Fantuan secures USD 40 million to become the “overseas version of Meituan”
Fantuan, an Asian food delivery and lifestyle service platform, has secured USD 40 million in a Series C funding round jointly led by GrubMarket and Celtic House Asia Partners. The round also saw the participation of VisionPlus Capital, JSD Capital, and other undisclosed backers from North America and China.
Established in Vancouver, Canada, in 2014, Fantuan currently operates in over 50 cities across Australia, Canada, the US, and the UK. The company primarily serves the Asian community in the countries where it operates, which represents a market size of around USD 36 billion, according to its statement. Fantuan has also been exploring other service sectors including fresh produce delivery, dine-in services, and ticketing services, among others.
“GrubMarket and existing investors have immense confidence in Fantuan’s vision, business model, and profitability. … We believe Fantuan can continue to integrate the overseas Chinese and Asian food delivery market and keep growing its footprints,” said Mike Xu, founder and CEO of GrubMarket.”
“Celtic House Asia Partners has been with Fantuan from the beginning, witnessing its tremendous growth. With the team’s strong operation and execution, we believe Fantuan will maintain its leadership position in the Asian food delivery sector and achieve even greater success in more countries and business categories,” added Jie Chen, managing partner at Celtic House Asia Partners.
CodeNinja bags USD 1.6 million investment from sAi Venture Capital and strategic partners
The Lahore-based software services provider has secured USD 1.6 million in a funding round led by sAi Venture Capital. The round also saw the participation of Dallas, Plutus21 Capital, and affiliates. CodeNinja will direct the funds toward the enhancement of its enterprise cloud services as well as data and artificial intelligence capabilities. —Business Recorder
British International Investment commits USD 25 million to GEF South Asia Growth Fund III
British International Investment, the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, has announced multiple climate finance investments. The commitments, totaling USD 55 million, were announced by UK prime minister Rishi Sunak during his COP28 speech on December 1, underlining the institution’s commitment to supporting countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
Among the investments announced is a USD 25 million commitment to the GEF South Asia Growth Fund III, a fund managed by GEF Capital that targets investments in India focusing on climate adaptation and mitigation as well as the circular economy.
Specific to the Asia Pacific region, BII’s new investments also include a USD 6 million commitment to Wavemaker Impact’s debut fund and a USD 7 million commitment to the final close of the Circulate Capital Ocean Fund I-B.
“Climate finance is at the heart of BII’s investment mandate. Over the course of our current five-year strategy period, we aim to invest at least 30% of our total capital in climate finance. Last year that figure was 46%,” said Amal-Lee Amin, managing director and head of climate, diversity, and advisory at BII.
Recent deals completed in China:
- HengMicro, a Hangzhou-based micro-electromechanical system R&D company, has secured an eight-figure RMB sum in an angel funding round led by Zhibo Investment with the support of Nanjing Innovation Capital Group and Nanjing Qilin Venture Capital. The company will use the funds to construct its pilot lines, expand its team, and mass produce its sixth-generation blood pressure monitor watch. —36Kr
- YolTech Therapeutics, a Shanghai-based genome editing technology company, has raised over RMB 100 million (USD 14.1 million) in a Series A+ funding round led by Decheng Capital. Other investors that took part in this round include Guangzhou Industrial Investment and Capital Operation Holding Group and Huafang Investment. Haoyue Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor. —36Kr
- Shell Station, a Guangzhou-based operator of self-service kiosks selling mobile phone accessories, has secured an undisclosed amount of strategic financing from StarThing. As part of this deal, StarThing will offer technical support to assist Shell Station in establishing an online sales channel. A portion of the funds has also been earmarked for equipment production and product R&D. —36Kr
- No Sugar Tech, a Chengdu-based cybersecurity company, has completed its Series B funding round, raising an undisclosed amount from Gaocheng Capital. The company will allocate the newly raised funds toward R&D and market expansion. —36Kr
- NextVPU, a Shanghai-headquartered technology company specializing in vision processing units and related applications, has bagged RMB 200 million (USD 28.1 million) in a Series D funding round led by WestSummit Capital. It intends to use the funds for R&D and to iterate its next-generation chips and modules. —36Kr
- Watson Rally, an automobile components and systems developer, has secured RMB 10 million (USD 1.41 million) from K2VC, Crystal Stream, and Cherish Capial (Estar Capital). Existing investors Xiaomi and Shunwei Capital also participated in this round. The company will allocate the funds toward R&D, expansion of its sales and management teams, and supply chain development. —36Kr
- Giga Mega Energy Storage Technology, a Wuhan-based developer of liquid metal batteries for energy storage systems, has raised an undisclosed amount of angel funding from 5Y Capital. The funds will be used to finance the company’s R&D, team expansion, and construction of pilot lines. —36Kr
Latest deals in India:
- The Sleep Company, a D2C mattress brand, has raised INR 1.84 billion (USD 21.59 million) from existing investors Premji Invest and Fireside Ventures. The startup will use the newly raised capital to build its brand, expand its channels, and innovate new products. —Inc42
- CoreEL Technologies, a Bangalore-headquartered technology development company, has secured USD 16 million in investment commitment from 360 One Asset. CoreEL specializes in solutions for the aerospace and defense sectors, and will utilize the funds for R&D, product development, and manufacturing capacity expansion, among other initiatives. —TechNode Global
- Digivriddhi Technologies (DGV), a fintech platform for dairy farmers and businesses, has raised USD 6 million in a Series A funding round led by Omidyar Network India. The round also saw participation from existing investors Omnivore and InfoEdge Ventures. DGV will utilize the funds to develop its technology stack and expand its footprint across India. —VCCircle
- Offside, a social app for cricket enthusiasts, has raised USD 150,000 in a pre-seed funding round from 100X.VC. It will use the funds to expand its user base. —VCCircle
- EsportsXO, a Bengaluru-based gaming tournament management platform, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from various investors including Orbit Startups (SOSV), WeFounderCircle, Imperial Holdings, as well as existing investors SucSeed Innovation Fund and Mumbai Angels. The company will use the funds to expand its team and user base. —VCCircle
Qarbotech, Box Vietnam, Biodiversity Accelerator+, and more led yesterday’s headlines:
- Qarbotech, a Malaysia-based agritech startup secured a total of USD 700,000 in seed funding and grants. 500 Global led the round with support from innovation grants. Notably, these grants were obtained from the Temasek Foundation and Khazanah Nasional Berhad’s Dana Impak.
- Box Vietnam, a Vietnamese gaming and entertainment company, raised an undisclosed amount of funding in a round led by TheVentures through its Asia Advance Fund 1. Angel investors also participated in this round.
- Biodiversity Accelerator+, an impact-focused accelerator program managed by the Singapore-based family office Silverstrand Capital, unveiled five startups that presented their solutions during a demo day at COP28 in Dubai on December 1.
If there are any news or updates you’d like us to feature, get in touch with us at: [email protected].