Asia news roundup: Ant Financial seeks $10b, Singapore breaks VC record, and more

Photo credit: Ant Financial

Ant Financial is seeking a big funding injection in the run-up to a possible IPO, while Kristal.AI, Telepod, and Graventure are among the startups to nab investment today.

Fintech

Ant Financial in talks to raise US$10 billion, possibly led by Singapore’s Temasek (China). Alibaba’s fintech affiliate, which runs Alipay, is reportedly seeking at least US$9 billion in funding, with the Singaporean sovereign fund slated to lead the round. If it goes through, the IPO could value Ant Financial at US$150 billion, according to the report, making it the world’s largest unicorn. (Bloomberg)

Ecommerce

Pinduoduo rumored to net US$3 billion in Tencent-led round (China).Pinduoduo allows users to participate in group-buying deals with their friends through social media platforms, such as Tencent’s WeChat messenger. The company raised US$110 million in its July 2016 series B round, which saw participation from Banyan Capital, New Horizon Capital, and Tencent. If confirmed, the latest US3 billion capital injection would take Pinduoduo’s valuation to around US$15 billion. (China Money Network)

Global Fashion Group reports revenue growth, shrinking profit margin (Singapore). The Rocket Internet-backed holding company, which owns Southeast Asian fashion ecommerce site Zalora, released its Q4 and FY2017 results. Group net revenue was up 22.7 percent for the last quarter and 19.9 percent for the full year, though Q4 gross profit margin declined 4.4 percent year-on-year. Global Fashion Group does not publish separate results for its individual brands such as Zalora, which has pulled back from some Southeast Asian markets in recent years in an apparent effort to become more cost-efficient. (Global Fashion Group)

Travel and hospitality

TravelTriangle secures US$12 million in series C fundraise (India). The online travel marketplace said it would use the investment to further develop the customer interaction layer of its tech platform using artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as its data analytics capabilities to build a recommendation engine. It will also invest funds in geographic expansion and marketing. Fundamentum led the round, with existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, RB Investments, and SAIF Partners also participating, alongside several angels. (Inc42)

Artificial intelligence

Kristal.AI raises US$1.85 million in seed round led by IDG Ventures India (Singapore). A local startup, which uses artificial intelligence to help clients manage their assets digitally, closed a seed round led by IDG Ventures India. Angel investors including Shailesh Rao, senior advisor at TPG and McKinsey, and Amit Gupta, founding partner at Newquest Capital, also joined the round. Kristal.AI said it will use the fresh funds to advance its AI technology as well as to expand beyond its current operations – which covers Singapore, India, and Hong Kong – into Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the US. (Kristal.AI)

Transportation

Students at Republic Polytechnic in Singapore trying Telepod’s e-scooter service. / Photo credit: Telepod

Telepod closes funding round led by SMRT (Singapore). The local startup, which lets users share e-scooters, raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round led by MomentUM, the corporate venture and incubation platform of the city-state’s public transport operator SMRT. Also participating in the round were Bravio Capital, Quest Ventures, and two undisclosed angel investors. The firm said it will use the money to beef up logistical assets and technology as it plans for a nationwide expansion this year. (e27)

Allianz confirms US$35 million Go-Jek investment (Indonesia). The German insurance giant said its VC arm, Allianz X, joined the ride-hailing firm’s recent US$1.5 billion funding round, which also attracted investment from the likes of Google, JD, Meituan-Dianping, Temasek, and Tencent. Allianz and Go-Jek have partnered in the past to offer insurance to the Indonesian startup’s users, while Go-Jek has recently expanded its own insurance-related product offering. (TechCrunch)

Car-rental startup closes seed round led by Manny Pacquiao (The Philippines). Graventure, a startup that connects car rental agencies to consumers, raised an undisclosed amount in a seed round led by Filipino boxer-turned-politician Manny Pacquiao, who will also become the face of Graventure as part of the deal. The firm did not say how it would use the funding, but its official launch is slated for the third quarter of the year. (e27)

Social media

WhatsApp seeks to appoint first India head (India). The chat app is looking to hire to someone with more than 15 years of product and business development experience to head its India team out of Mumbai, where it already has employees. The company, which also has staff in Hyderabad as well, is also looking for a communications manager to be based in Gurugram near the country’s capital. (Quartz)

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