Editor’s note:
from Jan 19, Singapore’s largest taxi operator, ComfortDelGro, will launch a dynamic pricing system for its 13,600 cabs through Uber app.
Commuters are likely to benefit from shorter waiting times but fares during peak hours may go up.
The move to pool ComfordDelGo taxis on Uber’s platform comes as the two reached a partnership last month, following which, ComfortDelGo will acquire a 51% stake in Uber’s rental car arm, Lion City Holdings.
The deal is currently under review by the Competition Commission of Singapore.
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.
Southeast Asia:
Singapore: Singapore’s largest taxi operator, ComfortDelGro, will soon launch a dynamic pricing system for its 13,600 cabs from Jan 19. (Vulcan Post)
Indonesia: The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private investment arm of the World Bank, is looking at extending a $100-million loan to Indonesia’s PT Kaldu Sari Nabati Indonesia (Nabati), a family owned snacks business, to fuel its expansion plans. (Deal Street Asia)
Vietnam: Standard Chartered has sold its entire stake in Vietnam’s Asia Commercial Bank (ACB), bringing a 12-year partnership to an end. (Deal Street Asia)
Malaysia: Malaysia-based equity crowdfunding (ECF) platform Ata Plus is working on a Crowdfund of Funds. The Kuala Lumpur-headquartered ECF platform is also planning to launch Closed Secondary Exchange this year. (e27)
Singapore: Two Android TV box sellers in Singapore, Synnex Trading and An-Nahl, are being taken to court in what could be a landmark case for piracy involving the use of media streaming boxes. (Straits Times)
Singapore: The city-state is among 25 countries best-positioned to benefit from the rise of advanced manufacturing and smart factories, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum. (Straits Times)
China:
Ofo investor Zhu Xiaohu from GSR Ventures is rumored to have sold his shares in ofo to Alibaba for $3 billion. (Technode)
Meicai, a China startup that helps farmers sell vegetables to restaurants, has raised $450 million in a funding round led by Tiger Global Management and China Media Capital. The Beijing-based startup raised the money at a valuation of about $2.8 billion. (Bloomberg)
Chinese web search giant Baidu has launched its own blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) platform. (coindesk)
Maoyan Weying, China’s biggest online movie ticketing platform, is planning a Hong Kong initial public offering that could raise about $1 billion, people with knowledge of the matter said. (Bloomberg)
Beijing-based convenience store Bianlifeng announced today that it has acquired a controlling stake in its peer Lingwa, in the latest sign of industry consolidation. (China Money Network)
Suning Commerce Group, one of the largest retailer in China, is set to sell its shares in Alibaba. (STCN)
Tencent founder Pony Ma: Tencent has helped tackle tech criminals and fight against data breaches last year. (Sina)
Douyu TV, China’s online video streaming platform, is eyeing an IPO and will launch its own live trivia game soon. (Sina)
China’s wearable device company Huami has handled its prospectus to SEC for an IPO. Xiaomi holds a 19.3% stake in Huami and it’s the company’s stratigic partner. (Sina)
Qihoo 360 topped running its search tool for live trivia games as the company’s founder Zhou Hongyi believes AI-powered tools spoil the fun part of the game. Huajiao Zhibo, Qihoo 360-backed live streaming platform, has rescheduled its live trivia game on Saturday night. (Sina)
Chinese regulators urged live trivia game platform Huajiao Zhibo to rectify inappropriate questions during its games, as Huajiao Zhibo included Hongkong and Taiwan as options for countries. (Sina)
Tencent’s blockchain arm, TrustSQL, claimed it has never participated in ICOs or token tradings. (Jinse)
World:
Mark Zuckerberg saw his fortune fall $3.3 billion Friday after he posted plans to shift users’ news feeds toward content from family and friends at the expense of material from media outlets and businesses. (Bloomberg)
Facebook announced three new partnerships with music publishers, coming on the heels of its deal with Sony/ATV earlier this week and its pact with Universal Music Group, inked in December. (Adweek)
The South Korea government is scrapping plans to ban cryptocurrency trading — at least in the short term — just a day after the justice department said it was drafting a bill to enact this measure. (e27)
India’s offline, proximity-based mobile payments solutions startup ToneTag has raised $1.3 Mn (INR 8.46 Cr) funding from an overseas investor, Tropical Star Limited. (inc42)
The Kraken cryptocurrency exchange has come back online today, Jan. 13 at 11:30 UTC, after a more than 48-hour delay. (The Cointelegrapah)
Japanese conglomerate SoftBank has agreed to invest €460m in Auto1, a fast-growing German online car dealer, in one of the biggest funding deals ever for the country’s buoyant start-up scene. (Financial Times)
SpaceX’s Dragon capsule has returned from the International Space Station as planned, after spending around a month docked at the orbital facility. (TechCrunch)
Apple rose to become the world’s fourth-largest PC maker in 2017, as Mac sales increased to nearly 20 million to roughly 19.6 million during the year, according to the latest estimates shared by research firms IDC and Gartner. (MacRumors)
Japan’s new female idol group “Virtual Currency Girls” performed their first live concert on Friday in Tokyo. Their songs incorporate reminders, advice, and warnings related to cryptocurrency trading. The girls receive their salaries in bitcoin and the show’s tickets and merchandise are also sold for the cryptocurrency. (Bitcoin.com)