Decent, a US-based startup looking to use blockchain technology to improve access to affordable healthcare, has raised $8m in pre-seed and seed funding from investors including legal firm Fenwick & West. The firm was joined by Foundation Capital, Menlo Ventures, Digital Currency Group, Lux Capital, Maverick Ventures, Core Innovation Capital, Meridian Street Capital, Healthy Ventures, ChinaRock Capital Management, Abstract Ventures, Precursor Ventures, Ride Ventures, Sequoia Capital Scouts and various angel investors.
Newestage, the Japan-based owner of social video streaming app Stager Live, has closed an eight-figure renminbi (RMB10m = $1.6m) round featuring digital media company Gree, game console producer Daiichi Shoka, animation studio Pierrot, trading and technology firm SIG and Mizuho Capital, a subsidiary of financial services firm Mizuho, QQ has reported. The round also included Plum Capital, Evergreen and Qingliu Capital.
Unilever Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of consumer goods producer Unilever Ventures, has participated in a $7m round for grocery and milk delivery service Milkbasket, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday. Kalaari Capital led the round, which included BeeNext and Blume Ventures, and which followed a $3m investment by Unilever Ventures in January 2018. Lenovo Capital and Incubator Group, part of electronics producer Lenovo, is also an investor, having picked up a stake through a secondary purchase in August 2017.
LockState, the US-based owner of connected remote lock system RemoteLock, raised $5.8m on Tuesday in a series A round backed by engineering firm Kozo Keikaku and student loan services provider Nelnet. The round was led by Iron Gate Capital, included Service Provider Capital, and came three years after Kozo Keikaku invested $1m in LockState as part of a strategic partnership deal.
Hooch, the US-based operator of a subscription service for bars and restaurants, secured $5m on Tuesday in a seed round featuring diversified conglomerate Access Industries and Access-owned record company Warner Music Group. Revelis Capital Group and Blue Scorpion Investments co-led the round, which also featured FJ Labs and angel investors including Stefano Rosso and Sree Kotay. It followed approximately $2.8m in funding for Hooch from Blue Scorpion and assorted angel investors across two pre-seed rounds.
France-based seaweed and algae extract supplier Algaia received €4m ($4.7m) in funding on Tuesday from food and nutritional product manufacturer Maabarot Products and will use the capital to expand its production facility. Algaia had previously raised $2.7m from unnamed investors in 2015, and secured Maabarot as an investor the following year.
Recruitment firm Seek invested $2m to lead a $3.5m funding round for Vervoe, the US-based creator of an online interview platform, on Tuesday. Seek was joined by angel investors Jesse Hertzberg, Zachary Lewy, RusIan Kogan and David Shafer, and Vervoe will spend the proceeds on upgrading its machine learning technology. The startup had previously raised $1m from undisclosed investors which it revealed when it launched in August 2017.
US-based online health insurance portal Gravie has raised approximately $3.4m from undisclosed investors, according to a regulatory filing. The funding increased the company’s overall equity financing to more than $47m, its last round being a $14.1m series C in July 2017 backed by GE Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of industrial product maker General Electric, as well as FirstMark Capital, Aberdare Ventures and Split Rock Partners. Its investors also include insurance and financial services group Securianin.
Connecterra, the Netherlands-based developer of a digital assistant for dairy farmers, received €2.5m ($2.9m) yesterday in a series A round led by Sistema VC, the corporate venturing arm of diversified conglomerate Sistema. The round included Breed Reply, a subsidiary of internet-of-things technology provider Breed, as well as MENA Ventures, 7percent Ventures, AgFunder, AceCap and angel investors Elias Tabet and Henk Bles, and it followed $1.8m in seed funding from Breed Reply, MENA Ventures, Tabet and internet company DeNA in 2016.
Miraie, the Japan-based owner of low-carbohydrate food delivery service Nosh, secured ¥300m ($2.7m) last week in a seed round that included Nissay Capital, the VC arm of insurance provider Nippon Life, The Bridge reported on Monday. Miraie’s founders also participated in the round, which will support the continual beta testing of Nosh following its initial launch in October 2017.
Kanden Venture Management, the corporate venturing subsidiary of energy utility Kansai Electric Power Company, has invested an amount likely to be about ¥300m ($2.7m) in Ubie, a Japan-based developer of AI-equipped medical data software, The Bridge reported on Tuesday. The cash was provided in the form of series A funding, coming after approximately $550,000 of seed capital from D4V, the VC partner of design and consulting firm Ideo, in September 2017.
Sistema has led a $2.5m pre-series A round for US-based construction management software developer TraceAir, VC.ru has reported. Geotechnical engineering firm Engeo and construction services provider Independent Construction Co also participated in the round along with undisclosed angel investors.
Pensa Systems, a US-based developer of autonomous perception technology that helps retailers and manufacturers to manage inventory, raised $2.2m in seed funding on Tuesday from investors including ZX Ventures, the strategic investment and innovation arm of alcoholic drink producer Anheuser-Busch InBev. VC firm ATX Seed Ventures led the round, with participation from angel investors Mick Mountz and Yechiam Yemini.
Quit Genius, an India-based provider of aids that help users stop smoking, has added $1.1m to a seed round that now totals $2m, TechCrunch reported on Tuesday. The first $900,000 came in a February 2018 tranche featuring pharmaceutical firm Merck & Co and Wayra, a subsidiary of telecoms group Telefónica, and the extra money came from Village Global VC, Pioneer Fund, Arab Angel VC and assorted angel investors.
India-based educational toy developer Smartivity Labs has closed $2m in funding from angel investor Ashish Kacholia and existing backers including educational publisher S Chand Group, the Economic Times reported on Wednesday. S Chand’s portion of the round was likely the $540,000 it invested in Smartivity last month, which in turn followed $1.2m from S Chand, AdvantEdge Partners, CFG Offshore Holdings, Tandem Capital and assorted angel investors.
Fatmap, a UK-based 3D mapping platform for use in outdoor activities, secured an undisclosed amount of funding yesterday from investors including InMotion Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiary of carmaker Jaguar Land Rover. Venture capital fund Episode 1 and VC firm Capnamic Ventures also participated in the round.
Gamelynx, a Canada-based startup developing mobile games designed for eSports competition, has raised $1.2m in funding from investors including game developer and eSports tournament promoter Riot Games, VentureBeat has reported. Y Combinator, Skycatcher Fund, M Ventures, Everblue Esports Ventures, Leaf Ventures and angel investor Lyle Fong are also among the company’s backers.
Ivory Coast-based social startup studio Janngo completed a €1m ($1.2m) seed round on Tuesday that included trading services provider Soeximex, family office Mulliez Family and investment bank Clipperton. Janngo will provide funding and business support to small and medium-sized businesses in Africa, with a particular focus on improving opportunities for women and young people.
Cellular preservation technology producer BioLife Solutions has supplied $1m of funding for Savsu Technologies, a US-based developer of connected containers in which biological and pharmaceutical products can be stored and transported. The investment increased BioLife’s stake in Savsu from 26% to 31%, and Savsu’s majority investor matched BioLife’s funding with $1m of their own, according to the company.
PSA Unboxed, the strategic investment arm of port operator PSA, has led a seed round sized at approximately $750,000 for Haulio, the Singapore-based operator of a freight haulage services marketplace, Tech in Asia reported on Tuesday. The round included 500 Startups, NUS Enterprise and unnamed angel investors from the logistics sector, and followed roughly $56,000 in pre-seed investment from PSA Unboxed and NUS Enterprise.
Construction firm Consolidated Contractors Company has invested $300,000 in WakeCap Technologies, the United Arab Emirates-based developer of a safety tracking device for building projects, Magnitt reported yesterday. The cash was provided as part of a round WakeCap aims to close at $1.5m, and came after an undisclosed amount of funding from Hax, a subsidiary of VC firm SOSV.
Comparometer.in, the India-based operator of a price comparison platform covering e-commerce outlets, has secured Rs 10m ($150,000) in funding from Brand Capital, the ad-for-equity arm of media group Bennett, Coleman & Co, BW Disrupt reported on Tuesday. The company, which had previously raised funding from Jaarvis Accelerator and Truventuro, intends to upgrade marketing and expand the network of offline retailers with which it works.