Funding
RoomClip, the Japan-based operator of an online sharing platform for interior design, secured an undisclosed amount on Wednesday in a series E round led by Bonds Investment Group, an investment vehicle for marketing technology provider Opt. The round included e-commerce support company Itsumo’s corporate venturing subsidiary, Itsumo Capital, as well as the fund formed by management recruitment firm Matching Service Japan and investment adviser Hayate Investment, in addition to VC firm Now, private investor Yo Nagami and debt financing from unnamed financial institutions. RoomClip had raised a total of over $20m as of a $9.4m series D round in September 2020.
PayU, the payment technology provider owned by internet group Prosus, has led a $12m series A round for Indiagold, the India-based creator of a digital credit platform that uses gold assets to prove creditworthiness, TechCrunch reported today. Falcon Edge Capital’s also took part in the round, together with Better Tomorrow Ventures, 3one4 Capital, Rainmatter Capital and Leo Capital. The company had raised $1.9m in seed funding as of February this year, from Leo Capital, Blume Founders Fund, Sequoia Scout and seven angel investors.
Internet group Baidu has provided an undisclosed amount of series B funding for China-based intelligent clean technology developer iReady through its Baidu Ventures unit, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday. Baidu Ventures had contributed to a round of undisclosed size in November 2020 that was led by digital media group ByteDance, having supplied an undisclosed amount of series A-plus funding in 2019. The company’s earlier backers include Fortune Venture Capital.
Consulting group SBPar has invested R$50m ($9.5m) in Brazil-based healthcare management software provider Salux, Baguete has reported. The funding has been earmarked for beefing up the company’s analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities in addition to tailoring it further to meet current market demand.
Euler, a UK-headquartered decentralised finance software developer backed by crypto trading firm Capital Markets Trading (CMT), closed an $8m series A round on Wednesday led by crypto-focused investment firm Paradigm that included Lemniscap and angel investors Anthony Sassano, Ryan Sean Adams, Kain Warwick and Hasu. CMT vehicle CMT Digital had joined Launchub Ventures, Divergence Ventures, Block0, Cluster and various individuals to supply $800,000 in seed funding for the company in December 2020.
Singapore-based restaurant marketing software developer Momos has received $6.5m in seed capital from investors including hospitality group JIA Group, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday. Sequoia Capital India co-led the round with Falcon Edge Capital’s Alpha Wave Incubation subsidiary and it also featured K3 Ventures, Captii Ventures, Integrated Capital, HOF Capital and unnamed angel investors.
Japan-based online learning platform developer Schoo closed a ¥700m ($6.4m) series D round on Wednesday led by Bonds Investment Group, a vehicle for marketing group Opt. The round also featured SMBC Venture Capital and Yamaguchi Capital, on behalf of financial services firms Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Yamaguchi Financial Group respectively, as well as Incubate Fund, Kamakura Investment Trust and Future Venture Capital. Telecommunications firm KDDI’s Regional Initiative Fund invested an undisclosed sum in School in September 2019 following a $2.9m round in 2015 that took its total funding to $4.4m.
LG CNS, an IT services affiliate of electronics conglomerate LG, has co-led a $4.5m pre-series A round for US-based intelligent speech technology developer Lovo with Kakao Entertainment and Kakao Investment, both subsidiaries of internet group Kakao, TechCrunch reported yesterday. They were joined by angel investor Michael Kim and University of California, Berkeley’s Skydeck Fund, the latter described as an existing backer. Lovo’s investors also include convergence software provider Ntels, Hustle Fund and Primer Sazze Partners, according to its website.
Toshiba Tec Corporation, the electric appliance, retail and printing services subsidiary of electronics group Toshiba, invested an undisclosed amount in WorkStyleTech, the Japan-based operator of a human resources management service for the retail industry, today. The company will work with Toshiba Tec on digital transformation activities.
US-based design software startup Playbook has secured $4m in seed financing from investors including law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati at a $20m post-money valuation, TechCrunch reported yesterday. Venture capital firm Founders Fund led the round, which also featured Abstract, iNovia Capital, Maple, Basis Set Ventures, Backend Capital and individuals including Eric Wu, Eddie Kim and Beth Turner.
Pan Solution Technologies, a Japan-based semiconductor inspection equipment manufacturer leveraging research conducted at Tohoku University’s Institute for Materials Research, received an undisclosed amount of funding yesterday from advanced materials producer Japan Material Technologies Corporation. The company had secured $1.1m from Tohoku University in 2017 through its Tohoku University Venture Partners vehicle.
VC and management consulting firm D3 took part in a ¥200m ($1.8m) funding round for Grace Imaging, a Japan-based developer of fatigue level visualisation technology based on research from Keio University’s School of Medicine, today. The round included Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, the VC arm of financial services firm Mitsubishi UFJ, as well as Keio University’s Keio Innovation Initiative and QB Capital, which is backed by Kyushu University affiliate Kyushu TLO. The same amount was provided by Tokyo Metropolitan Government in the form of grant funding.
Prevent, the Japan-based developer of a lifestyle-related disease prevention service, raised an undisclosed amount of funding yesterday from insurer Sumitomo Life’s Sumisei Innovation Fund and chemical, pharmaceutical and IT services group Teijin. The round followed an investment of undisclosed size by telecoms firm KDDI’s Open Innovation Fund III in May 2020.
Sonoligo, a Japan-based cultural experience subscription service spun out of Nagoya University, secured ¥70m ($640,000) in equity funding yesterday from phishing prevention services provider Tobila Systems, VC firm Beyond Next Ventures and unnamed angel investors while Japan Finance Corporation provided $270,000 in debt financing. Beyond Next Ventures had previously supplied $460,000 in funding for Sonoligo in November 2019.
Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu.
