Asia’s venture capital-backed startups are gunning for Starbucks . In China, the U.S. coffee giant is being pushed by Luckin Coffee, a $2.2 billion challenger surfing China’s on-demand wave, and on the real estate side, where WeWork China has just unveiled an on-demand product that could tempt people who go to Starbucks to kill time or […]
View More First China, now Starbucks gets an ambitious VC-funded rival in IndonesiaCategory: Singapore
Facebook removes hundreds of accounts linked to fake news group in Indonesia
Facebook said today it has removed hundreds of Facebook and Instagram counts with links to an organization that peddled fake news. The world’s fourth largest country with a population of over 260 million, Indonesia is in election year alongside Southeast Asia neighbors Thailand and the Philippines. Facebook said this week it has set up an ‘election […]
View More Facebook removes hundreds of accounts linked to fake news group in IndonesiaGo-Jek confirms first close of $2B Series F round at $9.5B valuation
Go-Jek, the Indonesia-based ride-hailing company that is challenging Grab in Southeast Asia, has announced the first close of its Series F round, as TechCrunch reported last week. The company isn’t revealing numbers but sources previously told us it has closed around $920 million. Go-Jek is planning to raise $2 billion for the round, as reported last […]
View More Go-Jek confirms first close of $2B Series F round at $9.5B valuationGrab raises $200M from Thailand-based retail conglomerate Central Group
Grab’s fundraising push continues unabated after the Southeast Asian ride-hailing firm announced that it has raised $200 million from Central Group, a retail conglomerate based in Thailand. Central’s business covers restaurants, hotels and more than 30 malls in Thailand, while it has operations in markets that include Vietnam and Indonesia. Its public-listed holding companies alone are worth more […]
View More Grab raises $200M from Thailand-based retail conglomerate Central GroupFacebook, Google and Twitter told to do more to fight fake news ahead of European elections
A first batch of monthly progress reports from tech giants and advertising companies on what they’re doing to help fight online disinformation have been published by the European Commission. Platforms including Facebook, Google and Twitter signed up to a voluntary EU code of practice on the issue last year. The first reports cover measures taken […]
View More Facebook, Google and Twitter told to do more to fight fake news ahead of European electionsEntrepreneur First eyes further Asia growth to build its global network of founders
British startup venture builder Entrepreneur First is eying additional expansion in Asia, where its operation is now as large as it is in Europe, as it expands its reach in 2019. But, despite serving a varied mixture of markets, the company said its founders are a fairly unified breed. The Entrepreneur First program is billed […]
View More Entrepreneur First eyes further Asia growth to build its global network of foundersSoutheast Asia’s Grab is adding Netflix-like video streaming to its ride-hailing app
Grab is Southeast Asia’s top ride-hailing firm thanks to its acquisition of Uber’s local business last year. Its biggest competitor gone, the company is on a push to go beyond transport and become an everyday ‘super app’ and that strategy just embraced video streaming today. That’s because Grab is integrating video-on-demand service HOOQ — a […]
View More Southeast Asia’s Grab is adding Netflix-like video streaming to its ride-hailing appSingapore says personal details of 14,200 HIV patients were posted online
For the second time inside a year, private health information belonging to people in Singapore has been compromised. Following a hack disclosed last summer that affected the patient records of up to 1.5 million citizens, Singapore’s Ministry of Health revealed today that personal details and the HIV-positive status of 14,200 people were posted online by a convinced […]
View More Singapore says personal details of 14,200 HIV patients were posted onlineGo-Jek makes first close of $2 billion round at $9.5 billion valuation
Southeast Asia-based ride-sharing firm Go-Jek is making progress with its plan to raise up to $2 billion in fresh capital to fund its battle with close rival Grab . Indonesia-headquartered Go-Jek has closed an initial chunk of that round after a collection of existing investors, including Google, Tencent and JD.com, agreed to invest around $920 million […]
View More Go-Jek makes first close of $2 billion round at $9.5 billion valuationWhim, the all-in-one mobility app for ride sharing, public transit, and rentals is coming to the US
MaaS Global, the company behind the all-in-one mobility app Whim, which offers a subscription service for public transportation, ride-sharing, bike rentals, scooter rentals, taxis, or car rentals will be making its U.S. debut later this year. The company will choose its American launch city from Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, and Miami, according to Sampo Hietanan, […]
View More Whim, the all-in-one mobility app for ride sharing, public transit, and rentals is coming to the USSingapore’s Credit Culture raises $29.5M for its soon-to-launch digital loan business
Singapore’s digital fintech companies are attracting investor attention and dollars in 2019. Fresh from Singapore Life — a digital-only insurer — raising $33 million across two recently closed rounds, so Credit Culture, a digital loan specialist — has banked SG$40 million ($29.5 million) ahead of its imminent launch. Credit Culture has raised its capital from […]
View More Singapore’s Credit Culture raises $29.5M for its soon-to-launch digital loan businessSequoia goes after early-stage with an accelerator program in India and Southeast Asia
Sequoia India is going deep into early-stage investing after it announced an accelerator program, Surge, which is focused on fledging startups in India and Southeast Asia, the two regions that it covers. It’s been nearly six months since Sequoia India closed its newest $695 million fund — its fifth since its establishment 12 years ago […]
View More Sequoia goes after early-stage with an accelerator program in India and Southeast Asia