Asia news roundup: Softbank leads $25m Modalku round, while 500 Startups backs HelloGold

Image credit: HelloGold

Here’s a wrap of the day’s news.

Fintech

Funding Societies lands US$25 million in series B round (Singapore). The peer-to-peer lending platform, which allows small and medium-sized enterprises to borrow money from both accredited and retail investors, closed its series B funding round. Softbank Ventures Korea led the round, with participation from Sequoia India, Golden Gate Ventures, and Alpha JWC Ventures. Funding Societies – which does business as Modalku in Indonesia – said the funds will be used for product development and to ensure regulatory compliance. (Tech in Asia)

US$159 million series C raise for 100Credit (China). The startup uses big data to provide a range of credit-related services, such as loan lifecycle management, as well as product development and targeted marketing for insurance companies. China Reform Fund Management, a private equity firm backed by China Reform Holdings Corporation and other central state-owned enterprises, led the round. Previous investor Sequoia Capital returned to participate. (China Money Network)

Sharia-compliant HelloGold closes series A round from 500 Startups (Malaysia). The Kuala Lumpur-based startup, which provides what it claims to be the world’s first sharia-compliant platform for trading gold, secured the funding from 500 Startups. The firm will use the capital to integrate and test blockchain elements on its app and introduce Ethereum smart contracts by the year’s end. (HelloGold)

HelloGold founder and CEO Robin Lee / Photo credit: HelloGold

Alipay pilots digitized national ID cards (China). The digital payments app run by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial is testing out integration of the Chinese government’s pilot digital ID card scheme, which could one day replace physical ID cards. The trial integration, taking place in the cities of Fuzhou, Hangzhou, and Quzhou, will allow registered users to make purchases requiring ID validation – such as for train tickets or some public services – fully within the Alipay app, without having to separately supply their national ID card details. (TechNode)

Delivery and logistics

Park N Parcel raises US$648,000 in seed funding (Singapore). The self-collection platform for online shoppers has closed its seed round with funding from TRi5 Ventures and a group of angel investors. Park N Parcel will use the capital to boost its team through new hires, and to expand its business to Hong Kong, Japan, and Thailand by the end of the year. (Tech in Asia)

Transportation

Ola rumored to lead investment of up to US$7 million in scooter rental startup (India). The ride-hailing firm is said to be taking the lead alongside Matrix Partners and Stellaris Ventures Partners on Vogo Automotive’s current funding round, which is expected to fetch between US$5 million and US$7 million for the scooter-rental platform. The investment with further Ola’s ambitions to become a dominant player in India’s transport industry, following its acquisition of public transport scheduling and ticketing app Ridlr earlier this month, and its move into bike-sharing. (Livemint)

Blockchain and cryptocurrencies

Citizens will soon be able to pay utility bills via blockchain (Malaysia). Everus Technologies, a Malaysia-based blockchain firm, has developed a mobile wallet for EVR, its Ethereum-based digital currency that can be purchased using bitcoin and certain other cryptocurrencies. The firm did not list the merchants on its platform, but said that the wallet – which requires fingerprint and facial recognition – will allow users to pay for “most of the utilities services in Malaysia.” (The Edge)

Ecommerce

Photo credit: moovstock / 123RF

Amazon’s global customers can now shop from the US (Asia Pacific). Amazon has launched the “International Shopping” option in its Amazon Shopping app, allowing non-US consumers to shop for over 45 million items available in the US in 25 currencies and five languages. (Amazon)

Media and entertainment

Edtech

Consumer tech

Big tech