Rising startups on Tech In Asia: replacing real estate brokers, salon-booking, 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 we think investors should look at.

1. NoBroker (India)

NoBroker, a real estate portal that removes brokers from the equation, raised US$51 million in a series C round led by General Atlantic with participation from SAIF Partners and Beenext. The startup will now focus on improving its platform’s machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities. More info.

2. Circles.Life (Singapore)

Mobile network operator Circles.Life raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round led by EDBI with participation from Founders Fund. The startup will use the funds to expand its engineering team and market reach. More info.

3. Pratilipi (India)

Pratilipi, a storytelling app for writers, raised US$15 million in a series B round led by Qiming Venture Partners with participation from Nexus Venture Partners, Omidyar Network India, Shunwei Capital, Contrarian Vriddhi Fund, and WEH Ventures. Part of the funds will be used to improve the platform’s story recommendations feature. More info.

4. Crea (Thailand)

Former Lazada executives have launched Crea, a social commerce startup that will focus on the beauty and personal care industry in Thailand over the next 12 months. The startup will offer digital marketing, analytics, and other services to businesses. More info.

5. Avail Finance (India)

Avail Finance, a fintech startup offering interest-free short-term loans to service and blue-collar workers, raised US$9 million in a series A funding round led by Matrix Partners India. The funds will go towards expanding the startup’s product portfolio. More info.

6. Vaniday (Singapore)

Salon- and spa-booking app Vaniday raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round led by parent firms Rocket Internet and Asia Pacific Internet Group. The company will focus on expanding to Southeast Asian markets. More info.

7. GorillaSpace (Singapore)

GorillaSpace, a workspace marketplace, raised an undisclosed amount in a seed funding round led by Japanese real estate developer Mitsubishi Estate Co. The startup is aiming to triple its number of listings and expand geographically. More info.

8. Iweecare (Taiwan)

Healthtech startup Iweecare raised US$1 million in a pre-series A round led by Verge HealthTech Fund with participation from Darwin Venture and Translink Capital. Iweecare is focusing on expanding globally and marketing its flagship product, Temp Pal, in EU and Taiwan. More info.

9. Haulio (Singapore)

Haulio, a startup offering on-demand haulage services, raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-series A funding round co-led by ComfortDelGro Ventures and PSA Unboxed. The funds will be used for expansion to new markets, including plans to launch in Indonesia and Thailand by 2020. More info.

10. Supahands (Malaysia)

Supahands, a provider of data sets for machine learning, raised an undisclosed amount in a series A funding round co-led by Patamar Capital and Cradle Seed Ventures. It is aiming to expand across Asia Pacific. More info.

11. WeInvest (Singapore)

Digital wealth platform WeInvest helps financial institutions build digital wealth products. More info.

Want to catch up on previous lists? You can do so here.