Early-stage
Jungle launches Southeast Asia, India seed programme
Singapore-based Jungle Ventures has launched a Southeast Asia-India seed programme, claiming a first-of-its-kind investment structure to limit dilution for founders.
India's InsuranceDekho raises $60m
Indian online insurance policy comparison and brokerage service InsuranceDekho has raised USD 60m in a Series B round featuring Goldman Sachs.
IFC leads $24m Series B for India's Onsurity
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has led a USD 24m Series B round for Indian employee healthcare insurance start-up Onsurity.
MTR Lab, Gobi back Hong Kong construction tech start-up
MTR Lab, a technology and innovation arm of Hong Kong transport operator MTR, has teamed up with Gobi Partners to invest HKD 46.8m (USD 5.9m) in local sustainable construction start-up isBIM.
China-US consumer brand accelerator raises $58m
SuperOrdinary, a global consumer brands accelerator that operates out of Shanghai, New York, and Los Angeles, has raised USD 58m in Series B funding at a valuation of more than USD 800m.
China VC: Amicable divorces
Regulatory pressures are encouraging Chinese VC firms to end longstanding US affiliations, but the impact of impending legislation – even sight unseen – cuts deeper into investor sentiment on China
Singapore green hydrogen player gets $115m
Singapore-based InterContinental Energy, a company developing green hydrogen fuel projects in Australia and the Middle East, has raised USD 115m from GIC and specialist investor Hy24.
L Catterton backs beauty industry biotech supplier
L Catterton has led a CNY 200m (USD 27m) Series B round for Trautec, a China-based biotech start-up that develops synthetic proteins used in beauty and healthcare products.
Australia SaaS platform Neara upsizes Series B
Australia’s Neara, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that helps power companies simulate natural disaster scenarios, has closed a USD 24m Series B round featuring Prosus Ventures.
Vertex leads $20m round for India D2C beauty player
Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India (VVSEAI), an affiliate of Temasek Holdings-owned Vertex Holdings, has led a USD 20m Series B round for Indian D2C beauty and personal care brand Pilgrim.
Matrix, HongShan back China's Qihan Biotech
Matrix Partners China and HongShan (formerly Sequioa Capital China) have joined a USD 16m pre-Series B round for Qihan Biotech, a genome editing player active in human and agricultural therapies.
India livestreaming platform Eloelo raises $22m
US investors Courtside Ventures and Griffin Gaming Partners have led a USD 22m pre-Series B round for Indian social gaming and livestreaming platform Eloelo.
Peak XV, Elevation, Andreessen back India visa platform
Peak XV Partners, formerly Sequoia Capital India, and Elevation Capital have led a USD 12m Series A round for Indian visa platform Atlys with support from Andreessen Horowitz.
Cybersecurity: PE urged to go post-quantum
Private equity firms with masses of information, long histories, and long futures will be vulnerable to code-cracking quantum computers perceived as lurking on an inevitable near-term horizon
China's Canton Biologics raises $41m Series C
Chinese pharmaceutical industry services provider Canton Biologics has completed a CNY 300m (USD 41m) Series C round led by state-owned SDIC Venture Capital.
Hong Kong virtual insurer Bowtie gets $35m Series B
Hong Kong digital life insurance company Bowtie has closed a USD 34.9m Series B round led by the local unit of Sun Life Financial.
Lion X, Vickers lead Series B for Singapore's Awak
Lion X Ventures and Vickers Venture Partners have led a Series B round of approximately USD 20m for Awak Technologies, a Singaporean start-up that makes wearable dialysis treatment devices.
China green-tech investors hunt for overlooked niches - AVCJ Forum
Investors targeting green technology in China are looking beyond saturated areas such as renewable energy projects to opportunities that target unaddressed industry pain points, the AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum China 2023 heard.
Fund focus: 500 Global scales up in Southeast Asia
By investing early and building a diversified portfolio, 500 Global emerged from the technology valuation corrections somewhat unscathed. This gave the firm impetus when raising its third Southeast Asia fund
Singapore student-run VC programme launches new fund
Protégé Ventures (PV), a student-run venture fund programme set up by the Singapore Management University Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SMU IIE) has launched a second fund of SGD 500,000 (USD 367,000).
CICC leads $60m Series B for China's Grit Biotechnology
CICC Capital had led a USD 60m Series B round for Grit Biotechnology, a Shanghai-based drug developer that is working on pioneering cancer treatments involving tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (LIT).
Global Brain, Globis lead $93m round for Japan's Josys
Global Brain and Globis Capital Partners have led a USD 93m Series B round for Josys, a Japan-based IT services provider specializing in helping companies manage devices.
Mitsui Sumitomo VC unit backs Israel fusion start-up
Japan’s Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Venture Capital (MSIVC) has joined a Series A round for Israel-based nuclear fusion start-up NT-Tao that had raised USD 22m as of February.
Japanese autonomous trucking start-up raises $24m
T2, a Japanese autonomous driving start-up that focuses on trucking, has raised JPY 3.5bn (USD 24.1m) in Series A funding from a combination of financial and strategic investors.