most of a $685 million opportunity to enter Korea’s food delivery space
Deal focus: Vision Fund throws its weight behind Opay
An introduction from SoftBank Ventures Asia prompted Vision Fund 2 to lead a $400 million Series C for Nigeria-based Opay, creating Africa’s newest technology unicorn in the process
Thailand insurtech player Sunday gets $45m Series B
Thailand-based insurance technology start-up Sunday has received $45 million in Series B funding from a group of investors including Tencent Holdings.
Naspers-owned PayU to buy India's BillDesk for $4.7b
PayU, a payments provider owned by South African conglomerate Naspers, has agreed to acquire 100% of Indian payments app BillDesk for $4.7 billion, setting up several private equity exits.
Thai bank joins $41m round for local crypto platform
Thailand’s Bank of Ayudhya has joined a $41 million Series B round for local cryptocurrency exchange operator Zipmex.
Australia insurance start-up raises $31m Series B
New Zealand venture capital firm Movac has led a $31 million Series B round for Australian insurance technology provider Open.
Deal focus: EmergeVest turns to Lucy for financial inclusion
EmergeVest has made a seed investment in Lucy, a Singapore-based neobank that focuses on home-based micro-entrepreneurs and Southeast Asia’s legions of foreign domestic workers
Affirma backs India's Belstar Microfinance
Affirma Capital has contributed INR3 billion ($40.8 million) to a INR3.5 billion funding round for India’s Belstar Microfinance, supported by existing investors Muthoot Finance and Maj Invest.
SoftBank leads $154m Series D for China's Ekuaibao
Ekuaibao, a Chinese software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider specializing in corporate reimbursements, has raised RMB1 billion ($155 million) in Series D funding led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2.
CDIB leads round for Taiwan crypto-fiat start-up
CDIB Capital Group has led a $17 million pre-Series A round for Xrex, a Taiwan-based financial technology player that uses blockchain to facilitate cross-border payments by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Chinese investors join $400m round for Nigeria's Opay
Several Chinese investors have re-upped in a $400 million round – at a valuation of $2 billion – for Nigeria-based logistics and payments technology company Opay.
Kedaara, Partners Group complete Aavas sell-downs
Kedaara Capital and Partners Group have made partial exits from Aavas Financiers, the mortgage business they carved out from Indian non-banking finance company Au Financiers in 2016 and took public two years later.
Faering leads $40m Series C for India fintech start-up
Indian private equity firm Faering Capital has led a $40 million Series C round for stock trading and thematic portfolio platform Smallcase, with support from Amazon and Premji Invest.
Start-up profiles: Digital banking, embedded finance, crypto banking
The Philippines’ Tonik breaks ground in neo-banking; India’s YAP finds new ways to connect banks with their customers; Singapore’s Matrixport scales fast with decentralized finance
Start-up profiles: Infrastructure, insurance, data, payments
Singapore’s Fireblocks tokenizes traditional banks; India’s PolicyBazaar mulls the future of insurance; China’s Rong360 diversifies through data; Cambodia’s Clik targets a payments frontier
Start-up profiles: Transfers, risk, marketplaces
Singapore’s Thunes rethinks remittances for an enterprise clientele; China’s IceKredit brings data privacy to credit scoring; India’s OfBusiness gravitates towards a healthy loans segment
Asia fintech: Platform plays
Expansion is the dominant theme in financial technology as start-ups leverage existing assets to enter new verticals, typically in lending. Which ones will become Asia’s preeminent platforms?
Blockchain: Going mainstream
The most disruptive technology in financial services is also the most esoteric and misunderstood. As a long, speculative uptake phase unfolds, investors are coming to terms with the future