Brief: JD ramps up luxury ecommerce focus with $175m deal

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Secoo inks US$175 million deal with JD and L Catterton Asia (China). The NASDAQ-listed online luxury retailer announced the strategic partnership, which includes a convertible note investment from JD and the Asia unit of US consumer-focused private equity firm L Catterton. The move also marks JD’s further foray into the global fashion market after taking a stake in London-based luxury ecommerce firm Farfetch last June. (Secoo)

Other news

Grab gears up to become an “everyday super-app” (Singapore). The ride-hailing firm has unveiled an open-platform initiative that lets third-party partners integrate with its app. Among the first to sign up is HappyFresh, an Indonesian grocery-delivery startup which is partnering with the ride-hailer to offer GrabFresh, an on-demand groceries service. Grab is also joining forces with Yahoo to offer news and entertainment content in its app. (Tech in Asia)

Fitness app Keep raises US$127 million (China). The series D round was led by Goldman Sachs, with existing investors Tencent, GGV Capital, Morningside, and Bertelsmann Asia Investment Fund also participating. The four-year old startup will use the money for AI development and hiring new talent. (GGV Capital)

3B Ventures sets up US$60 million impact investment fund (Southeast Asia). The Danish venture firm will pump the capital into Southeast Asian startups that can generate social impact across the energy, water, agriculture, education, and healthcare industries. (3B Ventures)

Moretickets pockets US$60 million (China). The series C round was led by private equity firm TPG Growth, and the new capital will help beef up the startup’s ticketing system and fund discounted tickets to users. Moretickets currently operates in 369 cities across the country. (China Money Network)

Xiaomi shares jump 14 percent after disappointing IPO debut (China). Shares in the smartphone maker surged to HK$19.14 (US$2.44) today, surpassing their HK$17 (US$2.17) IPO price. The uptick followed the announcement that Xiaomi will be included in the Hang Seng Composite Index starting July 23. (Bloomberg)

Alibaba boosts regional presence through Ganesh Ventures alliance (China/India). The US$250 million Chinese venture fund, which focuses on cross-border investment between China and India, has raised US$30 million from the Alibaba-backed Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP) Ecosystem Fund and Hong Kong-based Landmark Capital. Ganesh Ventures will be eWTP’s strategic investment partner in India. (The Economic Times)

500 Durians graduate Worq banks US$2.49 million in crowdfunding round (Malaysia). The co-working space operator secured the new funds from Singapore’s Bangsawan Consulting and PhillipCapital. With over 10,000 community members signed up, Worq plans to expand across the Klang Valley region later this year. (Worq)

Dibz nabs undisclosed round from Ola executive (India). Apart from Rhul Maroli, vice president and business head at Ola, other investors in the round included Stellaris Venture Partners, Benori Ventures, and Ritu Mehrotra, country manager at Booking.com. The food-delivery startup will deploy the new funds to expand in cities and to consolidate existing operations. (VCCircle)

See: Previous Asia tech news highlights