Singapore-based robotics café operator Ratio has raised $10m in a series A round led by property developer Frasers Property, with participation from co-working spaces provider JustCo and gaming company Razer’s corporate venturing arm zVentures, according to Tech in Asia.
US-based mobile games distributor Artie has secured $10m in funding from quantitative trading firm Susquehanna International Group, sports and entertainment company Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment, The Sixers Lab, ThirtyFive Ventures, Raised in Space and assorted private investors, according to TechCrunch.
Edgybees, a US-based company that enables accurate geotagging and augmentation of aerial video captures in real time, has raised $9.5m in a series A round backed by LG Technology Ventures, Verizon Ventures and Motorola Solutions Venture Capital, respective investment units of electronics company LG, mobile carrier Verizon and communications equipment producer Motorola Solutions. The round was led by Seraphim Capital and also featured equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd as well as Kodem Growth, Refinery Ventures and 8VC. Edgybees raised $5.5m in a 2018 seed round featuring Motorola, Verizon, OurCrowd, 8VC, NFX and Aspect Ventures.
Israel-based third-party risk management platform developer Mirato has completed a $9m round backed by American Express Ventures, the investment unit of payment processing firm American Express. The round was co-led by Grove Ventures and Janvest Capital Partners, and also featured iAngels and unnamed backers.
Cytovia Therapeutics, a US-based biopharmaceutical company, has partnered with Euronext-listed peer Cellectis. Cellectis will receive an equity stake of $15m in Cytovia stock or an upfront cash payment by end-December, as well as an option to invest in future financing rounds.
US-based climate tech developer Rheaply has collected $8m in a series A round backed by Salesforce Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiary of enterprise software producer Salesforce. The round was led by High Alpha and also featured 100 Black Angels & Allies Fund, Concrete Rose Capital, Hyde Park Angels, M25, MCJ Collective, Morgan Stanley Multicultural Innovation Lab and Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund. Rheaply raised $2m in seed funding led by Hyde Park Angels in March 2020, with participation from Concentric Equity Partners, M25, Techstars Ventures and angel investor Walter Winshall.
US-based e-commerce management software developer Pipe17 closed an $8m funding round yesterday led by GLP Capital Partners, the corporate venturing arm of logistics company GLP, according to TechCrunch. Pipe17’s platform allows small online merchants to connect their digital tools without requiring coding expertise.
Japan-based encrypted data analysis software developer Eaglys has raised ¥800m ($7.6m) in a series A round from IT engineering group Segue Group, power transmission product manufacturer Tsubakimoto Chain, Emellience Partners, a subsidiary of information and communications technology producer Nihon Unisys, and VC firm TechAccel Ventures. It had received a first round of undisclosed size in January 2019 from IT services firm User Local and financial services group SBI Holdings subsidiary SBI Investment’s vehicle, SBI AI& Blockchain.
Poland-based telehealth and digital health services platform Telemedico has raised €5.5m ($6.6m) in its series A round from Uniqa Ventures, the corporate venturing unit of insurer Uniqa, and venture capital firms Flashpoint Venture Capital, PKO VC, Adamed and Black Pearls VC. Andreas Nemeth, general partner at Uniqa Ventures, said “The potential is enormous and telemedi.co is already setting standards.”
Frontier Nutrition, a Bangladesh-based maker of snacks, has raised a $6m in its series B round from DSM Venturing, the corporate venturing unit of chemicals company Royal DSM, venture capital firms Adjuvant Capital, DSG Consumer Partners and Great Point Ventures, the International Finance Corporation and angel investors Shazi Visram, Seth Goldman and Bridgette Heller. Crunchbase said Frontier had raised about $10m in total.
US- and Russia-based construction software startup TraceAir has raised $3.5m in its series A round from a consortium including engineering group Engeo. Venture capital firm XTX Ventures led the A round, with participation from Liquid 2 Ventures, GEM Capital, GPS Ventures, Wrike CEO Andrew Filev, Metropolis.VC, and Independent Construction. In 2018, TraceAir secured $2.5m from Sistema VC, the corporate venturing unit of Russian conglomerate Sistema.
Alchemedicine, a Japan-based drug discovery startup carved out from pharmaceutical group Eisai, has raised ¥750m ($7.1m) from Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, Joyo Capital Partners and Tsukuba Institute of Research – respective subsidiaries of financial services firms Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Joyo Bank and Tsukuba Bank – in addition to VC firms Jafco and Beyond Next Ventures. Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and Beyond Next Ventures had already backed a $2.4m seed round in 2019.
Japan-based mortgage technology developer Mortgage Financial Solutions (MFS) has secured ¥630m ($6m) in funding from Itochu Technology Ventures, Deep Core, Shinsei Corporate Investment and Chugin Lease – representing conglomerate Itochu, telecommunications and internet group SoftBank, and financial services firms Shinsei Bank and Chugoku Bank – as well as venture capital firm Nippon Venture Capital and debt supplied by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, which lifted its overall funding to roughly $16.2m. The company raised $3.1m from internet company Yahoo Japan’s YJ Capital subsidiary and investment banking group Goldman Sachs in 2018. Opt Ventures (now called Bonds Investment Group) and Globis Capital Partners, respective vehicles for marketing firm Opt and education services provider Globis, invested $2.3m in 2017. Globis Capital Partners had already provided $2m in a 2016 round. The company’s earliest funding took place in 2015, a $746,000 round featuring Monex Ventures, currency exchange operator Monex’s corporate venturing arm, marketing agency Dentsu and its Dentsu Digital Holdings subsidiary’s investment vehicle, Dentsu Digital Fund.
Thailand-based insurtech developer AppMan has collected $4.6m in series A financing from financial conglomerate PhillipCapital Group’s corporate venturing arm Poems Ventures, and financial services firm Bank of Ayudhya’s investment arm Krungsri Finnovate, as well as securities brokerage KTBST and private equity firm Siam Alpha Equity’s SME Growing Together 1 fund, according to Tech in Asia.
India-based business-to-business edtech developer Eupheus Learning has secured $4.1m in a series B round co-led by education provider United Education Company and its portfolio firm Al Rayan Holding Company. Sixth Sense Ventures previously invested in 2018, before Yuj Kutumb provided an undisclosed figure in January 2020.
CorrosionRadar, a UK-based developer of technology to detect and predict corrosion in pipelines, has secured £2.9m ($4m) in series A funding led by Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, the investment arm of oil company Saudi Aramco, with participation from the Mercia-managed MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund and angel investors, according to BusinessLeader. The Cranfield University spinout previously raised $1.3m from MEIF in November 2019, according to our sister site Global University Venturing.
UK-based dating app developer Jigsaw has obtained £2.7m ($3.7m) in seed funding led by online dating company Relationship Corp, with contributions from angel investors, according to TechCrunch. Apadmi Ventures led a $1m round in 2019, with participation from angel investors and at the time the company was still known as JigTalk.
Tokyo, a Japan-based, lift-focused media provider spun out of University of Tokyo, raised ¥360m ($3.4m) in a round led by property developer Mitsubishi Estate, featuring VC firm XTech Ventures and unnamed individuals. It had already secured a ¥120m ($1.1m) pre-series A round in July 2019 led by XTech Ventures and backed by East Ventures, Quantum Leaps and several angel investors and unnamed corporates.
US-based home valuation database provider Realm has raised $3m in seed financing from Liberty Mutual Strategic Venture Partners, the corporate venturing arm of insurer Liberty Mutual, as well as Primary Venture Partners and Lerer Hippeau. The money will serve to expand Realm’s operations and market.
Aerospace and defence company Rada Electronic Industries has committed $3m to RadSee, an Israel-based developer of an imaging radar for the automotive industry.
Nutritional supplier De Heus Animal Nutrition and poultry farm operator Belgabroed have committed at least $3m in capital to their joint venture Bel Ga Myanmar, a Myanmar-based greenfield hatchery and breeding company, according to DealStreetAsia. International Finance Corporation has concurrently approved a $7m loan facility as part of its covid-19 programme.
UK-based resale-as-a-service technology developer Reflaunt has picked up $2.7m in pre-series A financing led by SLS Journey, the corporate venture capital arm of luxury fashion distributor MadaLuxe Group. The round also featured assorted angel investors. The company will grow its headcount.
Mirairo, the Japan-based operator of disability certificate app Mirairo ID, has raised ¥280m ($2.7m) from rapid transit system Osaka Metro, rail operators Keio Corporation and Seibu Railway, hosting server provider Sakura Internet, construction and logging company Sumitomo Forestry, navigation and mapping service Zenrin DataCom, insurer Tokio Marine Nichido and express delivery firm Yamato Holdings.
Indonesia-based fintech developer GajiGesa has secured $2.5m in seed financing from retailer Kanmo Group, GK Plug and Play, Next Billion Ventures, Alto Partners Multi-Family Office and assorted angel investors, according to DealStreetAsia. The round was co-led by Defy.vc and Quest Ventures.
Spain-based home fitness machine developer Volava has raised €2m ($2.4m) in funding from telecoms firm Telefónica’s Wayra unit and Inveready, according to Palco23. The company will now aim to expand both domestically and internationally.
Japan-based live digital events platform Grabss has secured ¥230m ($2.2m) from electronics manufacturer Iwatsu Electric, which entailed a strategic partnership between the two.
Singapore-based last-mile internet delivery service Transcelestial has secured $2m in funding from Kickstart Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of telecoms firm Globe Telecom, according to Tech in Asia. The money will allow Transcelestial to expand into the Philippines and improve internet distribution in the island nation. The company previously raised $10m in a series A round in July 2020 co-led by Wavemaker Partners and Edbi. Its backers also include Seeds Capital, Entrepreneur First, 500 Startups and assorted angel investors.
Japan-based pension information company Mirai Chokin has closed a ¥200m ($1.9m) round featuring SBI4&5 fund, a vehicle for financial services firm SBI Holdings subsidiary SBI Investment. The company had disclosed earlier in the week that it received an undisclosed amount of funding from financial data aggregator Minkabu The Infonoid. Its overall funding has reached $6.5m.
Japan-based agricultural machinery provider Karasawa Nouki has raised ¥190m ($1.8m) from financial services firms Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Hachijuni Bank, as well as the latter’s Hachijuni Capital unit. The round included debt supplied by unnamed financial institutions and was first announced on February 9.
UK-based virtual reality video distribution platform YBVR has raised $1.5m in a pre-series A round backed by Wayra and Verizon Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of telecoms firm Verizon, as well as Tech Coast Angels. The money will drive technology development and recruitment, and allow YBVR to seek additional strategic partnerships.
Indonesia-based marketing and content production company Member.id has obtained $1.1m in a series A round led by East Ventures, with participation from travel services firm Traveloka, according to Tech in Asia. East Ventures already led a pre-series A round of undisclosed size in 2018, with participation from Ace Capital and private investors. Hospitality real estate developer Ismaya Group had backed a seed round of undisclosed size in 2017 also led by East Ventures.
Japan-based remote work-focused welfare service provider Miive has secured ¥50m ($472,000) in a round featuring CyberAgent Capital, the corporate venturing arm of internet company CyberAgent, and venture capital firm Genesia Ventures.
FlatBoys, the Japan-based operator of personalised self-care brand Day Two, has secured ¥30m ($286,000) from professional services firm Brew, as well as unnamed individuals.
Japan Cloud Capital, the Japan-based operator of a crowdfunding service dubbed Fundinno, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from packaging technology provider Kikuchi Seisakusho as part of a strategic agreement.
Japan-based radio-frequency identification technology provider Life has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Howa Entrepreneurial and Business Succession Support Fund, a joint venture between financial services firm Howa Bank and VC firm Future Venture Capital.
Software quality control firm VeriServe has invested an undisclosed amount in MonoAI QA Technology, an artificial intelligence-equipped gaming software quality assurance service provider spun off by artificial intelligence and virtual entertainment technology developer MonoAI Technology earlier this month. VeriServe has made the company a subsidiary in the process, renaming it AIQve One.
Japan-based challenger bank Nudge has completed a round of undisclosed size led by investment firm Genesia Ventures, featuring DG Ventures and Saison Ventures – respective vehicles for internet company Digital Garage and payment services firm Credit Saison – as well as printing services firm Toppan, corporate joint venture Design for Ventures, financial services firm Seven Bank, venture capital firm Apricot Ventures and fintech-focused startup incubator FinoLab.
Wind turbine company Vestas invested an undisclosed amount in Modvion, a Sweden-based manufacturer of modular wind turbine towers using laminated veneer lumber, yesterday to take a minority stake. Modvion will use the money to accelerate business growth and scale up the production of its towers.
DaiBau, a Slovenia-based platform for investors to connect with building contractors, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from chemical company Henkel’s Adhesive Technologies unit. News agency STA said the investment was seven figures but it did not provide further details. The money will go to platform development and strengthening DaiBau’s market position.
SBI Digital Asset Holdings, the digital asset arm of financial services group SBI, has injected an unspecified amount in Switzerland-based digital asset bank Sygnum Bank. The investment formed part of a strategic partnership building on the two companies’ SBI-Sygnum Digital Asset Opportunity launched in October 2020.
India-based consumer healthcare brand Onelife Nutriscience has raised an undisclosed amount from Wipro Consumer Care Ventures, the corporate venture capital unit of fast-moving consumer goods company Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting, according to YourStory. Onelife raised $700,000 in pre-series A financing from private investors in November 2019.
India-based e-commerce platform Hypd has received an undisclosed amount of pre-seed financing from media portal ScoopWhoop, according to Tech in Asia. The money will go towards product development, marketing activities and recruitment.
US-based kidney care management company Monogram Health has received a strategic investment of undisclosed size from health system Scan Group. Monogram raised $7m in a series A-1 round co-led by Frist Cressey Ventures and Norwest Venture Partners in March 2020, following a $5m series A round led by Frist Cressey Ventures the previous year.
London Technology Club has revealed its participation in a $250m series C round for Germany-headquartered electric scooter rental service Tier that was led by internet group SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 in November 2020. London Technology Club made the investment through a special purpose vehicle offered by White Star Capital. Other investors in the round include Mubadala Investment Company’s Mubadala Capital unit, Northzone, Goodwater Capital, White Star Capital, Novator and RTP Global.
– Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu
