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Swingvy raises $1.1M to give HR staff in Southeast Asia a break from paperwork
Human resources paperwork is never fun to take care of—especially if it’s literally on paper. Swingvy co-founder Jin Choeh says that in Southeast Asia, many small businesses are still stuck with...
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GREE Ventures closes $67M fund for deals in Japan, India and Southeast Asia
GREE Ventures, the Singapore-based VC firm connected to Japanese games firm GREE, has closed its newest $67 million fund for early stage investments in Asia. AT-II — the firm’s second fund — sees GREE...
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Payment firm Soft Space raises $5M to expand in Southeast Asia and Japan
Soft Space, a payment provider in Southeast Asia, has closed its $5 million Series A as it looks to expand across the region, and potentially into Japan. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia-based Soft Space works...
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Thailand’s Kasikorn Bank launches $30M ‘Beacon’ fund for fintech
Roll up, roll up, there’s a new fintech VC fund in Southeast Asia town. Today, Thailand-based Kasikorn Bank announced its inaugural tech fund which is 1 billion THB, just shy of $30 million, in size....
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Grab is assisting police following the alleged rape of a passenger in Malaysia
Uber’s business is going through a period of turmoil in the U.S. right now, but Grab — its main rival in Southeast Asia — is under pressure itself after a driver in Malaysia was arrested on suspicion...
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Razer makes virtual currency push with $20M investment in Asian payment firm
Razer has invested close to $20 million into Malaysia-based online payment firm MOL Global as part of a push to establish its virtual currency for gamers in Asia. The deal sees Razer subsidiary...
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Alibaba ups its stake in Southeast Asia’s Lazada with $1 billion investment
Alibaba is doubling down on Southeast Asia after it announced a deal to pay close to $1 billion to raise its stake in e-commerce firm Lazada from 51 percent to 83 percent. The Chinese firm made an...
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Alibaba and Tencent are carving up Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem
Two global tech forces are putting their mark — and money — into Southeast Asia’s nascent startup ecosystem, but they may not be the Western names that you expect. Rather than Google, Facebook or...
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Grab gets $2B from Didi and SoftBank to fuel bid to defeat Uber in Southeast...
Grab, the ride-hailing company competing with Uber in Southeast Asia, has pulled in $2 billion of new financing from existing investors Didi Chuxing, the company that defeated Uber in China, and...
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Amazon prepares to enter Southeast Asia via Singapore launch
Amazon is continuing its international expansion push with the launch of its services in Singapore coming imminently. The arrival could happen as soon as this week, according to a source with...
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Amazon Prime Now launches in Singapore, its first market in Southeast Asia
It’s official — Amazon has launched its Prime Now delivery service in Singapore, its first market in Southeast Asia. The Amazon apps went live in Singapore early last night local time, and Prime Now —...
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Expedia invests $350M in Traveloka to create Southeast Asia’s newest unicorn
Expedia is deepening its focus on Southeast Asia after it invested $350 million in Traveloka, an online travel portal based out of Indonesia. A source close to the deal confirmed that the investment...
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Singapore, like the US, says it may regulate some ICOs
Less than a week after the SEC said that it may regulate certain crypto token sales, better known as ICOs, Singapore has followed suit to say it too will regulate offerings that are deemed to be...
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Long-time Sequoia Asia partner Yinglan Tan has left to start his own VC firm
Yinglan Tan, a long-time Sequoia venture partner based out of Singapore, has left the firm following a five-year stint and is now launching his own fund. Both Tan and Sequoia confirmed that he...
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FlySpaces, an Airbnb for office space in Southeast Asia, raises $2.1M
Now is a good time to be in the co-working industry in Southeast Asia, it seems. Barely days after WeWork announced plans to enter the region, which is home to over 600 million people, through the...
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Uber suspends its service in the Philippines following ban over unregistered...
Uber has suspended its services in Philippines after the national regulator banned it from operating for one month. The country’s Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) ordered a...
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Uber’s new head of Asia is a former Goldman exec who once climbed Mount Everest
Regular run-ins with government regulators and battles with well-funded local rivals have made Asia challenging terrain for Uber. The challenge is such that it’s fitting that the U.S. ride-sharing...
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Alibaba leads $1.1B investment in Indonesia-based e-commerce firm Tokopedia
Alibaba has continued its push into Southeast Asia after it led a $1.1 billion investment in Tokopedia, an e-commerce firm based in Indonesia. A valuation for the deal was not announced, but the...
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This startup is bringing Alipay-style QR code payments to Indonesia
The growth of digital payments and banking in China, where it has become mainstream and spawned numerous on-demand industries, is inspiring companies to pursue similar opportunities across. Indonesia,...
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Indonesian Uber rival Go-Jek closes in on new $1.2 billion round
Go-Jek, the on-demand transportation company that rivals Uber and Grab in Indonesia, is getting close to pulling in its next huge funding round. That’s because JD.com, the China-based e-commerce firm...
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