6 Topica Founder Institute startups secure seed funding from Insignia Ventures

Six startups from the seventh batch of Topica Founder Institute (TFI), a startup accelerator program sponsored by Vietnam-based Topica Edtech Group, have received US$50,000 each in seed funding from Insignia Ventures Partners, with three startups in advanced negotiations for further funding.

Photo credit: Topica Founder Institute

TFI, a member of the Global Founder Institute Network based in Silicon Valley, provides startups with mentorship services from executives such as GotIt CEO Hung Tran, VNG founder and CEO Le Hong Minh, CleverAds co-founder and CEO Nguyen Khanh Trinh, and TFI senior director Bobby Liu.

It also plugs startups into its network of investors, which includes 500 Startups, IDG Ventures Vietnam, Monk’s Hill Ventures, and Mediacorp, among others.

The investments from Insignia Ventures Partners is the program’s first partnership with an institutional fund to help support graduating startups, Liu said.

Meet TFI’s seventh cohort of startups:

• TelePro is a startup that aims to help companies create an on-demand culture for telemarketing.
• Recruitery connects companies in Southeast Asia to a network of recruiters.
• CheepCheep allows travelers to book tickets for tourist attractions and local activities throughout Vietnam and Southeast Asia.
• Drone Pro is developing a special delivery drone system that can deliver to high-rise apartment buildings.
• Gigantec Media is a digital marketplace for traditional billboard advertising.
• Clavis Aurea provides enterprises with asset and facility management solutions.

Through its seven batches, TFI has graduated more than 80 startups, with some raising upwards of US$40 million in funding combined at a valuation of over US$300 million, the company claims.