Providing a multitude of services as a “super app” allows Meituan-Dianping to generate significant revenues from merchants and avoid using capital-intensive subsidies to lower prices for consumers and also potentially disrupt traditional advertising-only media models. This is a fundamentally sound business model that will be hard for competitors to beat. Super apps, if thoughtfully designed,… Continue reading Why Meituan-Dianping’s expansion makes sense
Month: May 2018
Trussle tracks series B funding
BBVA’s Propel Venture Partners fund co-led an $18.5m round for the mortgage comparison platform with Goldman Sachs Principal Strategic Investments.
Deals and value up in April
The number of corporate-backed deals we reported from around the globe in April stood at 234, up 48% from the 158 funding rounds in the same month last year. Investment value also increased considerably, by 30%, to $14.24bn – up from $10.97bn in April 2017. April registered somewhat weaker results than March this year with… Continue reading Deals and value up in April
Growth benefits generations
May issue editorial by James Mawson, editor-in-chief
GUV Awards 2018 nominees
Global University Venturing will reveal the winners of this year’s awards at the gala dinner as part of GUV: Fusion on May 22.
Carro carries off $60m
The online used car marketplace has received $60m in a series B round led by SoftBank Ventures Korea and backed by Singtel Innov8.
3NT sniffs out Hoya funding
The endoscope developer has raised a major part of a $15m round, the tranche being led by Hoya Corporation.
Meiweibuyongdeng books in corporates for series D
Alibaba and Ctrip have provided $63.1m in funding for the restaurant booking management platform at a $630m valuation.
Resson reaps $14m in series C round
Mahindra & Mahindra, McCain and Monsanto have all signed up for agriculture analytics software provider Resson’s latest round, taking its total funding to $28m.
M17 makes for public markets with $115m IPO
Investors in M17, the owner of properties such as Paktor and 17 Media, include MCN, Yahoo Japan and LeSports.
Velostrata migrates to Google
Intel Capital will exit cloud migration software provider Velostrata in an acquisition by Google, having backed its $17.5m series B round in 2016.
Xnor.ai extracts $12m in series A
Nokia’s NGP Capital helped supply the funding as the artificial intelligence technology developer prepares to launch its first product.
Mercari to bring $1.1bn IPO to market
Mercari, a Japan-based online marketplace operator backed by corporates GMO, Itochu, Mitsui and United, has received approval for a $1.1bn initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Reuters reported today. The company will price its shares at ¥2,200 to ¥2,700 ($20 to $24.60) to achieve a market value of $3.3bn when it lists on… Continue reading Mercari to bring $1.1bn IPO to market
Big Deal: NewTV to switch on with $800m
Entertainment producers like 21st Century Fox and Warner Bros have reportedly supplied $200m of an $800m round that will support high-budget, short-form video, as content continues to draw in big bucks.