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Hello reader,
Generally, I’m a competitive person. Whether it’s in video games or sports competitions, I always like to test myself against my opponents.
Usually, I get soundly defeated, which quickly taught me that I shouldn’t compare myself to others. Rather, I realized that pitting myself against opponents constantly was just a distraction from what I really needed to do: focusing on my own improvement.
Nowadays, competitions have become more fun for me – I see them more as a chance to gather with like-minded people and celebrate our common interests. And if that means getting wrecked when it’s my turn, then I guess I’m OK with that. No copium here.
Our story for today isn’t so much of a competition per se, but with any listicle, it’s inevitable that comparisons will be drawn. Like I said, however, it’s important not to let things like this distract from the real work startups need to put in to improve themselves.
Today we look at:
- 50 up-and-coming startups in Indonesia
- A unicorn slashing its headcount by 10%
- Other newsy highlights such as Binance possibly acquiring a bank and the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s US$106 million commitment.
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The hot new startups of Indonesia’s tech industry

Image credit: Timmy Loen
With Indonesia’s booming tech industry, many of these names are ones that I recognize and even wrote about before. It’s almost like seeing a friend put up on the dean’s list. Let’s hope the firms on our list can continue working hard to fulfill their potential.
- Big accelerations: The firm with the most funding on our list is FinAccel, a fintech company that creates financial products in retail credit for Southeast Asia. As of today, it’s got an impressive US$340 million in disclosed funding.
- Down where it’s wetter: Fishery startup FishLog recently scored a fresh US$3.5 million in its pre-series A round, which you can read more about in our Quick Bytes section.
- Looking rosy for Jago Coffee: Jago Coffee is a mobile coffee startup that serves on-demand coffee beverages through mobile carts. It might have had humble beginnings, given that its bridge round in November last year saw a total of US$250,000 in funding, but this year, it’s completely different. Just last month, it raised US$2.2 million in a pre-series A round.
Read more: 50 rising startups in Indonesia
Startup spotlight
Charged into a wall
The tech landscape evolves quickly. Don’t get left behind
Quick bytes
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