NHN, operator of South Korean web portal Naver, is setting aside $90m to back small IT companies and venture start-ups, just as South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission investigates NHN’s “tremendous power” over advertisers and software developers.
Author: Katherine Steiner-Dicks
IDG, East Sky wooed in $10m Baifendian B round
Big data that is linked to influencing personalised recommendations and customer preferences is at the heart of a $10m series B round of funding backed by corporate venturing units IDG Capital and East Sky Investments.
Olapic snaps up $5m in series A round
Fung Capital USA, a venture capital fund affiliated with Li & Fung Ltd, has led a $10m series A round for a US-based start-up that is racking up tens of millions of dollars in added sales for its clients, which include large brands and e-commerce companies.
Innovative region: Myanmar
Being an entrepreneur in Myanmar is painful and you have to be gutsy. If you want to set up a business in this virgin land of business opportunities you had better put your sense of humour on standby and have bottles of antacid and headache tablets at the ready.
SingTel latest investor in Fab series D round
SingTel Innov8, the corporate venturing unit of Asia-based communications company, SingTel Group, has invested $10m in international design lifestyle shopping site, Fab. SingTel joins fellow series D round investor Tencent, the Asia-based internet services and instant messaging company. The series D round has raised about $160 so far.
Sydney start-ups mapped out for investors
Australia-based technology venture investor and accelerator group for online companies, Blue Chilli, has reported that its digital map of the Sydney start-up sector will be updated between every four and six months. The map details over 30 different organisations and companies, and more than 100 start-ups, conferences and meet-ups.
SMIT, GSR, Atomico put $10m in mobile dongle payment company iBoxPay
China-based iBoxPay, which provides a solution for making and accepting payments via mobile phones with the use of a dongle, has caught the eye of SMIT, a China-based company specialising in secure digital content delivery.
South Korea’s NCSoft makes play for Molten Games
South Korea-based NCSoft, a publisher and developer of massive multiplayer online games, has invested several million dollars in a series round of funding for US-based game studio and publisher Molten Games. The exact amount invested has not been disclosed to the public, according to a July report by San Diego Business Journal. NCSoft, which has… Continue reading South Korea’s NCSoft makes play for Molten Games
Ciris Energy raises $25m series C financing
Asia Pacific Capital (APC) invests in ConocoPhillips-backed bioconversion technology company.
500 startups, Itochu put $1m in EV prototype
Japan-based Whill, a start-up company based in Japan specialising in an ultra-modern EV and wheelchair design, has raised $1m in seed funding from Silicon Valley seed investor fund, 500 Startups (Dave McClure); Itochu corporate venturing unit, Itochu Technology Ventures; Eric Kwan (Facebook), Sunbridge Global Ventures, Wingle and other investors, to further develop its prototype vehicle.… Continue reading 500 startups, Itochu put $1m in EV prototype
LVMH finds beauty in strategic cosmetics deal
L Capital Asia , the private equity fund backed by luxury fashion group LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy), has acquired a minority stake in China-based Marubi Holdings Group. The amount invested has not been made public at the time of writing, but is a significant investment, it has been reported. The private equity fund has… Continue reading LVMH finds beauty in strategic cosmetics deal
Garena goes down the aisle with Redmart
Singapore-based gaming firm Garena has invested in Singapore online grocery store, Redmart, in what is being called a series A round. The deal follows on from three previous seed rounds and is reported to be worth millions of dollars.
Google joins Intel Capital as core shareholder of Himax
US-based search engine group Google has invested an undisclosed amount of money for a 6.3% stake in Taiwan-based Himax Display, a subsidiary of Himax Technologies. Himax said that that the investment is being made to “fund production upgrades, expand capacity and further enhance production capabilities.” Shares of semiconductor maker Himax Technologies were jumping in pre-market… Continue reading Google joins Intel Capital as core shareholder of Himax
Naspers-backed Flipkart sizes up competition after $200m round
MIH, the corporate venturing unit of South Africa internet media company Naspers, has backed alongside venture capital firms a $200m fifth round of funding for India-based online book business, Flipkart.com. The funding will help the business strengthen its distribution networks and expand its product lines to compete with global player Amazon.com in its local market of India.