Startups

Traveloka, an Indonesian online travel company, is in talks with BlackRock and the country's sovereign wealth fund for a new funding round.
DealStreetAsia

Indonesia's Traveloka in talks to raise over $200m

Startup explores IPO in U.S. this year after SPAC merger fell through

6 June 2022
People walk outside a train station in Auckland. New Zealand launched a special visa program for entrepreneurs on a trial basis in 2017.
Economy

New Zealand social innovator visa offers blueprint for Japan

Program draws entrepreneurs as global competition for tech pioneers heats up

4 June 2022
Grab has teamed up with Hyundai Motor Group to encourage adoption of electric vehicles in Southeast Asia. (Photo courtesy of Grab)
Startups

Southeast Asian ride-hailing services race toward green mobility

Grab vows carbon neutrality by 2040 while ComfortDelGro expands EV fleet

3 June 2022
Founded in 2010, Blibli has been an online shopping pioneer in Indonesia. (Screenshot from Blibli website)
DealStreetAsia

Indonesian startup Blibli aims to raise around $500m in imminent IPO

E-commerce company looks to go public in local market over coming weeks

3 June 2022
The main campus of IT company Infosys in Bengaluru, India. Japanese e-commerce platform Mercari is opening a R&D center in the city. (Photo by Satoshi Shimoda)
Startups

India's herd of tech unicorns grows despite IPO headwinds

16 billion-dollar startups established already this year: tech lobby chief

2 June 2022
Andi Taufan Garuda Putra, founder and CEO of peer-to-peer lender Amartha, has his sights set on helping more female microentrepreneurs in Indonesia get access to credit. (Photo courtesy of Amartha)
Finance

Indonesia's Amartha targets jump in loans to female entrepreneurs

Peer-to-peer lender eyes IPO, but CEO suggests 'window' remains closed

2 June 2022
U.S. startup Reef Technology, which counts the SoftBank Vision Fund among its investors, is laying off 750 workers.
Startups

Tech startup layoffs top 20,000 amid big funding chill

Jobs lost reach 2-year high as venture capital funding dries up

2 June 2022
Vivo Capital's portfolio companies include WuXi AppTec, one of Asia's largest pharmaceutical R&D platforms. (Captured images from Wuxiapptec and Vivo Capital website)
DealStreetAsia

U.S. equity firm closes yuan-fund eyeing Chinese medical sector

Vivo Capital seeks to invest in drug R&D and health care technology

1 June 2022
Eurazeo's new fund targeting insurance technology startups in Southeast Asia has already made its first bet by leading a $65 million investment into an Indonesian app. (Photo by Yuki Kohara) 
Startups

France's Eurazeo launches $215m Southeast Asia 'insurtech' fund

Paris-listed Grab-backer pushes further into region

1 June 2022
Evering's smart payment ring eliminates the need to take out a credit card or smartphone for purchases. (Photo courtesy of Evering)
Startups

One ring to pay them all: Itochu teams with e-payment startup

Japan's Evering nabs capital injection and client access from trading house

31 May 2022
Indian food delivery startup Swiggy has attained unicorn status with backing from SoftBank Group. (Photo by Akira Hayakawa)
Startups

India startup sector's hunger for Japanese funding grows

SoftBank, other venture capital companies loom large in land of 100 unicorns

30 May 2022
VC funds focused on Southeast Asia and India have raised $3.1 billion so far in 2022. (Source photos by AP/Reuters/Ken Kobayashi) 
Market Spotlight

VCs raise record funds for Southeast Asia, India as money leaves China

Beijing's regulatory crackdown on tech has prompted startup investors to diversify

30 May 2022
Stepn users buy nonfungible tokens (NFTs) that represent digital sneakers in order to play the game, then earn cryptocurrency based on their movement. (Screenshot from STEPN website)
Cryptocurrencies

'Move to earn' crypto game bans Chinese users, prompts price plunge

Stepn says it is responding 'proactively' amid Beijing's crackdown

27 May 2022
Japan Foundation Executive Vice President Yuri Sato, left, Bangkok Art Biennale Chief Executive and Artistic Director Apinan Poshyananda (on screen), Doshisha University Faculty of Economics professor Nobuko Kawashima and Aeon Mall Indonesia former President Director Daisuke Isobe, right, talk at the Future of Asia conference in Tokyo on May 26. (Photo by Suzu Takahashi) 
The Future of Asia 2022

Respecting culture is crucial for businesses abroad, expert says

Understanding local customs is 'opportunity,' similar to consideration for environment

26 May 2022
Sandhya Sriram (left), CEO and co-founder of Singapore's Shiok Meats, says that Asia needs more bio entrepreneurs, while Real Tech Holdings President Akitaka Wilhelm Fujii believes that deep tech startups face challenges in hiring talent and finding investors. (Photo by Tomoki Mera) 
The Future of Asia 2022

Southeast Asia needs more support in nurturing deep tech startups

Finding right talents and investors a key challenge for fast-growing region

26 May 2022
Del Wang, co-founder and CEO of Babel Finance. The head of the cryptocurrency group says digital units have yet to win broader market confidence.
Cryptocurrencies

Hong Kong cryptocurrency group Babel hits $2bn valuation

Unicorn raises $80m in latest funding despite global crypto rout

25 May 2022
Indian startups will find it harder to raise new capital as investors turn cautious amid the meltdown in public markets. (Source photo by Vedantu YouTube and Getty Images)
Startups

Indian unicorns cut jobs, close units to conserve scarce capital

Meltdown in public markets as free-money era ends and thrift takes over

24 May 2022
Grab went public in December, but has since shed more than 70% of its value. (Photo by Kosaku Mimura)
Startups

Singapore's Grab to 'taper' incentives in drive for profitability

Superapp firm narrows loss to $435m in Q1 as Southeast Asian economies reopen

19 May 2022
Fashinza connects SMEs to the cloud with their mobile-based production management and visibility software. (Image from Fashinza website)
DealStreetAsia

India's fashion supply-chain startup Fashinza raises $100m

Series B funds earmarked for global expansion to rival Udaan and Flipkart

19 May 2022
SBI has confidence in the growth of regional startups, even amid a global sell-off of technology companies. (Photo by Tsubasa Suruga)
Startups

Japan's SBI to invest in Asian tech with new Singapore fund

Financial giant partners with local university, South Korean insurance group

19 May 2022
Indian startups such as Swiggy, Zomato and Zept are making aggressive moves to deliver groceries in less than 20 minutes. (Source photos by Reuters, Getty Images and Zept webpage)
Startups

India's 'quick commerce' delivery expands beyond groceries

Emerging sector attracts startups looking to challenge Walmart and Tata

18 May 2022
Royole CEO Bill Liu speaks during the 2019 Asian Financial Forum in Hong Kong. The Chinese tech company's fortunes have waned since it unveiled its foldable-screen phone. (Imaginechina via AP Images)
China tech

When unicorns lose their magic: Royole shows steep path for China IPOs

Startups cancel listings in face of crushing competition from big players

17 May 2022
Synqa will change its name to Opn to reflect its ambition of becoming a global business. (Source photos by Shinya Sawai and Opn)
Startups

Japan's Synqa raises $120m to battle payment giants

Fintech startup 'close to' unicorn status after equity, debt financing, CEO says

9 May 2022
KKday CEO Ming Chen says Asia's travel industry may not be prepared to deal with staff shortages as economies reopen borders to travel. (Photo by Sayumi Take)
Interview

Travel startup KKday sees staff shortage in Asia's tourism revival

CEO expects weak yen to lure visitors to Japan as region opens up toward summer

2 May 2022
Donald Wihardja, CEO of MDI Ventures, Telkom Indonesia's venture capital unit, is keen to invest more in startups. (Photo courtesy of MDI Ventures) 
Interview

Telkom Indonesia plans to boost startup investment

Group aims to seize opportunities amid shift from traditional carrier business

2 May 2022