Silverstrand Capital invests in Porifera
The Singapore-based family office has invested an undisclosed amount in Porifera, a California-based technology company specializing in the development of forward osmosis membrane solutions.
This investment was made through Porifera’s bridge funding round and will enable the company to expedite its growth in various verticals within the food and beverage sector.
“Today, an excessive volume of water is transported thousands of miles away from its source. … Shipping fruits from drought-prone regions to make juice in areas where water is plentiful, for example, is not only ecologically damaging for already stressed water basins—it also results in huge greenhouse gas emissions from transportation and refrigeration. Porifera’s unique technology addresses these issues, and is aligned with our mission to protect nature,” said Kelvin Chiu, founder and principal of Silverstrand Capital.
Amber Electric bags AUD 29 million investment
Amber Electric, an tech-enabled energy provider based in Australia, has bagged AUD 29 million in capital.
This investment was led by New Zealand-listed software company Gentrack with the support of Breakthrough Victoria and Rubio Impact. Gentrack has acquired around 10% of Amber’s enlarged capital at an AUD 12 million cost, valuing Amber at approximately AUD 120 million. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia, an existing investor of Amber, will see its share diluted to around 20%.
Amber will also adopt Gentrack’s billing and customer care software as part of the deal.
Anbogen Therapeutics secures USD 12.5 million in Series A round
Anbogen Therapeutics, a biotechnology company specializing in cancer drug development, has completed its Series A funding round, securing USD 12.5 million.
The round was led by the China Development Industrial Bank (CDIB), with significant contributions from Taian Venture Capital, Maxpro, and the National Development Fund of Taiwan.
Anbogen will allocate the newly raised capital toward the ongoing development of its two main drug candidates, ABT-101 and ABT-301.
Recent deals completed in China:
- CoilEasy Technologies, a Shenzhen-headquartered high-end analog chip design company, recently concluded its pre-Series A funding round, raising an undisclosed sum exclusively invested by China Prosperity Capital. Winsoul Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor. —36Kr
- BC New Energy, a Tianjin-based company specializing in flywheel energy storage technology, has secured close to RMB 100 million in a Series A funding round from MultiGo Capital. The company will utilize the funds to expand its production capacity and explore new applications. —36Kr
- Sicred, a semiconductor R&D company focused on the development of automotive-grade silicon carbide devices, has recently completed its Series A+ funding round, raising an undisclosed amount from Shenzhen Major Industry Investment Group and existing investor Shenzhen HTI Group. —36Kr
- Incus Technology, a hearing aid manufacturer, has bagged an eight-figure RMB sum in a Series A funding round led by Shunxi Capital (managed by Beijing State-owned Capital Operation and Management). GRC SinoGreen Capital took part in this round. The funds will be utilized for product development and channel expansion. —36Kr
- BeBit (stylized as “beBit”), an internet strategy consulting company, has concluded its Series B funding round, snagging an undisclosed sum from Mitsubishi Estate, San-in Godo Bank, Benesse Holdings, and Rakuten Securities, among others. —36Kr
- AoBio, an immunotherapy drug developer, has announced the completion of an angel funding round, securing an eight-figure RMB sum. The investor details were not disclosed. AoBio will utilize the capital to expedite the development of small-molecule drugs for tumor immunotherapy. —36Kr
- Advanced Materials Technology & Engineering (AMTE), a Wuxi-based producer of semiconductor frontend process equipment, has secured RMB 500 million in a Series D funding round jointly led by CICC Capital and an alternative investment vehicle of Haitong Securities. —DealStreetAsia
Latest deals in India:
- Ugro Capital, a non-banking financial institution (NBFI) that specializes in financing services for small and medium enterprises, has secured USD 30 million through non-convertible debentures from the Asian Development Bank. —Tech in Asia
- P0, a company utilizing large language models (LLMs) to identify software-related safety and security issues, has raised USD 6.5 million in a seed funding round from Lightspeed Venture Partners and Alchemy Ventures. The company intends to allocate the capital toward product development, hiring, and the expansion of its user base. —VCCircle
- Aquaconnect, an aquaculture technology platform operated by the Coastal Aquaculture Research Institute, snagged USD 4 million in a pre-Series B funding round led by S2G Ventures. The funds will be utilized to expand Aquaconnect’s presence across India, scale its operations, and expand its partner network over the next six months. —VCCircle
Yume, Zora Health, BlokID, and more led yesterday’s headlines:
- Yume, a Melbourne-based startup that mitigates food waste by redistributing surplus food from manufacturers to businesses and charities, secured AUD 2 million (USD 1.31 million) in a seed funding round led by Investible’s Climate Tech Fund. This round witnessed participation from LaunchVic, Goodrich Group, Veolia, and angel investor Pitzy Folk. Investible’s Early Stage Fund 2 and its Club Investible syndicate were also contributors.
- Zora Health, a startup offering fertility-related programs and services, snagged SGD 1 million (USD 745,700) in funding to launch its integrated fertility care and financing platform in Singapore. With initial backing from Antler, this round saw participation from angel investors including Cheryl Goh (Grab), Prajit Nanu (Nium), Alan Jiang (beam), Lisa Enckell (Antler), and Asa Liden (formerly from Pitch.com).
- BlokID, a Vietnam-based developer of blockchain-based privacy protection solutions for the digital advertising industry, has secured USD 1.25 million in a seed funding round jointly led by Ascend Vietnam Ventures and AppWorks.
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