Shopee buys Blu’s local credit arm to expand footprint in Brazil
Shopee, one of the leading e-commerce companies in Southeast Asia, has bought the local credit arm of Blu, a Brazilian fintech company, according to The Business Times.
The deal, which has yet to be announced by the companies, secured preliminary approval from Cade, Brazil’s antitrust regulator, and is expected to enable Shopee to offer credit directly to customers living in Brazil, LATAM’s largest economy. The filing did not disclose how much Shopee will pay to complete this deal.
In November, Shopee had said in a legal filing that the acquisition is aimed at helping it grow its business in Brazil and to cut costs. Prior to this deal, the Singapore-based company has been partnering with a local firm through which it offers customer credit. Shopee has nine distribution centers in Brazil after entering the market in 2020.
Biorithm secures USD 3.5 million in Series A round
Biorithm, a medtech company specializing in pregnancy care solutions, has secured USD 3.5 million in a Series A funding round jointly led by Adaptive Capital Partners and SEEDS Capital (Enterprise Singapore).
In a statement by Biorithm, the company said that it intends to utilize the newly raised capital to expand the reach of its solutions across Southeast Asia and the US. The company is presently dual-headquartered in Singapore and Boston, Massachusetts.
“Building a system of connected medical care is crucial to help clinicians predict, diagnose, and formulate calculated decisions on early intervention to prevent complications and devise treatments. We are excited with our investment into Biorithm as the company is focused on creating measurable and actionable value in maternal health, integrating this system across all touchpoints to ensure safety throughout the pregnancy journey,” said Shi Ying, founder and managing partner of Adaptive Capital Partners.
“By leveraging technology to enable remote monitoring, Biorithm’s offering provides enhanced access to quality care for expectant mothers. We are excited to continue backing Biorithm as they accelerate their commercialization in the US and support their vision of revolutionizing the global maternal health market,” added Tan Kaixin, general manager at SEEDS Capital.
Blue Planet bags USD 35 million from the IFU
The Singapore-based sustainable waste management company has bagged USD 35 million in funding from The Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU). The IFU invested in Blue Planet in this deal on behalf of the SDG Fund, which provides catalytic risk mitigations to mobilize private capital. The SDG Fund is partly funded by the public and gives Danish pension funds access to sustainable investment opportunities in developing countries.
This investment will enable Blue Planet to enhance its capabilities in landfill reclamation and e-waste recycling in India. The company is also planning to operate one of the largest e-waste recycling centers in the country.
Coupang announces plans to acquire Farfetch Holdings
The New York Stock Exchange-listed e-commerce company has announced its plans to acquire the business and assets of Farfetch Holdings, an online luxury fashion platform.
This agreement entails providing Farfetch access to USD 500 million of capital to continue providing exclusive brands and boutiques with “bespoke, cutting-edge technology” and giving leading designers access to global consumers. It is also expected to position Coupang as a leader in the global personal luxury goods market.
“Coupang’s proven track record and deep experience in revolutionizing commerce will enable us to deliver exceptional service for our brand and boutique partners, as well as for our millions of customers around the world,” said Jose Neves, founder, CEO, and chairman of Farfetch.
Greenoaks, an investment firm, offered financial expertise and is Coupang’s investment partner in this deal.
Tamara achieves unicorn status following completion of Series C round
The Saudi Arabia-headquartered fintech platform has become the state’s first homegrown fintech company to achieve the unicorn status after securing USD 340 million in a Series C funding round.
The round was jointly led by SNB Capital and Sanabil Investments with the support of Shorooq Partners, Pinnacle Capital, Impulse, and other investors. Existing shareholders Coatue, Endeavor Catalyst, and Checkout.com also participated in this round.
Notably, the completion of this round follows debt financing of up to USD 400 million secured by Tamara last month, which has been earmarked to upsize the company’s warehouse facility. Goldman Sachs and Shorooq Partners jointly led that round of financing.
In total, Tamara has raised around USD 500 million in equity funding, and over USD 400 million in debt financing since its inception in late 2020.
EDP Renewables receives USD 95 million from parent company
The Singapore-based sustainability-focused technology company, previously known as Sunseap Group, has received USD 95 million in a capital injection from its parent company (EDP Group).
This marks the first time EDP Renewables (EDPR) has secured additional support from its parent company since its acquisition in November 2021. —Tech in Asia
Melbourne’s Cyban raises AUD 6.25 million in Series A round
The Melbourne-based medtech company has raised AUD 6.25 million (USD 4.2 million) in a Series A funding round from Breakthrough Victoria, Significant Early Venture Capital, and InterValley Ventures. Breakthrough Victoria invested AUD 2 million (USD 1.34 million) in this round.
Cyban is currently developing a non-invasive medical device that monitors oxygen levels in the brain without requiring probe insertion surgery, potentially improving medical outcomes. The funds will enable the company to apply for regulatory approval in Australia and the US, and begin manufacturing its device in Victoria.
“We believe Cyban has the potential to scale globally with its breakthrough medical device that helps save lives and reduce the cost of hospital care around the world,” said Grant Dooley, CEO of Breakthrough Victoria.
Recent deals completed in China:
- Freedo, a Beijing-headquartered company specializing in digital twin platform-as-a-service (PaaS) solutions, has raised an eight-figure RMB sum in a Series B funding round from Qinling Technology Venture Capital. The company will utilize the funds to construct its platform, including the R&D of technology for city information modeling (CIM) and artificial intelligence generated content (AIGC). The funds will also be used for market expansion and team building. —36Kr
- Hangke New Materials, a Shenzhen-based company that develops materials for the production of metallic microspheres, has raised an eight-figure RMB sum of angel funding from China Growth Capital. Hangke will use the funds to expand its production line and target new markets. —36Kr
- Galactic Energy, a Beijing-based space technology company, has secured RMB 1.1 billion (USD 154 million) in Series C and Series C+ funding rounds led by the Ziyang Major Industry Equity Investment Fund. The rounds also saw the participation of Hesheng Investment. The company intends to use the capital to finance the R&D of Pallas-1, a medium-sized reusable kerosene-oxygen rocket. —36Kr
- New Sail Technology, a Wuhan-based company specializing in thermoelectric cooling (TEC) modules for semiconductors, has secured an eight-figure RMB in an angel funding round from Atom Ventures. —36Kr
- Yirui Pharmaceutical Technology, a Hangzhou-based biopharmaceutical company, has banked an eight-figure RMB sum in a Series A+ funding round led by Tailong VC. Tianlong Capital, Win-light, and other investors also participated in this round. Yirui will utilize the newly raised capital to expedite the clinical trials of its YR-001 drug as well as the progress of its projects. —36Kr
- ABUP, a Shanghai-based provider of over-the-air solutions for automotives and internet-of-things systems, has secured close to RMB 100 million in funding from Qiming Venture Partners. The funds will primarily be used to enhance ABUP’s technological and commercialization capabilities. —36Kr
- Wisbiom (Zhongke Weizhi Technology), a Beijing-based R&D company specializing in biopharmaceutical and microbiome-related solutions, has bagged an eight-figure RMB sum in a pre-Series A funding round led by Hengxu Capital. Elim Capital, Xiuzheng Pharmaceutical Group, and Sinofaith IP Group also took part in this round. G&G Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for this round. —36Kr
- Bionic Intelligent Suspension, a Wuxi-based developer of automotive suspension solutions such as air springs and shock absorbers, has raised a seven-figure RMB sum in seed funding from the Wuxi Innovation and Entrepreneurship Seed Investment Fund. The company intends to allocate the capital toward R&D as well as product implementation and iteration. —36Kr
Latest deals in India:
- Noise, a consumer electronics brand, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding in a Series A funding round from Bose. Noise said in its statement that other investors are likely to join the funding round soon. —VCCircle
- Connedit Business Solutions, the operator of Farmley, a nuts and dry fruits brand, has raised USD 6.7 million in a pre-Series B round led by BC Jindal Group. The round also saw participation from existing investors DSG Consumer Partners, Omnivore, and Alkemi Partners. The company will use the funds for product development, offline expansion, and branding. —VCCircle
- Finayo, a sustainable mobility-focused lending platform, has raised USD 1.9 million in equity and debt funding from various investors including F Mec International, Choice Finserv, and angel investors. Finayo intends to utilize the funds to invest in technology and expand its footprint across India. —VCCircle
- Hogr, a “social dining” app-based platform that offers restaurant recommendations, has raised USD 1.2 million in seed funding from Curefoods. The Bengaluru-based startup will use the funds to enhance its technology and expand its reach. —VCCircle
- VideoVerse, an AI-powered video editing platform, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from the maiden fund of Bluestone Equity Partners. —VCCircle
- Ather Energy, a Bengaluru-based electric two-wheeler startup, has raised INR 1.4 billion (USD 16.8 million) in equity funding from Hero Motocorp. The investor is an existing shareholder of Ather after acquiring a 36.7% stake for USD 66.5 million in September this year. The latest deal is expected to increase Hero Motocorp’s stake in Ather by 3% to 39.7%. —VCCircle
- Canpac Trends, an Ahmedabad-based provider of paper-based packaging solutions, has received an investment of INR 3.4 billion (USD 40.9 million) in a funding round led by Investcorp. This deal will provide a partial exit to JM Financial India Fund II, a fund that has invested in Canpac since 2021. Canpac will utilize the funds for growth-focused acquisitions and its R&D initiatives.
Rose All Day Cosmetics, Velocity Ventures, Lunit, and more led the recent headlines:
- Rose All Day Cosmetics (RADC), an Indonesian D2C cosmetics brand, confirmed its completion of a Series A funding round led by SWC Global with the support of DSG Consumer Partners (DSGCP) and AC Ventures. It raised USD 5.41 million in this round.
- Velocity Ventures, a Southeast Asian venture capital firm, announced its latest investment in Joyned, a company developing a “social revenue’ technology platform. The amount was not disclosed.
- Lunit, a Korea Stock Exchange-listed company specializing in artificial intelligence-powered solutions for cancer diagnostics and therapeutics, agreed to acquire Volpara Health Technologies, a New Zealand-based company that produces AI-powered software for early cancer detection and prevention.
If there are any news or updates you’d like us to feature, get in touch with us at: [email protected].