A guessing game of top-funded startups

Leekr Technology, Sakana AI, KreditBee, and more raised funds this week. [Read from your browser]( FOMO Saturday Welcome to Tech in Asia's free Saturday VC newsletter! Get full access to our subscribers-only premium content and other insightful analysis on the big and messy topics of Asia’s tech and startup community by [registering here](.  --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello {NAME} I’ve turned looking at the weekly list of top-funded startups into a little game. Which countries are going to be on the list? Will there be Southeast Asia representation? Is there going to be a Japanese or South Korean firm? India and China are usually guaranteed to make an appearance, given the size and scale of those markets. The rest of the list, however, is pretty fair game - we have companies from East Asia, Southeast Asia, and occasionally some from the Middle East among the biggest deals of the week. It’s a pretty entertaining guessing game, mostly because I’m not using any real logic to make my guesses. The next time you receive this newsletter, try guessing where the companies mentioned in the excerpt came from. There’s no prize for winning, but it’s fun, and it’s a reflection of just how far and wide our startup ecosystem spans - we’re a really global community. You can find all other important investment deals that happened in the last few days in our [weekly funding news wrap-up](. Let’s dive into the biggest deals that recently took place. -- Stefanie  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  CN Leekr Technology is a China-based startup focusing on the development of new energy automobiles and autonomous driving. It bagged US$137.8 million in series C money from Chery Holding, CyberNautea, Hangzhou Fuchunwan New City Development Fund, Hefei Baohe Innovation Investment Fund, Hefei Construction Investment Capital, Huaying Investment, and Sealand Innovation. JP Japan’s Sakana AI aims to use nature-inspired ideas like evolution and collective intelligence to automate the development of foundation models. The company has raised US$100 million in a late-stage round from Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, and New Enterprise Associates. IN India-based KreditBee is an instant personal loan platform for young professionals. Its subsidiary KB NFC has raised US$32 million in debt financing from Dzerv, Neo Group, OfBusiness, Oxyzo Financial Services, and Yubi. KR Bitsensing is an imaging radar technology company from South Korea. It raised US$24.5 million in series B money from HL Mando, Industrial Bank of Korea, KDB Bank, Life Asset Management, Samchully Investment, and Woori Financial Capital. ID Indonesia’s Amartha, a peer-to-peer lending platform, [has bagged US$17.5 million]( in fresh funding from global nonprofit Accion. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [86 deals worth over US$864.6 million](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As  SG Sparkline, a Singapore-based data analytics startup, [was acquired]( by digital marketing company Ayudante for an undisclosed sum. IN India-based steel producer Chromeni Steels has been acquired by leading steel company Jindal Stainless for US$33 million. IN Sapala Organics, an Indian firm specializing in the custom synthesis of various organic compounds, has been acquired by Suven Pharmaceuticals for US$27.3 million.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  STARTUPS THAT ARE RAISING FUNDS Fundraising is hard. To make things slightly easier, we’ve compiled this list of fundraising startups for our subscribers. We are launching a [new feature]( to send fundraising startups directly to investors’ inboxes. There’s no better time to list your startup, and you can do so [here](. VN This Vietnamese startup operates a decentralized margin trading exchange. ID An Indonesian ecommerce enabler provides one-stop services to help clients establish their businesses. SG Based in Singapore, this firm offers an online platform to help angel investors, fund managers, and founders close and manage deals. You can find the full list of fundraising startups in Asia [over here](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  BEHIND THE GLASSWALL Fundraising often involves reaching out to multiple contacts, many of whom founders might not have dealt with before. To provide some transparency to this process, we created Glasswall, a platform for founders to give feedback and recommendations on investors. Check out the full list [here](. - ✅︎ “It was positive. Team was direct, fast moving, and upfront on why they did not plan to proceed. Mainly interacted with investors focused on software. Will stay in touch.” - [Read more]( - ❌ “Waste of time if you are B2B or Deep Tech. They only really know B2C really- they fundamentally lack an understanding of what it takes to build a long term advantage. We did raise this at first- but they insisted on learning more and spending time. It really did seem like they just wanted to get educated but had no intention of investing.” - [Read more]( - ✅︎ “As we were a pre-product pre-revenue company, they really focused on us as founders -- our dreams, success stories, failures, and everything in between. They're apparently like this for other companies too. I understand how this is considered "unusual" for SEA founders as most funds here really focus more on the business instead (metrics, etc), but AppWorks operates more on a Western style of VC. They're among the few we've encountered that really believe that "while the idea may change, good people remain.” - [Read more](  --------------------------------------------------------------- TECH IN ASIA’S FOUNDERS MEETUP: MALAYSIA ON JULY 25 You asked; we listened. We’re headed to Kuala Lumpur! Double the excitement awaits as Founders Meetup returns to Malaysia in July as the closing party of TIA Conference KL! It's the perfect opportunity to unwind, network, and connect with fellow founders, startup leaders, and investors. Don’t want to miss out? [Get your early bird ticket before the promo ends on June 28](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  EVENTS HAPPENING You can also check out a curated list of trending tech events [over here]( and Tech in Asia’s signature events [here](.  [Tech in Asia Conference Kuala Lumpur 2024 : Malaysia on The Rise on 24 - 25 July]( We are pumped up for the stage sessions happening at the conference. Hear from visionary leaders shaping the tech landscape, including: - Venon Tian, the mastermind behind Zus Coffee's innovative coffee empire - Carmen Yuen, a venture capitalist at Vertex Ventures who will share about what it takes to be a soonicorn - Eric Cheng, co-founder of Malaysia’s unicorn, Carsome, will share key lessons from building the company ... and many more! Limited Fourth Release tickets are available and prices increase on July 1. [Secure your tickets today.]( [Product Development Conference (Jakarta, 25-26 June 2024)]( The countdown is on! PDC kicks off in just a few days and tickets are flying off the shelves. Don’t just talk about innovation, experience it firsthand on 25-26 June. P.S. We’ve got less than 50 tickets left on Pro Pass; General Pass is selling out real soon. Hurry and get yours before they’re gone! [Tech in Asia’s Founders Meetup in Malaysia on July 25]( Double the excitement awaits as Founders Meetup returns to Malaysia, this time in conjunction with the closing party of TIA Conference KL! It's the perfect opportunity to unwind, network, and connect with fellow founders, startup leaders, and investors. Hurry, [get your early bird ticket]( before the promo ends on June 28! [Tech in Asia Conference Jakarta on Oct 23-24]( Where is the next Silicon Valley? It might just be Jakarta! Indonesia's young tech talent is booming, and Tech in Asia Conference Jakarta puts you right in the center of the action. Join us at #TIAConferenceJKT to connect with 4000+ region's brightest minds, 150+ hottest startups, and hear straight from 80+ experts. Early-bird tickets are now available! [Snatch the 75% discount while it lasts!]( --------------------------------------------------------------- EXCLUSIVE LISTICLES Lists of most active investors in the region [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Japan]( | [Singapore]( | [Southeast Asia]( List of top-funded startups in Asia [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Israel]( | [Japan]( | [Hong Kong]( | [Singapore]( | [South Korea]( | [Vietnam](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THOUGHTFUL READS  1️⃣ No more venture tourists This article on Inc interrogates the decline of venture tourism, which is typically fueled by the belief that building successful startups automatically makes one good at investing in them. The current period of high interest rates has put venture tourists off - which might be a good thing for startups in the long run. Read more [here](. 2️⃣ The 101 on venture debt In this challenging climate, venture debt may be an appealing option to investors who prioritize the mitigation of downside risks over the possibility of outsized returns. [This piece]( from the Venture Capital Journal weighs in on how venture lenders can properly analyze potential investments to identify exceptional companies that will be able to pay back their debt. 3️⃣ China and venture capital China is introducing fresh measures encouraging venture capital investment, including from overseas, into its tech sector. This comes as the country makes technological self-sufficiency a priority in the face of US policy threats. Read more [on The Business Times](. 4️⃣ Lightspeed to the secondaries Lightspeed Venture Partners - one of the largest investment firms in Silicon Valley - is shifting its focus to the secondary market. This move is an indicator of how VCs are contending with the current funding climate, and that the traditional VC model may be under threat. [the Financial Times]( goes deeper. 5️⃣ More newsletters for your perusal I personally think this newsletter is one of the best VC newsletters on the block (I may be biased). However, if you’re looking to expand your reading repertoire, [this Reddit discussion]( highlights some of the leading VC newsletters out there that might be worth checking out.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [ADVERTISE]( | [SUBSCRIBE]( | [HIRE]( | [FIND JOBS]( P.S. Don't miss out on the biggest tech news and analysis. Add newsletter@techinasia.com to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list. Or simply move us into your inbox. Too many emails? Switch to a different frequency or get new content through our [preference center]( or [unsubscribe](. You can also break our hearts and remove yourself from all Tech in Asia emails over [here](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  Tech in Asia’s newsletters are handcrafted daily with love - and sometimes powered by good kopi. Today’s edition was written by Stefanie Yeo. It’s edited by Dhania Putri Sarahtika. Copyright © 2024 Tech in Asia, All rights reserved. 63 Robinson Road, Singapore 068894