Asia news roundup: 99.co acquires UrbanIndo, Uber ‘100% committed’ to India

Photo credit: Snow

A lot went on in the transportation space today and over the weekend. Meanwhile, startups from Singapore, South Korea, and elsewhere announced funding.

Transportation

Grab and oBike hook up (Singapore). The duo announced a strategic partnership that will see oBike integrate GrabPay – Grab’s digital payments platform – into its app, while Grab branding will appear on oBike cycles. Furthermore, undisclosed joint initiatives will follow in the coming weeks designed “to improve the on-demand transport infrastructure in Singapore,” oBike said in a statement. (Tech in Asia)

Uber appoints new growth market leaders (Asia-Pacific). The US ride-hailing firm has hired telecom veteran Charity Safford as general manager of its Cambodia, Myanmar, and Vietnam operations. Pascal Ly, former Credit Bureau Cambodia CEO, will serve under her as general manager for Cambodia. The appointments come after Uber’s numerous regulatory and public relations difficulties in Southeast Asia, while regional rivalries have intensified – Grab recently launched in Cambodia and Go-Jek is plotting expansion beyond Indonesia this year. (Uber)

Meanwhile, the company dismissed reports it is exiting India. Uber said it is “100 percent committed” to the country and its business there “is stronger than ever.” Speculation that it might sell its local business to homegrown competitor Ola mounted after a senior executive from Uber majority shareholder SoftBank said the company should focus on its US and European markets in the search for profits. Uber previously sold its China and Russia businesses to local rivals Didi Chuxing and Yandex, respectively. (The Economic Times)

Photo credit: Bluegogo

Shenzhen bans Bluegogo bikes (China). Shenzhen’s municipal government has ordered an end to the deployment of Bluegogo’s dockless bikes in the city, due to the startup’s debt problems. The news comes just two weeks after ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing made a strategic investment in Bluegogo, adding the startup to its new bike-sharing platform. (China Money Network)

Social media

Snow gets US$50 million from Sequoia and SoftBank (South Korea). Developed by Korean internet firm Naver for photo-sharing and chat, Snow has evolved from being a Snapchat clone into a dedicated selfie app. SoftBank and Sequoia Capital have acquired up to 20 percent of Snow’s business in China, the app’s largest market, as a result of the investment. Messaging app Line is an existing shareholder. (TechCrunch)

Marketing and advertising

Eyeota secures US$12.5 million at series B (Singapore). The startup collects and analyzes audience data for marketers, advertisers, and publishers, helping them to target their campaigns and products at the right people. French private equity firm Jolt Capital SAS led the round, with participation from Project A Ventures and Qualgro. (TechCrunch)

Delivery and logistics

Parcel Perform raises US$1.1 million seed funding (Singapore). The startup aggregates parcel tracking data from third-party logistics providers into a white-label product for online retailers and their customers. It will use the investment to expand beyond Singapore and develop new features for its platform. Wavemaker Partners led the round, with 500 Startups and several angel investors joining in. (Tech in Asia)

Property and real estate

99.co buys UrbanIndo (Indonesia/Singapore). Singaporean property listings portal 99.co has acquired UrbanIndo, one of Indonesia’s largest real estate portals, according to a person familiar with the matter. UrbanIndo’s 1.2 million active property listings will be merged with 99.co’s 150,000 listings in Singapore. One uncertainty surrounding the deal is the departure of UrbanIndo founder Arip Tirta, whose tenure as the startup’s CEO ended late last year. (Tech in Asia)

A JustCo co-working space in Singapore / Photo credit: DIA Brands

Big tech

Investors, incubators, and accelerators