Kr-Asia Daily is a five-minute read to brief you everything you need to know to start your day. We only choose the latest tech & startup news that is worth your time, with a focus on Southeast Asia and China. Subscribe to our newsletter at Kr-Asia.
For the first day of November, Bitcoin is still at the center of public attention. It seems that Nobel economics are not fans of Bitcoin, as Robert J. Shiller believes the price of Bitcoin will eventually go down despite the recent mainstream optimism.
Southeast Asia:
Thailand: Leading wireless operator, Advanced Info Service Pcl, seeks to triple subscribers for its fiber-based high-speed Internet service. This move comes as it grapples with intense competition in the mobile sector. (Bloomberg)
Singapore: Enterprise risk management company CashShield plans to raise as much as $50 million, after raising $5.5 million in September from GGV Capital and Temasek’s Heliconia Capital Management. The startup uses high-speed algorithms to combat online fraud. (Bloomberg)
Singapore: Shareholders of warehouse operator Global Logistics Properties (GLP) have agreed to the proposed privatisation by Nesta Investment Holdings. The yet-to-accomplish buyout will be the largest ever private equity acquisition of an Asian company. (DealStreetAsia)
Singapore: Units of Cromwell European Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) went public and make the city-state’s biggest listing by money raised via IPO since 2013. REIT raised $659.5 million through its IPO. (DealStreetAsia)
Malaysia: The country’s startup and innovation lab, Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Center (Magic), is considering the possibility to provide capital to startups. Magic is currently helping startups to scale to the next level and has announced that its role did not involve funding last year. (DealStreetAsia)
Singapore: Startup LightWeight creates better shopping carts for elderly people who suffer from back issues. The cart ELLE allows users not to bend when reaching in the cart for the shopping bag. (e27)
Singapore: A short film startup Viddsee has reached a partnership with the Info-communications Media Development Authority to become a public service content production studio. This move comes as the media startup plans to explore the production of original content. (e27)
Malaysia: DHL opens 350 service points for e-commerce vendors and online shoppers in Malaysia. The company plans to expand its Malaysian network to over 1,000 service points over the coming months. (e27)
China:
Shares of Kindergarten chain at the center of the abuse scandal, RYB Education, dropped by 15 percent, in spite of its newly released quarterly report. In Q3, RYB Education’s revenue increased by 39 percent to $37.4 million. The company saw a rise of 72.7 percent in its net revenue. (Finance.Sina)
Mobike and ofo both denied the allegation that the two companies have misappropriated users’ deposit worth approximately $9 billion. Users of the two bike-sharing companies can claim the deposit back via their App and customer service lines. (ThePaper)
Beijing’s biggest convenience store OurHours seeks share buyers or a merger at the price of over $151 million but failed as investors tend to be prudent when buying in convenience stores. (36Kr)
Baidu has updated its data traffic card Sheng Card, providing free internet traffic to users when using the Baidu app. Users can use the free internet traffic to watch videos from video platforms including iQIYI, Tencent and Bilibili. (news.mydrivers)
Alibaba announced that Feng Jinwei, former Chief Engineer at Polycom, is to take office as researcher in its AI team iDST. Feng has worked at Polycom for 17 years and is considered a top audio expert across the world. (Tech.Sina)
Xiaomi is to launch a mobile payment option enabling commuters in Zhengzhou to pay contactless on buses, announced the person in charge of Xiaomi’s payment product MI Pay. (Tech.Huanqiu)
China UnionPay inked partnership with JD Financial to curb financial risks and prevent data leaks. (36Kr)
Didi suspended its ride-hailing services in several U.S. cities including California, Las Vegas and New York. Didi recommends users to use Lyft instead when needed. (21jingji)
JD has acquired China’s automotive aftermarket website Tqmall, envisioning the first platform of integrated industrial chain for automotive aftermarket in China. This move marks the launch of JD Cars’ B2B services. (36Kr)
China’s mobile photography and video app, Meitu, rolled out its drawing product Andy, an AI-powered robot. Andy is capable of transforming selfies into painting-like portraits. Users can choose from over 30 effects. (36Kr)
In the upcoming year, 58 percent of Chinese entrepreneurs would seek M&A, according to a report by Ernst & Young. Six core areas namely vehicle & transportation, financial services, technology, consumer & retail, biology, mining & metals, will attract most interests from potential investors. (36Kr)
JD partners with Tencent to establish new supply chain standards for online procurement, with focus on two verticals, Tencent’s operational and marketing needs. (JD)
WeChat applets are projected to increase to over 30 million by 2018, according to Aldwx, a data platform focusing on tracking statistics related to WeChat applets. In Aldwx’s top 200 applets list, Applets for retail counts over 20 percent. (BeijingBusinessToday)
World:
Netflix acquires Chinese detective drama Day and Night. Its’s the first time for Netflix to acquire an online drama series produced in mainland China. So far, the hit drama has generated more than four billion views on Youku. Netflix is to make the show available in over 190 countries and regions. (TheHollywoodReporter)
It seems that Nobel economics don’t like Bitcoin. Nobile price winner, Robert J. Shiller, the Yale economist, said the attraction of the currency was a narrative akin to a “mystery movie” that draws in people who want to outsmart the system. Shiller also said the Bitcoin will just come down despite the recent Bitcoin frenzy. (Bloomberg)
Banks in Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore are expected to lose the most in the face of competition from financial technology companies, revealed by Singapore’s regulator. For example, in Hong Kong, operating income could drop by approximately 7 percent due to drop in payments, deposit and lending, according to Monetary Authority of Singapore’s annual Financial Stability Review. (Bloomberg)
Intel data center’s Ex-Manger Diana Bryant has joined Google Cloud department as new COO. Bryant is an experienced tech executive who spent more than 25 years at Intel. She was considered one of the top three executives at the company. (CNBC)
Airbnb could become a publicly trading company in 2 to 3 years, according to VC firm General Catalyst Managing Director. (Tech.Sina)