Rocket Internet’s back for more; Inside stories at Honestbee, Tink Labs become public

Dear readers,

Last week, news about Honestbee’s astronomical US$180 million debt broke out. We also found out more details about Tink Labs’ shutdown and apparent reboot.

Subscribers to Tech in Asia won’t be surprised by these moves – we’ve been covering these startups’ struggles in-depth for a while now. Do subscribe to us for more insider info you won’t get elsewhere.

Speaking of insider news, read our story on how Gushcloud weathered a PR disaster and is now growing and profitable.

What struck me about these three companies is how PR crises typically aren’t what kills a company. Instead, poorly managed startups – or startups that don’t learn quickly from mistakes – often implode or simply run out of steam.

In other developments, we got wind of how Rocket Internet is set to launch the next wave of ventures in Southeast Asia.

We also took a peek at a study claiming that Ovo is Indonesia’s top e-wallet app.

Check out the rest of our premium content from the past week:

#Startuplyfe

• More Southeast Asian founders are getting MBAs. Is it actually useful?
• Livestream: Fireside chat with ShopBack’s Joel Leong (beta)
• An instant tutoring app is taking Japan and Korea by storm
• Qiq is looking to fix a major flaw in shared transport networks
• A voice chatbot startup makes a splash in the hotel industry

Evergreen goodies

• Rising startups on Tech In Asia: co-living, clothes rental, and more
• Complete list of tech and startup events in Singapore
• These are the most active investors in Singapore’s startups

Stuff you may have missed

• The untold story behind the GMVs of Southeast Asia’s ecommerce titans
• Tiki set out to be Vietnam’s answer to Amazon. Now it’s charting its own path

Cheers,

Terence
Chief editor