Not another mafia: Sea Group edition

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Friendships are odd, sometimes. At their best, they’re this solid base from which one can grow. But while they can be an unshakeable foundation for some, others may find that their friendships don’t add much value for them at all. And sometimes, we never find out about these mismatched emotions until it’s too late.

Fortunately, for the many alumni of Sea Group, it looks like friendships are more of the former than the latter – Shopee leadership even stays in touch and offers a helping hand to some of those who’ve left to establish their own ventures.

Today we look at,

• Sea Group’s burgeoning network of alumni
• US$2 million in the bank for a Pakistani fintech startup
• Other newsy highlights such as the Chinese government’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies and funding developments in Japan and India

PREMIUM SUMMARY

“I don’t have friends – I got family”

We talk a lot about the “mafias” of tech giants like Grab and Gojek. Sea Group’s own network isn’t as extensive as those, but it’s certainly growing.

• Stick together, team: Many Sea alumni believe that the reason this network of ex-employees-turned-founders isn’t that large (yet) is simply due to the company’s promising growth trajectory, which inspires many of its staff to stay on with the company.
• Go, go, go! Sea Group alumni have branched out in many different ways – their companies can be found in the edtech, ecommerce, and esports scenes, among others.
• I’m in position: What most alumni seem to agree on is that there’s going to be a lot more startups by the Sea mafia in the next couple of years – some of these are already currently in stealth mode.

Read more: Unearthing Sea Group’s alumni network

STARTUP SPOTLIGHT

Pakistani fintech firm receives funding to advance financial inclusion in the country

So you want to build the next big idea