Venture
China credit assessment platform Wecash gets $80m
Wecash, a Chinese financial technology company that provides credit evaluations online, has completed an $80 million Series C round jointly led by China Merchants Venture Capital, Forebright Capital and SIG Asia.
Deal focus: Freightos looks to take shipping digital
GE Ventures leads a $25 million round for Freightos, giving the Hong Kong-based logistics software specialist dry powder to build out its price information marketplace for freight forwarders
Sequoia India leads Series C for Australia's HealthEngine
Sequoia Capital India has made its debut investment in an Australia-based start-up, leading a A$26.7 million ($20.2 million) Series C round of funding for HealthEngine, an online healthcare marketplace.
VCs back China female-focused consumer finance start-up
Shanghai Mime Financial, a consumer finance platform targeting the young females in China, has raised a Series C round led by domestic investors Haier Capital, Xiyu Capital and Panda Capital.
Grab buys VC-backed Indonesian e-commerce player Kudo
Southeast Asian ride-hailing app operator Grab has agreed to acquire Kudo, an Indonesian online-to-offline (O2O) e-commerce start-up backed by a number of venture capital firms.
Redpoint, Sinovation lead round for China online TCM player
Redpoint Ventures and Sinovation Ventures have led a Series B round worth RMB100 million ($14 million) for Xiaolu Clinic, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) online services provider.
GE Ventures backs Hong Kong digital logistics business
GE Ventures, the VC arm of General Electric, has led a $25 million extended Series B round of funding for Freightos, a Hong Kong-based logistics technology company. It brings total funding for the business to $50 million.
Morningside closes debut renminbi VC fund at $143m
Morningside Venture Capital, a China-focused early-stage VC firm that used to manage only US dollar-denominated funds, has closed its first renminbi vehicle at RMB1 billion ($143 million).
China personal lending platform Yongqianbao raises $68m
Yongqianbao, a Chinese mobile app that provides personal loan services, has raised a RMB466 million ($68 million) Series C round co-led by Golden Brick Capital and CICC Alpha.
B Capital leads $25m Series C for India's Icertis
B Capital Group - a VC firm launched by Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin - has led a $25 million Series C round for Icertis, an India and US-based company that provides cloud-based contract management software.
Deal focus: BlackBuck climbs the logistics ladder
BlackBuck receives $70 million in Series C funding as it continues its mission to cure the dysfunction in India's fragmented long-distance trucking industry
China edtech: Tangible teachings
Educational hardware remains an emerging investment segment globally. In China, cultural shifts are piquing expectations for a local boom, but success will depend on various cross-market diversifications
Korea to invest $102m in life science start-ups
The South Korean government has pledged to establish a KRW113.5 billion ($102 million) fund to support life science start-ups through related ecosystem and infrastructure investments.
China Growth Capital leads $14m round for Tiger Brokers
China Growth Capital has led an extended Series B round worth RMB100 million ($14 million) for Tiger Brokers, a Beijing-based online brokerage start-up, with participation from existing investor ZhenFund.
VCs invest $33m in Japan's Dely
Jafco, YJ Capital, and Gumi Ventures have taken part in a JPY3.7 billion ($33 million) funding round for Japanese online food media start-up Dely.
Tencent leads $350m round for VC-backed Kuaishou
Kuaishou, a Chinese live-streaming video app backed by VC investors and search engine Baidu, has raised $350 million in a new round of funding led by Tencent Holdings.
China video communication player Xiaoyu Link gets $18m
Xiaoyu Link, a Chinese video communication services provider, has raised a RMB125 million ($18 million) Series B round of funding jointly led by ZhenFund and Zhen Cheng Fund.
Sequoia, Fosun Kinzon invest $15m in India travel site Ixigo
Sequoia Capital has led a $15 million Series B round for Indian online travel marketplace Ixigo, with participation by Fosun Kinzon Capital, the investment arm of Chinese conglomerate Fosun International.
China's state-backed SME fund leads round for Tianyancha
China’s National Small & Medium Enterprises Development Fund has led a RMB130 million ($18 million) Series A round for Tianyancha, a Beijing-based business data search firm.
Alibaba assumes control of VC-backed online ticket platform
Alibaba Group has taken full ownership of Damai.cn, a leading Chinese online ticketing platform that previously raised funding from VC investors.
Japan's Moneytree raises $9m Series B
Japan-based SBI investment has led a JPY1 billion ($9 million) Series B funding round for domestic financial technology services company Moneytree.
Sands Capital leads $70m round for India's BlackBuck
Sands Capital has led a $70 million Series C round of funding for Indian business-to-business (B2B) logistics technology start-up BlackBuck.
VCs invest $75m in US-New Zealand aerospace player
US venture capital firms Data Collective and Promus Ventures have joined a number of existing investors in a $75 million Series D funding round for US and New Zealand-based aerospace company Rocket Lab.
Due diligence: Behind the curve
Gaining an accurate impression of an industry is vital for investors, but this can be difficult in markets where information is patchy or unreliable. Those who hope to prosper must learn to judge data carefully