500 Startups
Fund focus: 500 Global scales up in Southeast Asia
By investing early and building a diversified portfolio, 500 Global emerged from the technology valuation corrections somewhat unscathed. This gave the firm impetus when raising its third Southeast Asia fund
500 Global raises $143m for Southeast Asia
500 Global has raised USD 100m for its third Southeast Asia-focused early-stage fund and USD 43m for a vehicle that will target growth-stage start-ups in the region.
Indonesia's eFishery closes $200m Series D
Indonesian aquaculture start-up eFishery has closed a USD 200m Series D round led by Abu Dhabi-based 42XFund and featuring Northstar Group and 500 Global.
500 Global backs debut fund from Singapore's First Move
500 Global has backed the debut fund raised by Singapore’s First Move, a pre-seed VC firm set up by former executives of Malaysian online-to-offline commerce services provider Fave.
GP profile: 500 Global
500 Global’s emergence as a preeminent seed investor in Southeast Asia has played out against the backdrop of a broader transformation from US accelerator into international multi-stage venture capital firm
Malaysia's Khazanah launches start-up programme
Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional has launched a VC collaboration and start-up investment programme with an initial MYR 180m (USD 40m).
Deal focus: Digital marketing piggybacks e-commerce boom
Malaysian digital marketing specialist Involve Asia is making hay as regional e-commerce shows no signs of slowing. Fresh VC support will guide inorganic expansion amidst erratically trendy user behaviour
500 Global adds three partners in Southeast Asia
500 Global has named three new partners to invest in Southeast Asia as it looks to deepen coverage of a region it entered a decade ago and where it has backed more than 340 start-ups.
Singapore crypto risk platform extends Series A to $24m
Singapore’s Merkle Science, a predictive crypto analytics platform, has raised USD 24m in Series A funding led by K3 Ventures, Darrow Holdings, and Beco Capital.
Circle buys VC-backed Taiwan crypto infrastructure platform
Cybavo, a Taiwan-based crypto technology player that provides platforms for digital asset custody and blockchain application development, has agreed to be acquired by US digital currency specialist Circle for an undisclosed sum.
GIC leads $80m round for Indonesia's Bibit
GIC has led an USD 80m funding round for Bibit, operator of one of Indonesia’s largest robo-advisory investment apps. Prosus Ventures and other existing investors also took part.
Thai food supply chain player secures $23.5m Series B
Openspace Ventures has participated in a USD 23.5m Series B funding round for Freshket, a Thailand-based farm-to-table agricultural supply chain start-up.
SPAC target Prenetics sinks on US debut
Hong Kong-based genomic and diagnostic testing business Prenetics slumped on its NASDAQ debut, unable to withstand struggling public markets public markets and weak investor appetite for businesses that merge with US-listed special purpose acquisition...
Deal focus: Square Peg supports LottieFiles' push for scale
LottieFiles has carefully cultivated an investor base that can participate in its bid to capture even more demand from companies keen to plug motion graphics into their apps and websites
Square Peg backs US, Malaysia-based LottieFiles
Square Peg Capital has led a USD 37m Series B round for US and Malaysia-based motion graphics platform LottieFiles.
Asia agglomeration: Strength in numbers?
PE-backed agglomeration platforms are looking to buy up consumer brands in Asia with a view to leveraging the might of the collective. The model requires discipline in selection and execution
Bain leads $63m Series C for Korea's PeopleFund
Bain Capital has led a KRW75.9 billion ($64.5 million) Series C round for PeopleFund, a Korean lending platform. It is described as the largest funding round in the country’s P2P finance industry.
Q&A: 500 Global's Christine Tsai
Christine Tsai, co-founder of 500 Global, formerly 500 Startups, reflects on how a planetary approach to seed-stage VC has changed the asset class, the developing world, and the firm itself
Vietnam NFT start-up Axie Infinity raises $152m
Andreessen Horowitz has led a $152 million Series B round for Vietnam-based non-fungible token (NFT) gaming start-up Axie Infinity, also known as Sky Mavis.
500 Startups closes $140m global fund, rebrands
500 Startups has closed its largest-ever global fund at $140 million, while simultaneously rebranding as 500 Global and expanding its strategy to include later-stage deals.
Malaysia's Carsome raises $200m at $1.3b valuation
Malaysia-headquartered used car trading platform Carsome has achieved a valuation of $1.3 billion with the close of an extended Series D funding round worth $170 million.
China's DayDayCook agrees $300m SPAC merger
DayDayCook, a China-focused direct-to-consumer brand that started as a cooking-themed video platform, has agreed to merge with a US-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) at an enterprise valuation of $300 million.
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?
Bukalapak gains 25% on debut after $1.5b Indonesia IPO
Indonesian e-commerce platform Bukalapak hit the upper limits of its trading range within minutes of debuting on the Jakarta Stock Exchange following an IDR21.9 trillion ($1.5 billion) IPO.