MyRepublic raises $60m to push expansion ahead of impending IPO

MyRepublic CEO Malcolm Rodrigues / Photo credit: MyRepublic

Telecommunications startup MyRepublic burst into Southeast Asia’s telco scene with affordable and reliable internet connectivity services. Then it got into the telephony game.

Today, the Singapore-headquartered company announced a new US$60 million fundraise, bringing its total funding so far to US$150 million.

MyRepublic will use the money to expand further in the region as it gears up for an IPO in Hong Kong in the next 18 to 24 months. It will also speed up the development of its “TelcoTech” platform, a proprietary cloud system that enables the company to automate its services and operations, including service orders, network management, and customer billing.

The system allows MyRepublic to push out services and products through a unified platform that it controls, whether it’s plugging into partners’ physical infrastructure or building its own (like it’s doing in Indonesia, for example).

MyRepublic’s internet services are available in Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. Last year, the company announced its mobile virtual network to offer mobile phone services in collaboration with Singaporean telco Starhub. The network uses Starhub’s existing infrastructure to bring MyRepublic’s mobile service to its customers.

The product has yet to launch for the general public, but MyRepublic has some services available for a closed group of customers and people who expressed interest in its mobile products ahead of its ill-fated telco bid.

The MVNO offering would be similar to Circles.Life, a mobile services provider that uses local telco M1’s infrastructure to offer its voice and data plans.

Staying ahead as telcos evolve

The MVNO model is “tried and true,” relying on a pricing and services advantage to be successful, says Hugh Ujhazy, IDC’s associate vice president of IoT and telecommunications for Asia Pacific.

“Growing from their legacy as an ISP into a mobile operator is a logical development [for MyRepublic],” he explains. But the challenge will be to stay ahead of domestic operators that are also investing in such technology.

“Differentiating themselves through pricing will work for segments of the market,” he tells Tech in Asia. “The local telcos have recognized the need for investment in improving customer experience and are very focused on reliability and improved [consumer loyalty] metrics. Also, players like Singtel, Telstra, Optus, and Spark have all invested in their back-end platforms and are virtualizing their core fixed and mobile networks.”

As it looks toward an IPO, MyRepublic’s reliance on existing networks could prove challenging. “The TelcoTech platform has to offer differentiated services, improved customer experience, and better network transparency if it is to provide growth in the long term,” Ujhazy adds.

But now that local carriers have embraced digital transformation, can players like MyRepublic beat them to the punch and maintain a head start?

MyRepublic does plan to bring a range of new products, including mobile phone services, to its other markets in Asia Pacific.