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In focus
Hello reader,
My parents recently asked me for advice on where to put some of their retirement money. For them, and any other person who comes to me for help with this, I’ve always suggested time deposits.
They are relatively safe investments, albeit with lower returns. But if someone does take my advice (for some reason), I can feel safe that their hard-earned money won’t disappear overnight.
Putting cash in time deposits is also a simple task: just pick out the time frame and review the percentage of interest that comes with it.
In our interview with Chocolate Finance founder Walter de Oude, he stressed the importance of simplicity. The fintech firm doesn’t require lock-ins and doesn’t offer long-term packages. So far, the strategy’s working.
But it’s been a bumpy ride for the Singapore-based company. When the startup dropped its partnership with bills payment platform AXS in March, its handling of the situation triggered users to withdraw US$374 million in over just two weeks.
Chocolate Finance is looking to put this in the rearview mirror and has now raised US$15 million in a series A+ round. It’s also gearing up to expand into Hong Kong after securing its license to operate in the market, its first outside its home country.
This edition also features insights from Pierrick Bouffaron, managing partner at Entropia Capital, on the shifting dynamics of venture building in Southeast Asia.
Miguel Cordon, journalist
Top Stories
1️⃣ Chocolate Finance heads to HK with $15m raise
Its path to this expansion, and the US$15 million raise that helps power it, has been rocky.
But the firm is trying to move ahead, and its ambitions for growth are now “quite high,” founder Walter de Oude tells Tech in Asia.
2️⃣ Venture building in SEA needs a reset
Spotlight
Hear from the best in SEA tech at AWS Unicorn Day Malaysia
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