Rising startups: agritech, edtech, and more

Which are the startups that are on the path to becoming the next big thing? In this regular post, we give you an overview of the companies that have raised money in the past week, as well as those that we think investors should look at.

1. WayCool (India)

Indian agritech startup WayCool Foods announced that it has secured US$32 million in a series C funding round led by VC firm Lightbox. Dutch entrepreneurial development bank FMO and existing investor LGT Lightstone Aspada were participating investors.The company has also secured venture debt from Innoven Capital as part of the round. More info.

2. Zenius (Indonesia)

Edtech startup Zenius Education today announced that it has secured US$20 million in a series A funding round led by Northstar Group, along with participating investors Kinesys Group and Beenext. It also announced the appointment of former Gojek chief operating officer Rohan Monga as its new CEO. Former Zenius CEO Sabda PS will now serve as the startup’s chief education officer. More info.

3. Doubtnut (India)

Education platform Doubtnut announced that it has secured US$15 million in a series A funding round led by Chinese tech giant Tencent, with participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital India, Omidyar Network India, AET Japan, and Ankit Nagori, the co-founder of Cure Fit and a former Flipkart exec. The startup plans to use the funds to widen its pan-India distribution, build on its content repository to cater to a “fast-expanding target group,” strengthen its tech stack. More info.

4. Clear (Israel)

Clear is a startup that builds blockchain-based networks and applications for B2B commerce. The company announced it has raised US$13 million in a series A round led by the Fintech Strategic Investments group at Fidelity-backed Eight Roads. Telefonica Innovation Ventures, the Telekom Innovation Pool of Deutsche Telekom, Hong Kong-based HKT, and Singtel Innov8 also participated in the round. The startup plans to use the funds to scale its operations, grow its team, and promote the adoption of its tech in the telecom space. More info.

5. H2O (Japan)

Vacation rental management company H2O has raised US$7 million in a series B funding round from Samsung Ventures, Stonebridge Ventures, IMM Investment, and Shinhan Capital. This brings the startup’s total funding to about US$18 million. The company said it will use the new funds to support its working capital needs. More info.

6. Kuku FM (India)

Online audio content startup Kuku FM said Thursday it has raised US$5.5 million in its series A round of funding led by Vertex Ventures, the venture capital arm of Temasek Holdings, and with participation from existing investors Shunwei Capital, 3One4 Capital, and India Quotient. The company will use the funding to enhance production and marketing support to its over 3,000 creators on the platform and onboard more talent this year. The round also saw participation from Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, LiFung Capital managing director Rajesh Ranavat, and Temasek Holdings investor Rohan Ranavat. More info.

7. Adonmo (India)

Adtech company Adonmo announced that it has raised US$3 million in a pre-series A round led by BAce Capital, with participation from Astarc Ventures and Mumbai Angels Network. The startup said it will use the funds to further expand its operations in India, accelerate product development, and acquire talent. More info.

8. Fleetx (India)

Fleet management startup Fleetx.io announced that it has raised US$2.8 million in a series A funding round led by Singapore-based VC firm Beenext and existing investor India Quotient. Fleetx will use the new funds to scale in India and Southeast Asia, strengthen its product and technology, and hire talent. It is planning to launch its Indonesia operations in the coming months. More info.

9. Zetwerk (India)

Zetwerk, a B2B marketplace for manufacturing services, has raised 160 million rupees (US$2.2 million) from venture debt provider Innoven Capital. Established in 2018, Zetwerk offers an on-demand platform for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and engineering procurement construction (EPC) firms. It plans to use the new funds to meet its growth requirements and expand its presence in India. More info.

10. Forward School (Malaysia)

Edtech startup Forward school has raised US$500,000 in pre-seed funding to build out its offerings and eventually expand to other Southeast Asian markets. The startup received the new funds from angel investors such as Exabyte’s Chan Kee Siak, Vitrox’s Chu Jenn Weng, AIMS Group’s Chiew Kok Hin, Zaid Ibrahim & Co.’s Ang Siak Keng, and Seacliff Partners’ Brian Wong. More info.

11. Moovby (Malaysia)

Peer-to-peer car-sharing platform Moovby announced that it has secured around US$500,000 from angel investors and strategic partners, bringing its total funding to US$660,000. The startup plans to use the new funds to expand into other Southeast Asian markets, particularly in Singapore and Thailand, this year. More info.

12. Super (Indonesia)

Social commerce app Super has received an undisclosed amount of funding from Arrive, the VC arm of hip-hop artist Jay-Z’s Roc Nation label. Super’s main service, SuperAgen, aims to bring ecommerce to Indonesia’s second- and third-tier cities and remote areas by tapping locals to become reseller agents. More info.

13. Gtriip (Singapore)

Gtriip enables guests to check-in at their hotels through a mobile app. It has secured an undisclosed amount of series B investment to drive its expansion plans in Asia Pacific. One of the latest investors to come on board is Japanese VC firm Global Brain through the KDDI Open Innovation Fund III. With the new investment, Gtriip wants to mainly target Asia-Pacific markets with aging populations, decreasing workforces, and high labor costs. More info.

14. Hukumonline (Indonesia)

Hukumonline, a digital legal services provider in Indonesia, has raised an undisclosed amount of follow-on series A funding from media-focused private equity fund Emerging Media Opportunity Fund (EMOF). The entity had previously invested in Hukumonline in 2017. The company said it will use the new capital to develop more products and improve existing ones and grow its subscriber base. More info.

16. Park+ (India)

17. GlobalTix (Singapore)

18. Get (Myanmar)