The rundown of Indonesia’s top-funded startups – The Executive Brief

This is The Executive Brief, an exclusive for our paying subscribers. Informative and witty, it gives you everything you need to know to start your day. Choose the Daily Newsletter option to get it delivered to your inbox or read it right here on our site.

Hello reader,

I recently decided to take the long Lunar New Year weekend to catch up on some shows. One of them was the latest season of Demon Slayer, the hit anime series about a young boy and his sister who go around, well, slaying demons in early 20th century Japan.

One of the key plot points in the show is the ongoing war between the Demon Slayer Corps (of which our protagonist is a part of) and the demons, led by their leader and the top echelon known as the Twelve Moons. With this season’s antagonist proving the most difficult one yet, it’s making me even more excited imagining what the eventual fight against the top-ranking demon will be like.

Today’s premium story, on the other hand, takes all the guesswork out of figuring out who’s at the top of Indonesia’s most funded startups and tech companies. With many strong contenders, any guesses as to which firm it might be?

Today we look at:

• 50 startups in Indonesia with the most money in their coffers
• The India-based gaming studio that’s the recipient of an investment from PUBG developer Krafton
• Other newsy highlights such as Endeavor Indonesia’s second cohort for its accelerator program and Canva’s latest acquisition.

Premium summary

Diving into Indonesia

Image credit: Timmy Loen

If you’ve been reading Tech In Asia for a while or are familiar with the Asian tech scene, many of the names on today’s listicle will no doubt be recognizable. Indonesia’s tech and startup scene boasts a number of behemoth unicorns and other rising stars, all of which are vying for a slice of the Indonesian market in their respective industries. Let’s dive in to see which of them are holding the biggest bags.

• The big four: Out of the 50 companies that made our list, only four tech giants have recorded more than US$1 billion in funding, amassing US$8.9 billion in total. By contrast, the next closest competitor to the top four, online investing platform Ajaib, sits at US$243 million in funding.

• A Kopious amount: Food and beverage might not have the biggest presence in our listicle, but grab-and-go coffee chain Kopi Kenangan is leading the way for its industry with US$205 million in disclosed funding over the last two years. The company raised this amount during its series B and series C rounds with the help of investors such as Kunlun Capital and Sequoia Capital.

• Switching it up: Amid a deluge of edtech, logistics, and other common sectors, Tani Hub Indonesia stands out as the only agtech firm in our list. With over US$80 million raised in funding, the company runs both agriculture ecommerce site TaniHub and investment platform TaniFund.

Read more: Meet the 50 top-funded startups and tech companies in Indonesia

Pumped by PUBG maker