Catherine Shu
Writer
The Latest from Catherine Shu
Philippines ‘buy now, pay later’ startup Plentina raises $2.2M seed round
E-wallets are rapidly gaining popularity in the Philippines, overtaking credit cards, which have a penetration rate of less than 10%. Fintech startup Plentina is leveraging that trend with buy now, pa
Cloud kitchen startup JustKitchen to go public on the TSX Venture Exchange
JustKitchen, a cloud kitchen startup, will start trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) Venture Exchange on Thursday morning. It is doing a direct listing of its common shares, having already rai
Vanadium ion battery startup Standard Energy raises $8.9M Series C from SoftBank Ventures Asia
Standard Energy, a vanadium ion battery developer, announced today it has raised a $8.9 million Series C from SoftBank Ventures Asia. The South Korea-based company says its batteries’ advantages ove
Vietnam-based healthcare booking app Docosan gets $1M seed funding led by AppWorks
Based in Ho Chi Minh City, Docosan helps patients avoid long waits by letting them search and book doctors through its app. The company announced today it has raised more than $1 million in seed fundi
Hatch, a neobank for SMBs, launches with $20M in funding from investors like Kleiner Perkins, Foundation Capital and Plaid’s founders
After his last startup, Framed Data, was acquired by Square, Thomson Nguyen began exploring new ideas. While an entrepreneur-in-residence at Kleiner Perkins, Nguyen interviewed hundreds of small busin
Vietnamese electric motorbike startup Dat Bike raises $2.6M led by Jungle Ventures
Dat Bike, a Vietnamese startup with ambitions to become the top electric motorbike company in Southeast Asia, has raised $2.6 million in pre-Series A funding led by Jungle Ventures. Made in Vietnam wi
Binance Labs leads $1.6M seed round in DeFi startup MOUND, the developer of Pancake Bunny
Decentralized finance startup MOUND, known for its yield farming aggregator Pancake Bunny, has raised $1.6 million in seed funding led by Binance Labs. Other participants included IDEO CoLab, SparkLab
NGK Spark Plugs launches $100M corporate venture fund, will seek M&A opportunities
NGK Spark Plug, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of automotive spark plugs, announced a new $100 million fund to invest in startups and find potential merger and acquisition deals. The fund
SoftBank Vision Fund 2 invests $160M in media localization provider Iyuno-SDI Group
Iyuno-SDI Group, a provider of translated subtitles and other media localization services, announced today it has raised $160 million in funding from SoftBank Vision Fund 2. The company said this make
Singapore-based retail analytics company Trax raises $640M Series E led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and BlackRock
COVID-19 forced many retailers and brands to adopt new technologies. Retail analytics unicorn Trax expects that this openness to tech innovation will continue even after the pandemic. The Singapore-ba
Taiwan-based MLOps startup InfuseAI raises $4.3M Series A led by Wistron Corporation
AI models not only take time to build and train, but also to deploy in an organization’s workflow. That’s where MLOps (machine learning operations) companies come in, helping clients scale their A
Singapore-based career platform Glints gets $22.5M in Series C funding
Glints, the Singapore-based career platform, announced today it has raised $22.5 million in Series C funding led by Japanese human resources management firm PERSOL Holdings. The new capital will be us
LINE Ventures merges with YJ Capital, launches $271M fund
LINE completed its merger with Yahoo! Japan-owner Z Holdings last month, and now the two firm’s venture capital arms have also combined. Z Holdings announced today that its subsidiary, YJ Capital, h
How SOSV-backed Achiko pivoted from financial services to health tech during the COVID-19 pandemic
Many companies had to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic. For SOSV-backed Achiko, this meant shifting its focus from mobile payment services to affordable COVID-19 screening. Achiko’s platform c
Cryptocurrency wallet and blockchain tech startup imToken raises $30 million Series B
ImToken, the blockchain tech startup and crypto wallet developer, announced today it has raised $30 million in Series B funding led by Qiming Venture Partners. Participants included returning investor
Sequoia Capital India on its early investment in Appier, the fund’s latest exit
Appier’s initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange yesterday was a milestone not only for the company, but also Sequoia Capital India, one of its earliest investors. Founded in Taiwan, App
Monk’s Hill Ventures and Glints on how Southeast Asian startups can cope with the region’s talent crunch
A lot has changed since Monk’s Hill Ventures released its first report on tech compensation in Southeast Asia five years ago, with base salaries and competition for top talent jumping dramatically.
Singapore-based Nimbly gets $4.6M to help businesses automate their standard operating procedures
Many work teams, especially stores and restaurants, rely on manual spreadsheets to ensure their operations are running smoothly. Based in Singapore, Nimbly develops software that automates more of tha
Ajaib raises $65M Series A extension led by Ribbit Capital, increasing the round’s total to $90M
Ajaib, the Indonesian investment app, has added $65 million to its Series A, bringing the round’s new total to $90 million. The extension was led by Ribbit Capital, the fintech investor that also le
‘Link-in-bio’ company Linktree raises $45M Series B for its social commerce features
If you browse Instagram, you are probably familiar with the term “link in bio.” Links aren’t allowed in post captions, and users are only allowed one URL in their bios, so many create a