Axora, the UK-based operator of an online marketplace for digital industrial technology products, raised more than $10m in private placements on Tuesday from investors including commodity supplier Traxys, consulting firm Boston Consulting Group, investment bank Société Générale and a vehicle called ABCP fund. The capital will help the company expand its core platform along with the range of products it offers.
US-based digital trading software provider Alplaca has received $10m in a series A round led by Portag3, a venture capital subsidiary of financial services provider Power Financial, and backed by Social Leverage, Spark Capital, Fathom Capital and Abstract Ventures, TechCrunch reported yesterday. The company had raised a total of $11.8m as of November 2019, from all the latest investors plus Zillionize, brokerage operator TradeStation, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and Monex Ventures, the last two on behalf of exchange operator Monex and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.
Broncus Holding Company, a China-based developer of therapeutics and diagnostics technology for lung disease, completed a series C round of undisclosed size on Wednesday featuring Baidu Capital, a subsidiary of internet group Baidu. The round was led by investment firm Lake Bleu Capital and included Ascendum Capital, CNCB Capital, Qiming Venture Capital and DCP Capital. Broncus had received $15m in series A funding from surgical robotics producer Intuitive Surgical in mid-2018 and identified Qiming as an existing backer.
Telekom Innovation Pool, an investment vehicle for telecommunications firm Deutsche Telekom led a $4m extension on Wednesday that increased Israel-based drone software provider vHive’s series A round to $9.5m. Octopus Ventures and StageOne Ventures returned for the second tranche having previously joined unnamed additional backers to invest $5.5m in vHive in September 2019. The company had closed $2m in seed funding from StageOne and undisclosed angel investors in 2017.
Playbook, the US-based developer of a mobile marketplace for remote personal trainers, has secured $9.3m in a series A round that included Porsche Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of carmaker Porsche, TechCrunch reported on Wednesday. E.ventures, Abstract Ventures, Algae Ventures, FJ Labs and angel investor Michael Ovitz also took part. Playbook had raised $3m in seed capital from Uphonest Capital and individuals including Alex Chung, Renaud Visage, Melody McCloskey, John Replogle, Ed Baker, Daniel Graf, Ryan Hoover and Brendan O’Driscoll in June this year.
Growth equity fund Minerva Growth Partners added an undisclosed amount to a series C round for Japan-based construction management software provider Andpad featuring Globis Capital Partners and Salesforce Ventures – subsidiaries of education provider Globis and enterprise software producer Salesforce – that totalled $37.3m as of July this year. The first close included existing investors DNX Ventures and Beenext and followed a $22.6m series B round in September 2019.
ABCash, the Japan-based operator of an online financial education platform, increased its series B round to ¥950m ($9m) today, raising money from Saison Ventures and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, subsidiaries of payment services firm Credit Saison and financial services group Mitsubishi UFJ, as well as property developer Able & Partners and SV-Fintech Fund, a joint vehicle for marketing technology producer Voyage Group and VC firm SV Frontier. The $3.7m first close was led by postal service Japan Post’s investment arm, Japan Post Capital, in April this year.
Audio equipment producer Sonos led a $6.4m series A round for US-based podcast and media studio operator QCode yesterday that included VC firm C Ventures. Ryan Taylor, general manager of the corporate’s Sonos Radio subsidiary, will get a seat on QCode’s board of directors in connection with the round, which will fund the production of up to 15 original content podcasts per year.
Germany-headquartered smart parking software provider CleverCiti received $5.6m in series A-plus funding on Wednesday from investors including energy utility EnBW’s investment arm, EnBW New Ventures. The round was led by SPDG Ventures, a branch of the holding company for the Périer-D’Ieteren family, and also featured The Westly Group and KfW. The first three investors had provided $15m for the company in a mid-2018 round that followed $3m in seed capital from investors including SDPG and ERP Startup Fund in 2015.
MiddleField, the Japan-based owner of an automotive e-commerce platform, raised ¥240m ($2.3m) last month to bring its series B round to $5.5m, it revealed on Tuesday. The tranche included D4V, Shinsei Corporate Investment and Voyage Ventures, representing design and consulting agency Ideo, financial services firm Shinsei Bank and travel technology provider Voyage respectively, as well as marketing technology provider Adways, Chiba Dojo and Femto Growth Fund. It closed the first tranche in May this year and its total funding now stands at $7.9m.
US-based nanotechnology medical device developer Advanced NanoTherapies closed a $5.3m seed round on Tuesday that included medical care provider Cleveland Clinic and early-stage investment fund ForMed Ventures. Cleveland Clinic developed the biodegradable functionalised nanoparticles and coating process used by the startup in its product.
Delivery Center, a Brazil-based provider of delivery services for brick-and-mortar retailers, has received R$30m ($5.3m) in funding including $3.3m from Multiplan and $1.6m from fellow shopping centre operator brMalls, Reuters has reported. The same two investors had provided $16.6m in funding for Delivery Center in January this year, brMalls having initially supplied an undisclosed amount for the company in May 2018 through a strategic partnership agreement.
OryLab, the Japan-based developer of a companion robot called OriHime, raised ¥500m ($4.8m) yesterday from telecoms group NTT and construction firm Kawada Technologies. The round came after $2.1m from Beyond Next Ventures and Real Tech Fund in 2016, and the proceeds will be spent on hiring sales and marketing staff and upgrading the company’s production resources.
Industrial services group Deutsche Industrieanlagen led a $4m seed-plus round for Singapore-based cancer diagnostics technology developer X-Zell yesterday that included biopharmaceutical product maker Essex Bio-Technology and unnamed angel investors. The cash will support the expansion of its research and development activities along with international growth.
Singapore-based decentralised finance technology startup Persistence has received $3.7m from investors including validation software developers Cosmostation and SG-1, quantitative trading firm Alameda Research, decentralised payment technology developer Terraform Labs and crypto trading bot developer 3Commas, DealStreetAsia reported today. They were joined by Arrington XRP Capital, LuneX Ventures, IOSG Ventures, Spark Digital Capital, Woodstock Fund, Incrypt, Genesis Block HK, Moonrock Capital, NGC Ventures, AU21 Capital, Amplifi Capital, Dokia Capital and angel investors Richard Ma and Danish Chaudhry.
Cerby, the US-based developer of a cybersecurity product that leverages Shadow IT, has secured $3.5m from investors including AV8 Ventures, a VC firm backed by insurance firm Allianz, LatAmList reported last month. VC firm Bowery Capital led the round, which also featured Global Founders Capital, Incubate Fund US and, according to Cerby’s website, Xoogler.co, XG Ventures, Tau Ventures, SV Links Angels and Xochi Ventures.
E-commerce, cloud services and electronics group Amazon’s Alexa Fund invested an undisclosed sum in US-based smart hydroponic equipment producer Rise Gardens on Tuesday. The startup had previously completed a $2.6m seed round in May this year that was led by VC firm True Ventures and which included angel investors including Pat Vihtelic, Lee Rosenberg and Michael Alter.
BlackBoiler, a US-based developer of software that automates contract markups, received $3.2m from investors including digital signature software provider DocuSign on Wednesday. The company was awarded a $225,000 grant by the National Science Foundation in 2017 and it secured $325,000 in debt financing in January, according to a regulatory filing. The latest funding will support recruitment and product development.
Origin, a UK-based developer of digital bond issuance technology, has agreed to raise an undisclosed amount of series A funding from Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) and Clearstream, the post-trade services subsidiary of fellow financial exchange operator Deutsche Börse Group. The company had previously received an undisclosed sum from LuxSE in December 2019, four years after it graduated from financial services firm Barclays’ accelerator, Barclays Accelerator, powered by Techstars.
Gigi, a Japan-based mobile food-focused app developer, secured ¥320m ($3m) in funding yesterday from mail order retail group Japanet Holdings, shareholder software provider Wills and Campfire Angels, a crowdfunding service managed by DAN Venture Capital. It will put the cash into further development of its Gochimeshi app in addition to recruitment and international growth.
Oil and gas provider Shell supplied £2.25m ($2.9m) in series B funding for Drover, the UK-based operator of an on-demand car rental service, on Wednesday through its Shell Ventures unit. Drover has now raised $39.5m in total, including $25.9m from Channel 4 Ventures and BP Ventures – on behalf of broadcaster Channel 4 and petroleum producer BP – as well as Autotech Ventures, RTP Global, Target Global, Rider Global, Cherry Ventures, Partech, Version One Ventures and Forward Partners, in the round’s July 2020 first tranche.
Mellia, the Japan-based owner of skincare brand I’m La Floria, received ¥300m ($2.9m) in funding today from D2C&Co, Shinsei Corporate Investment and Line Ventures, subsidiaries of retail group Marui, financial services firm Shinsei Bank and messaging app operator Line, as well as cosmetics producer Pola Orbis Holdings, VC firm Now and private investor Yasuhiro Sasaki. The company had previously raised a total of about $1.1m from Pola Orbis and Now as of February this year.
Japan-based online services platform developer Mosh also raised ¥300m ($2.9m) today, in a series A round featuring web services provider Base and marketing group Hakuhodo DY’s Future Design Fund. The corporates were joined by DBJ Capital and private investor Yū Akasaka, and the round represents the first corporate VC deal for Base.
Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of oil and gas supplier Total, has joined Ascent Hydrogen Fund, Hydrogen Capital Partners and Audacy Ventures to provide an undisclosed amount for Hyzon Motors, a US-based producer of hydrogen-powered commercial vehicles. Hyzon was spun off by Singapore-headquartered Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies and has manufacturing resources located in North America, Europe and Asia.
Phononic Vibes, an Italy-based developer of noise and vibration reduction technology, has completed a €2.3m ($2.7m) funding round that included industrial consulting firm Pantecnica, Eureka Venture SGR’s Eureka Fund I – Transfer of Technology vehicle and fellow VC firm 360 Capital Partners’ Poli260 fund. Pantecnica had previously taken part in a seed round led by 360 Capital in January 2019 sized at approximately $570,000.
Furniture producer and retailer Ikea invested an undisclosed amount yesterday in Nyris, the Germany-based developer of a visual intelligence software platform that will be utilised in Ikea’s stores as part of the deal. Nyris had previously been a participant in Axel Springer Plug and Play, the accelerator backed by media group Axel Springer.
Thailand-based e-commerce fulfilment services provider MyCloudFulfillment has received $2m in series A funding from investors including financial services firm Siam Commercial Bank’s SCB 10X unit, DealStreetAsia reported on Monday. VC firm Gobi Partners, private equity investor ECG Research and VC firm NVest Venture also took part in the round, which will fund the enhancement of the company’s data technology as it looks towards growth in Southeast Asia.
The Juggernaut, the US-based operator of an online media platform focusing on the South Asian diaspora, has secured $2m in a seed round featuring design and marketing agency Old Town Media, TechCrunch reported on Monday. VC firm Precursor Ventures led the round, which included Unpopular Ventures, Backstage Capital, New Media Ventures and angel investors such as Balaji Srinivasan, Holly Liu and Adam Hansmann.
Investment firm Smilegate Investment has led a $2m series A round for Cochlear.ai, a South Korea-based sound recognition technology developer backed by internet group Kakao, TechCrunch reported yesterday. The round included Shinhan Capital, the VC arm of financial services firm Shinhan Bank, as well as NAU IB Capital. It followed $700,000 in earlier funding according to TechCrunch, $270,000 of which was provided by K Cube Ventures, the Kakao subsidiary since rebranded as Kakao Ventures, in 2017.
Colombia-based e-commerce facilitator Elenas has received $2m in seed capital from investors including social commerce platform developer Meesho, Crunchbase News reported yesterday. Alpha4 Ventures, Amador Holdings and Polymath Ventures also participated in the round, the proceeds of which will go to expanding the range of products Elenas sells as well as better functionality for its merchants, most of which are female.
Investment and consulting firm E3 Negócios has supplied $2m in funding for a55, the Brazil-based online lending platform backed by financial services firm Santander, Contxto has reported. The bank’s Santander InnoVentures unit led a $5m round for a55 in May this year that came after $3m in earlier seed capital from unnamed investors. The latest capital influx will support the expansion of its workforce from 60 to 100.
Cybersprint, a Netherlands-based developer of software that tracks an organisation’s digital footprint, raised €1.75m ($2m) last month from investors including telecoms company KPN’s corporate venturing unit, KPN Ventures. The corporate joined InnovationQuarter and Vortex Capital Partners in the round, which followed approximately $2.3m from the same investors in November 2018. InnovationQuarter and angel investors Lennard Zwart and Arthur van der Wees had supplied $740,000 the previous year.
Mobile game publisher Akatsuki’s Heart Driven Fund participated in a funding round of undisclosed size on Monday for Ookami, the Japan-based operator of esports platform Player. The round also featured Yamaguchi Capital and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, investment vehicles for financial services firms Yamaguchi Financial Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. Ookami had raised an undisclosed amount from NTT Docomo Ventures, Mizuho Capital, Asahi Medialab Ventures and Asics Ventures, on behalf of mobile network operator NTT Docomo, financial services firm Mizuho Bank, media company Asahi Shimbun and apparel producer Asics, in mid-2018.
Appify Technologies, the Japan-headquartered operator of a subscription-based no-code app development platform, secured ¥200m ($1.9m) of seed capital from Gree Ventures, a corporate venturing subsidiary of digital media company Gree, and VC firm East Ventures on Monday. The funding has been earmarked for international expansion, platform development and the hiring of more engineers.
Neuet, the Japan-based operator of bicycle rental service Charichari, announced an undisclosed amount of pre-series A and series A funding on Monday from investors including Dogan Beta, QTnet and SG Incubate, subsidiaries of investment and consulting services firm Dogan, electric utility Kyushu Electric Power and gas utility Saibu Gas respectively. AbbaLab Startup Fund and F Ventures Fund also took part in the round, which followed an undisclosed amount from internet service provider Clara Online in September 2019. Neuet was spun off by e-commerce marketplace Mercari in early 2018.
Genemod, the US-based creator of a data automation software platform for life science research, raised $1.7m on Tuesday in a seed round featuring network infrastructure technology provider Omicron Media. The round was led by VC firm Defy.vc and included Unpopular Ventures, Underdog Labs and Canaan Partners Scout Fund. The startup was founded in 2018 and is a graduate of Venture Out Startups’ Launch Lab.
Striders Global Investment, an investment vehicle for real estate developer Striders, provided an undisclosed amount of funding for Singapore-based esports and online game publisher Attention Holdings today. VC fund Indogen Capital was the middleman on the deal and Attention, which claims to be the largest esports team operator in Southeast Asia, now plans to expand into Japan.
Blockchain technology provider Six Network and InVent, the corporate venturing arm of telecoms company InTouch, has co-led a TH50m ($1.6m) series A round for ChomChob, the Thailand-headquartered operator of a points-based e-commerce offering, Techsauce reported yesterday. The round was co-led by 500 TukTuks and included unnamed additional participants.
Japan-based financial planning platform developer 400F received an undisclosed amount yesterday from design technology producer Goodpatch’s Design Fund and Money Forward Fund, which invests on behalf of accounting software provider Money Forward. It will use the funding to increase headcount and bolster its financial consultation chatbot, Money Health Check, and personal finance media offering, Okaneko.
Lady Technologies, the US-based creator of a kegel exercise product called Kegg that helps track hormonal changes in its female users, has secured $1.5m in seed funding from investors including contract electronics manufacturer MegaForce, TechCrunch reported on Tuesday. MegaForce, the startup’s manufacturing partner, was joined in the round by Crescent Ridge Partners, SOSV, Texas Halo Fund, Fermata Fund and undisclosed angel investors.
Energy trader Capitale Energia and Z-Tech, an innovation vehicle formed by alcoholic beverage producer Anheuser-Busch Inbev, has supplied an undisclosed amount for Lemon, the Brazil-based provider of a clean energy offering tailored for bars and restaurants, Neofeed has reported. Lemon will use the cash to strengthen its technology and grow its 23-strong team.
Mel-Frontier, the Japan-based developer of a bone fixation screw that uses biodegradable magnesium alloys, closed a ¥140m ($1.3m) seed round today that included Tsuchiura Regional Revitalisation Fund II Investment Limited Liability Partnership, a joint venture by real estate developer SRD Holdings and financial services firm Tsukuba Bank’s Tsukuba Institute of Research. The company was formed by Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in 2017.
Cybersecurity software provider SecureInnovation invested an undisclosed amount in cybersecurity education and consulting service Global Security Experts (GSX) today through a business alliance. GSX had previously raised an undisclosed amount from IT training provider Top Out Human Capital in November 2019.
Bodyswaps, the UK-based creator of a virtual reality platform for use in soft skills training, has received £470,000 ($610,000) from charity Ufi’s VC arm, Ufi Ventures, as well as Haatch and D Moonshots. The company had already raised an undisclosed amount from virtual reality hardware provider HTC when it joined the corporate’s Vive X accelerator in June this year.
SIG, a system integration services firm not to be confused with trading firm Susquehanna International Group, paid an undisclosed amount for shares in Japan-based Acro Holdings through a secondary share purchase today. The transaction makes Acro, which was founded in 2000, an equity-method affiliate of SIG.
My.Games, the video gaming subsidiary of internet company Mail.ru, provided an undisclosed amount of funding for Belarus-based hyper-casual mobile game developer Mamboo Games on Wednesday. The deal comes after My.Games launched its own hyper-casual game unit earlier this year.
Fuku, the Japan-based developer of a research support service for life sciences called Sophiscope, raised ¥45m ($430,000) on Wednesday from telecoms and internet group SoftBank’s artificial intelligence fund, Deepcore. The corporate joined Primal Capital and individual investor Tatsurō Shimada in the round, which came as the company released an open beta version of its product.
Electronic components trader Sanshin Electronics invested an undisclosed sum in ZeroSpec, a Japan-based smart sensor and internet-of-things technology developer, on Wednesday. The company’s sensor can be installed in a kerosene tank to detect the amount contained in order to optimise the delivery of refills.
Eyewear retailer Lenskart, Aroa Ventures, RiSo Capital Fund and angel investor Gaurav Gulati have provided Rs 30m ($410,000) in funding for India-based computer vision software provider Tango Eye, Inc42 reported on Tuesday. The capital will support product development, customer acquisition and recruitment.
Realeyes, a UK-based computer vision software developer backed by mobile network NTT Docomo, raised an undisclosed sum from VC fund NordicNinja yesterday. NTT Docomo’s corporate venturing arm, NTT Docomo Ventures, co-led a $12.4m round for Realeyes in June 2019 with Draper Esprit that included Global Brain, Karma Ventures and The Entrepreneurs Fund, increasing its overall funding to $31.8m in the process. Its earlier investors include Tera Ventures, Karma Ventures, Harbert European Growth Capital and SmartCap.
Brazil-based marketing technology developer Ativa Resultados has received R$1m ($180,000) from diesel, oil and lubricant provider Unipetro, Startupi has reported. It will put the funding into expanding its business and strengthening products such as an automated fuel stock management system.
Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu.
