Early-stage
Co-Stone leads $43m round for China biosynthesis player
Co-Stone Capital Management has led a CNY 300m (USD 43m) Series B round for Readline, a Shenzhen-based company that specialises in synthetic biology.
2023 preview: Hard-tech
As China’s technology space has shifted toward more advanced domains of R&D, bubbles have formed and geopolitics have complicated investment. There is scope for some turnaround on these points
2023 preview: Southeast Asia VC
Southeast Asia VC is in fair position to hobble through a global downturn and cooling appetite for all things tech despite controversial politics in the region’s largest market and a dicey IPO outlook
New Zealand's Partly gets $21m Series A
New Zealand’s Partly, a company that uses big data to source replacement parts for the global automotive industry, has raised a NZD 37m (USD 21m) Series A round led by UK-based Octopus Ventures.
Winter Capital leads $22.5m Series A for India's Uolo
Dubai-based Winter Capital has led a USD 22.5m Series A round for Indian education technology platform Uolo with support from local investor Blume Ventures.
China medical devices manufacturer LavaMed raises $40m
SuZhou LavaMed, a China-based medical devices manufacturer, has raised USD 40m in angel and Series A funding from Zhejiang Silk Road Fund, Junshang Capital, and Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV).
Japan's Sparx leads $50m round for Singapore IoT start-up
Japan’s Sparx Group has led an investment in Singapore-based internet-of-things (IoT) developer UnaBiz. It completes a USD 50m Series B round that started in October last year.
Australian needle-free vaccine start-up raises $23m
OneVentures and UniQuest have led a AUD 34m (USD 23m) funding round for Vaxxas, an Australia-based biotechnology company running clinical programmes that include a needle-free COVID-19 vaccine candidate.
Deal focus: Prosperity7 widens mandate with Australia’s Vow
Prosperity7 Ventures has well and truly escaped its energy sector roots, leading a hefty early-stage round for Australia’s Vow, a company making cell-cultured meat with a twist
Superfunds top-up Series B for Australia's Morse Micro
Five Australian superannuation funds have backed a AUD 30m (USD 20.4m) investment in local Wi-Fi chipmaker Morse Micro, extending a recent Series B round to AUD 170m.
AirTree, Greycroft back Australia's FrankieOne
Australia’s AirTree Ventures and US-based Greycroft have led a AUD 23m (USD 15.5m) investment in Melbourne-based fraud prevention platform FrankieOne, lifting its Series A round to AUD 45.7m.
Singapore insurance start-up Igloo lifts Series B to $46m
Singapore-based insurance technology start-up Igloo has added USD 27m to an initial USD 19m in Series B funding raised in March. Swiss impact investor BlueOrchard led the extension.
Vistara, QIC back Australian sports-tech player Vald
US-based growth-stage technology investor Vistara Growth has joined Queensland Investment Corporation in an AUD 36m (USD 25m) round for Vald, an Australian start-up that supplies performance-tracking technology to a host of professional sports teams.
East leads $13m round for Indonesia's TipTip
East Ventures has led a USD 13m Series A round for Indonesia’s TipTip, a marketplace that connects digital media content creators and their fans.
China's Ruiyun Cold Chain raises $28m
Ruiyun Cold Chain, a China-based cold chain services provider, has raised CNY 200m (USD 28m) in an extended pre-Series A round led by Mitsubishi and Mizuho Leaguer Investment Fund.
Government investors support Chinese EV player Letin
Chinese state-backed investors have pumped CNY 3.2bn (USD 447m) into local new energy vehicle start-up Letin amid reports that the company had run into financial distress.
Lightspeed backs China autonomous driving industry supplier Daisch
Lightspeed China Partners has backed Daisch, a domestic supplier of high-precision products for autonomous driving, as the sole participant in a Series A round.
Australia cultured meat start-up gets $49m Series A
Blackbird and Prosperity7 Ventures, a unit of Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco, have led a USD 49.2m Series A round for Australian cell-cultured meat company Vow.
China automotive industry supplier Kasco raises $72m
Kasco, a China-based air suspension supplier for passenger vehicles, has closed a Series B round of CNY 510m (USD 72m) led by an investment arm of CRRC Group, China State-Owned Venture Capital Fund, Source Code Capital, and Shenzhen Capital Group.
India fintech player Lentra gets $60m Series B
India’s Lentra, a financial technology provider focused on cloud-based lending, has raised USD 60m in Series B funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners and SIG Venture Capital.
Singapore's Speeddoc gets $28m pre-Series B round
Bertelsmann Investments, Shinhan Venture investment, Mars Growth and Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India have participated in a USD 28m pre-Series B round for Singapore virtual healthcare platform Speedoc.
China AR start-up with celebrity founder raises $55m
Meituan investment unit Dragonball Capital has led a CNY 400m (USD 55m) angel round for Thin Red Line, a China-based start-up that provides operating systems for augmented reality (AR) glasses.
China to Singapore: A VC invasion
Chinese venture capital firms are establishing and expanding operations in Singapore in response to challenges at home and to address the Southeast Asian market. Do they have staying power?
GEF Capital backs India EV components supplier Electra EV
GEF Capital Partners, a spinout from Global Environment Fund, has invested USD 25m in Electra EV, an India-based electric vehicle (EV) components manufacturer controlled by Ratan Tata.