Funding
Asset management firm Crescent Cove Advisors has provided a $4m credit facility for HaptX, a US-based developer of haptic glove technology, to bring a corporate-backed series A round to $28m. HaptX had raised $12m from including internet technology provider NetEase, Dawn Patrol Ventures, Mason Avenue Investments, Taylor Frigon Capital Partners, Upheaval Investments, Votiv Capital, Keiretsu Forum and Keiretsu Capital in late 2019 to take its total funding to $19m. It added $12m in July this year from Verizon Ventures, a subsidiary of telecommunications firm Verizon, as well as Mason Avenue Investments, Taylor Frigon Capital Partners and Upheaval Investments.
Welmo, a Japan-based operator of home care management technology, raised ¥2.04bn ($18.1m) today in a series C round featuring printing service Toppan, chemical producer Somar, insurers Aflac (through its Aflac Ventures unit), Tokio Marine Nichido and Dai-ichi Life (through its alternative investment department), vehicle leasing service Tsukui Capital and internet company Digital Garage’s DG Ventures and DG Incubation subsidiaries. They were joined by financial services firm Shinsei Bank’s Femto Partners fund, University of Tokyo’s Innovation Platform, Catalyst Capital and PrimeRock Investment. Welmo has now secured $36.5m in total including $14.3m in a series B round which closed in May 2020.
Financial services firm Citi has added an undisclosed sum to a series A round for Singapore-headquartered equity management system developer Qapita that stood at $15m as of last month. The first tranche lifted Qapita’s overall funding to $21.8m and was co-led by Vulcan Capital and East Ventures and backed by insurer Massachusetts Mutual Life’s MassMutual Ventures unit, fellow existing investor Endiya Partners, Nyca Partners and assorted individuals.
Payment technology provider Cashfree Payments invested $15m in United Arab Emirates digital payment platform developer Telr today through a strategic partnership agreement. Telr had raised an undisclosed amount in December 2019 from three existing backers including e-commerce holding company iMENA, having received $3m from Innovations East two years earlier.
Mouro Capital, the venture capital firm spun off by financial services firm Santander, has led a $15m series B round for Vesttoo, the Israel-based operator of an online marketplace for insurance risk transfer. It was joined by MS&AD Ventures, a subsidiary of insurance group MS&AD, and Vesttoo raised the cash just three months after closing a $6m series A round led by VC fund Hanaco Ventures. The company had raised an undisclosed sum from Longevitytech.fund in January this year and $2m from Sure-Tech Partnership, an investment disclosed in April.
Timeless Investments, the Germany-based operator of an online platform which allows users to invest in collectible items as an asset class, raised €12m ($13.5m) yesterday from investors including Porsche Ventures, a subsidiary of automotive manufacturer Porsche. The round was led by investment firm EQT Partners’ VC arm, EQT Ventures, and also featured C3 EOS VC (formerly known as FinLab EOS VC Fund) and La Roca Capital.
Fyld, the UK-headquartered creator of a software platform that uses artificial intelligence to generate risk assessments on field work, closed a £10m ($13.3m) series A round today featuring gas distributor SGN. The corporate was joined by Koru, the venture incubator run by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, and Fyld said it has now raised over $19m altogether. It had launched in July 2020 with backing from SGN, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and BCG Digital Ventures, a subsidiary of consulting firm Boston Consulting Group.
Italy-based energy storage technology developer Energy Dome completed an $11m series A round today featuring financial services firm Barclays’ Sustainable Impact Capital fund. VC firm 360 Capital led the round, which included Novum Capital Partners and Third Derivative, an accelerator formed by non-profit organisations RMI and New Energy Nexus. The startup had reportedly received an undisclosed amount of funding from Third Derivative as of December 2020.
US-based property inspection technology developer Inspectify raised $8m in series A funding yesterday from investors including real estate brokerage Redfin and reinsurance provider Munich Re’s corporate VC unit, Munich Re Ventures, which took part through its HSB Fund. Real estate technology fund Nine Four Ventures led the round, which was also backed by Foundation Capital, Socially Financed and angel investors including Chase Gilbert, Nichole Wischoff, Guy Gal, Josh Stech, Tushar Garg and Darren Nix.
Japan-based medical digitalisation technology developer Doctors confirmed today it has secured an undisclosed amount of series B funding from medical equipment providers Muranaka and Medi-Entrance, pharmaceutical wholesaler Suzuken and financial services firm Mizuho Bank. The company had revealed Suzuken’s investment last week, and the round was preceded by undisclosed amounts from Suzuken in November 2020 and Muranaka in January this year.
Insurance firm Massachusetts Mutual Life has led a $6.6m pre-series A round for GajiGesa, the Indonesia-based operator of a service which lets employees access pay in advance, through its MassMutual Ventures unit, Tech in Asia reported today. Earned wage access provider Wagestream, healthcare provider Bunda Group, internet company builder Smile Group, January Capital, Defy.vc, Quest Ventures, GK Plug and Play and Next Billion Ventures also took part, according to TechCrunch, as did private investors Oliver Jung, Patrick Walujo, Nipun Mehra and Noah Pepper. The company had raised $2.5m before adding an undisclosed amount from OCBC NISP Ventura, a subsidiary of financial services firm Bank OCBC NISP, in May this year.
Ginco, the Japan-based creator of a blockchain software development platform, raised ¥570m ($5.1m) yesterday from investors including Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, the VC subsidiary of financial services group Mitsubishi UFJ. It was joined by Kyoto University’s Miyako Capital vehicle and Development Bank of Japan’s DBJ Capital fund, and the round followed $1.4m in seed capital from VC firm Global Brain in 2018 and an undisclosed amount of pre-series A funding from DBJ Capital in April 2020.
Zendure, the US-based creator of an internet of things-equipped portable generator, recently received a ‘multi-million’ dollar amount of series A funding from outdoor living product maker Yotrio and private equity firm GP Capital, it announced yesterday. The company’s lead product, SuperBase Pro, has raised over $1.3m in a campaign on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo.
Conglomerate ITC has agreed to pay Rs 200m ($2.7m) for a 16% stake in Mother Sparsh, the India-based owner of an infant dermatology brand. The capital will be provided in two tranches set to be completed by the end of July 2022 and the transaction will help ITC build a presence in the personal care space.
Dynamic Map Platform (DMP) a Japan-based developer of 3D map data technology, secured an undisclosed amount of funding yesterday from Mizuho Capital, the VC arm of financial services firm Mizuho Bank, and private equity group TGVest Capital. The company had previously secured an undisclosed amount from diversified conglomerate Mitsui in September this year. Electrical equipment maker Mitsubishi Electric and Japan Infrastructure Initiative Company had each provided $18m for DMP in early 2019 alongside an undisclosed sum from Innovation Network Corporation of Japan to take its total funding to $55m.
Datagrid, a Japan-based developer of synthetic artificial intelligence technology, raised ¥300m ($2.6m) yesterday from investors including online game publisher Aeria, consulting firm Industrial Growth Platform’s Advanced Technology Acceleration Corporation unit and Kyoshin Social Capital, Senshu Ikeda Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, Mitsui UFJ Capital, Kyogin Lease & Capital and Chushin Venture Capital – on behalf of financial services firms Kyoto Shinkin Bank, Senshu Ikeda Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mitsui UFJ, Bank of Kyoto and Kyoto Chuo Shinkin Bank. They were joined by Kyoto University affiliate Kyoto Angel Fund, University of Tokyo’s Matsuo Lab (through its Deep30 vehicle) and Future Venture Capital. Datagrid has now raised about $5.3m in total, with Aeria first investing in 2018, before investors including Deep30 added $135,000 the following year.
Jefa, the Mexico-headquartered operator of a digital banking offering aimed at female customers, has received $2m in a seed round featuring startup services provider Latitud, TechCrunch has reported. The round included Finca Ventures, the VC arm of microfinance provider Finca International, as well as The Venture Collective, DST Global, Foundation Capital, Amador Holdings, The Fund, Rarebreed VC, Siesta Ventures, Springbank Collective, Bridge Partners, Hustle Fund, Foundation Capital, J20,Magma Partners and angel investors including Daniel Bilbao, JP Duque, Ricardo Schaefer, Jean-Paul Orillac and Allan Arguello.
Healthcare provider Apollo Hospitals took part in a $1.4m seed round yesterday for ZenOnco.io, the India-based creator of an online portal for oncology services. VC fund Enzia Ventures led the round, which also featured Better Capital, Titan Capital and angel investors including Arvind Kumar.
Conglomerate Sojitz and DNA services provider Synplogen supplied an undisclosed amount of funding today for Bacchus Bioinnovation, a Japan-based spinout of Kobe University developing microorganism biotechnology. The company had previously raised a similarly undisclosed sum from pharmaceutical firm Rohto eight months ago, and Sojitz will collaborate with it on smart cell technology.
M&A
Nordisk Games, a video game subsidiary of media group Egmont, has wholly acquired portfolio company Flashbulb Games, a Denmark-based game studio, for a price which could potentially rise to ‘several hundred million’ Danish krone (DKK100m = $15.2m). The corporate had paid approximately $240,000 for a 43% stake in Flashbulb in 2017, the year after it was founded.
Research and data analytics provider Elsevier purchased Osmosis, the US-based developer of a visual learning software platform, for an undisclosed sum yesterday, enabling insurance provider Coverys to exit. The corporate had joined Felicis Ventures, SEI Ventures, Greycroft Partners, FundRx, Figure 8, Social Starts and LearnStart in the company’s $4m series A round in mid-2019, following $2.5m from investors including Greycroft, FundRx and Greg Coleman the previous year.
Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu.
