A number of investors including Sequoia Capital India and Steadview Capital are in talks to back Polygon, which operates a framework for building and connecting Ethereum-compatible blockchain networks, by way of tokens purchase, three sources familiar with the matter told me. The investors are looking to purchase tokens worth $50 million to $150 million, sources said, requesting […]
Alibaba undergoes major management reshuffle
Alibaba is reassigning roles to four of its executives in one of the biggest reshuffles in its recent history, the company announced on Monday morning. Maggie Wu, the e-commerce titan’s former chief financial officer, will step down next April and be replaced by Toby Xu, current deputy CFO. Wu will continue to be a partner […]
China’s ride-hailing giant is delisting from the New York Stock Exchange
China’s ride-hailing behemoth Didi has begun the procedure of delisting from the New York Stock Exchange and applying to list in Hong Kong instead, the company announced via a Weibo post on Friday morning. The decision came days after Bloomberg reported the Chinese government had asked Didi to delist from the U.S. out of security […]
Meru.com takes in new capital toward its goal of being LatAm’s ‘Alibaba’
Meru customers can select and purchase products in minutes with a guarantee from the company that they will receive those products and at the best market prices.
LinkedIn adds Hindi to reach 500 million people in India
Less than 20% of India’s 1.3 billion people speak English. But LinkedIn, the largest professional social network globally, has so far catered only to this sliver of the population in the world’s second largest internet market. On Thursday, the Microsoft-owned service said it’s beginning to change that. LinkedIn has started to roll out support for Hindi […]
Kakao Mobility picks up additional $55M funding at over $4.2B valuation
Kakao Mobility, the South Korea-based mobility as a service (MaaS) startup behind Kakao T, a ride-hailing app, said it has raised an additional $55 million (65 billion won) from strategic investor GS Retail. This brings its total raised to about $941.4 million (1.11 trillion won) and values it at more than $4.2 billion, a spokesperson […]
Indonesia-focused AC Ventures closes oversubscribed $205M third fund
More investor money is flowing into Indonesia’s startup ecosystem. Today, AC Ventures, which focuses early-stage startups in the country, announced it has raise $205 million in committed capital for its oversubscribed Fund II, more than double its original target of $80 million. Investors include World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Disrupt AD, the venture […]
India’s Simpl raises $40 million for its buy now, pay later service
Bangalore-based fintech startup Simpl has raised $40 million as it looks to expand its online buy now, pay later service’s offerings in the world’s second-largest market. Valar Ventures and IA Ventures led the six-year-old startup’s Series B round. LFH Ventures and some existing investors also participated in the round, said the startup, which has raised […]
Korea’s P2P lending startup PeopleFund gets $63.4M Series C led by Bain Capital
South Korea-based peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform PeopleFund announced today it has closed a $63.4 million (75.9 billion won) Series C round led by Bain Capital with participation from Goldman Sachs. Returning investors in the round include CLSA Lending Ark Asia and 500 Global. The latest funding brings the total raised by PeopleFund to about $83.6 […]
With $3B expected in 2021, Singapore is becoming a fintech capital
Despite its small size (less than 5 million total population), Singapore is quickly reaching investment levels of countries many times its size.