Technology
Lightspeed leads $50m round for Singapore's YouTrip
Lightspeed Venture Partners has led a USD 50m Series B investment in Singapore-based travel wallet and currency exchange app YouTrip.
Saudi fund invests $100m in China's Pony.ai
Saudi Arabia’s Neom Investment Fund, a strategic venture vehicle for the planned smart city of Neom, has made a USD 100m commitment to Chinese autonomous driving player Pony.ai.
Navegar leads Series C for Singapore's Inteluck
Philippines private equity firm Navegar has led a USD 34m Series C round for Singapore-based supply chain technology provider Inteluck with support from East Ventures.
Deal focus: isBIM targets real estate’s digitisation catch-up
A renewed focus on safety and sustainability has prompted property developers to consider technology-enabled fixes. IsBIM is riding the wave from Greater China through Asia and the Middle East
Deal focus: Bolt.Earth looks to close India’s EV infrastructure gap
Bolt.Earth turned its electric vehicle operating system into the foundation stone for India’s largest charging network aimed at two- and three-wheelers overlooked by mainstream operators
Bain, DNE launch $250m China advanced manufacturing platform
Bain Capital and Chinese industrial infrastructure developer DNE Group have jointly launched a USD 250m advanced manufacturing investment platform.
General Atlantic backs India travel platform, Affirma exits
General Atlantic has acquired a minority stake in TBO.com, an India-based business-to-agent travel portal that serves a global customer base, for an undisclosed sum. The deal facilitates a partial exit for Affirma Capital.
US Congressional committee targets Sequoia's China exposure
Sequoia Capital has been targeted by a US Congressional committee seeking more details on its investments in semiconductors, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence (AI) in China over the past 13 years.
Australia's Employment Hero raises Series F at $1.3b valuation
Australian human resources start-up Employment Hero has achieved a valuation of approximately AUD 2bn (USD 1.3bn) on closing a AUD 263m Series F round led by US-based venture capital firm TCV.
Blackbird, Airtree back $18m round for Australia's Darwinium
Blackbird Ventures and Airtree Ventures have participated in a USD 18m Series A round for Darwinium, an Australian digital security start-up that moved its headquarters to the US in April.
China's Baichuan AI raises $300m
China-based artificial intelligence (AI) start-up Baichuan AI has raised USD 300m in a first tranche of Series A funding from an investor group featuring Alibaba Group, Tencent Holdings, and Xiaomi.
Deal focus: Minnow finds favour in crowded Indonesia vertical
Indonesia’s Luna, a seed-stage contender in a competitive retail digitalisation landscape, continues to collect VC backers as a patient, diversified gameplan comes into focus
Australia's Skykraft raises $75m
Australian deep tech VC firm Main Sequence has joined a AUD 120m (USD 75m) round for Skykraft, a local space tech provider focused on in-orbit air traffic control systems.
Quest backs Vietnam robotic prosthetics start-up
Singapore’s Quest Ventures has confirmed an investment of undisclosed size in Vietnam-based robotic prosthetics start-up Vulcan Augmetics.
China's Atom Bioscience raises $83m
Chinese inflammatory and metabolic disease drug developer Atom Bioscience has raised USD 83m in Series D funding led by local biotech specialist Kaitai Capital.
TPG Rise Climate invests $176m in Tata Motors
TPG Rise Climate, a dedicated climate fund under TPG’s global impact platform, has invested about INR 14.7bn (USD 176m) in an engineering and digital services division of India’s Tata Motors.
Australia’s Five V exits Totara to trade buyer
Australia’s Five V Capital has sold its majority position in employee management software provider Totara to London-based growth equity investor Tenzing for an undisclosed sum.
Eight Roads leads $22m round for Meitu's AI design unit
Pixocial, an artificial intelligence-enabled (AI) design tool spun out from China-based photo editing app provider Meitu, has raised USD 22m in funding led by Eight Roads.
Jungle launches Southeast Asia, India seed programme
Singapore-based Jungle Ventures has launched a Southeast Asia-India seed programme, claiming a first-of-its-kind investment structure to limit dilution for founders.
China's Didi gets backing from state-owned carmaker
China ride-hailing platform Didi, which delisted from the New York Stock Exchange last year following a scandal-hit post-IPO period, has raised USD 149m in funding from state-backed carmaker GAC Group.
Japan plant-based meat player raises $47m
Japanese plant-based meat company Daiz has raised JPY 7.1bn (USD47.4m) in Series C funding that features Mitsubishi UFJ Capital.
East, SV target $100m for Southeast Asia-Korea fund
Indonesia-focused East Ventures and Korea’s SV Investment have launched dedicated Southeast Asia-Korea fund with a target of USD 100m.
Shangqi hits $575m second close on renminbi fund
Shangqi Capital, a private equity affiliate of Chinese automotive manufacturer SAIC Motor, has completed a second close of CNY 4.2bn (USD 575m) on its latest renminbi-denominated fund, bettering the overall target of CNY 4bn.
Legend Star closes fifth renminbi fund on $123m
Legend Star, the China-based venture capital arm of Legend Holdings, has closed its fifth renminbi-denominated fund with more than CNY 900m (USD 124m) in commitments.