Hi there, it’s Robin.
Just when Go-Jek made some drivers in Singapore unhappy by cutting generous incentives, it’s now offering the carrot.
The Indonesia headquartered ride-hailing company has designed an insurance scheme to offer a range of protections at subsidised rates, setting a new standard when it comes to driver protection in Singapore. With a single monthly rate, Go-Jek drivers will get a standard earnings protection coverage, up to 21 days for medical leave and up to 84 days for hospitalisation.
In other Go-Jek news, the firm’s on-demand multi-service platform Get has become fully operational in Bangkok this week after a phase of trials. The Indonesian on-demand platform operator wants to meet its target of operating in six countries by the end of this year.
Meanwhile, Grab is taking Vietnamese taxi operator Vinsasun to the appeals court. The taxi operator has tried to sue Grab for unfairly eating into its profits. Vietnam’s regulators are also busy coming up with new rules to level the competition between traditional taxi companies and these app-based ride-hailing operators like Grab.
Over in China, the “business optimisation” strategy continues as Chinese tech giants look to make bold changes to face the slowdown.
China’s second-largest gaming company Netease joined this downsizing and restructuring trend. JD.com is another example. It has cut 10% of its underperforming senior executives but is now looking to hire another 15,000 fresh employees.
The Hong Kong-listed Meituan took a step out of China, looking to get a slice of the Southeast Asian market. Meituan will integrate restaurant booking app Chope into its platform, allowing Chinese travellers to seek out dining options whenever they visit Southeast Asia.
Read on to find out more interesting stories from last week, and feel free to tip us if you have news clue or you just want to talk with us, email us at [email protected] and we are looking forward to hearing from you.
Here are some stories you shouldn’t miss.
Southeast Asia
‘P2B’ Lender Validus Capital raises $15m series B round led by Dutch development bank
Singaporean transport regulator impounds nearly 200 electric scooters
Thai insurtech startup Sunday raises $10m in Series A round led by Vertex Ventures
Singaporean co-living startup Hmlet venture into Australia
Indonesian fintech services Kredivo and Moka team up for offline transactions
Grab takes Vietnamese taxi provider Vinasun to the appeals court
Migo’s e-bike sharing concept to face fresh regulations in Indonesia
Indonesian online travel unicorn Traveloka expands to Australia
Go-Jek’s Thailand subsidiary begins full service in Bangkok
Quest Ventures launches new $50m early stage tech fund, appoints new partners
From farm to kiosk: Indonesian micro-retail startup Warung Pintar acquires Limakilo
China
5G race is on for phone makers as Huawei launches extra-expensive foldable, 5G phones
Firing thousands, Didi is said to be dolling out sweeter-than-expected compensation deals
Xiaomi-backed UP Fintech to raise $150m in US IPO
Vodafone and LG Uplus back Huawei’s 5G gear
Touting better user stickiness than Facebook, TikTok looks for advertisers in the US
Pinduoduo starts seeking international products for its hundreds of millions of bargain-hunters
Aided by Huawei, Sunrise is to roll out Switzerland’s first 5G networks in March
Lenovo CEO Yang scorns foldable phones saying “they only stand behind glass”
Tencent said to be considering partial acquisition of Universal Music Group
Tesla expected to grab $2b loans from Chinese banks to speed up mass production
One out of two Chinese uses e-commerce sites, but appetite for online food delivery still lagging
TikTok now has more than 1 billion downloads, a quarter comes from India
Google earns solid $3b from China, despite stranded plans to re-enter the country
Insights/ Interviews
Singapore is the heart of healthtech in Southeast Asia
Chuhai: Why Chinese entrepreneurs are targeting emerging markets across the world