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☆ This millennial took a gamble during the pandemic. Now her startup has raised over $225 million
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Goh Chiew Tong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"A lot of people actually told us that it's a very bold move to actually open an offline presence, while everybody was closing their offline stores [during the pandemic]," she added. But that was a "well-calculated" move for Social Bella, which operates Sociolla. Indiana, the co-founder and chief marketing officer of Social Bella, tells CNBC Make It how she took her Jakarta-based startup to the next level. The makeup junkie realized that in Australia, she had easy access to a wide range of beauty products from international brands. On top of that, the business also operates Soco, which Social Bella says is Indonesia's largest online review service for beauty products.

☆ Southeast Asia's digital economy could reach $200 billion in gross merchandise value in 2022: Report
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSoutheast Asia's digital economy could reach $200 billion in gross merchandise value in 2022: ReportStephanie Davis, vice president of Google Southeast Asia, and Temasek's technology and consumer deputy head Fock Wai Hoong, discuss the findings from a new report by Google, Temasek, and Bain and Company.

☆ Southeast Asia internet economy forecast cut on economic headwinds
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Chen Lin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol/File PhotoSINGAPORE, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Southeast Asia's internet economy is expected to be worth $330 billion by 2025, though this a downgrade from a previous forecast due to economic uncertainty and more pressure on tech companies to make a profit, an industry report said on Thursday. "Amidst global macroeconomic headwinds, reduced disposable income, sky-rocketing prices, and lower product availability, there is tapering of demand from Southeast Asia consumers," the trio said in a joint release. The region of 11 countries is one of the world's fastest growing internet markets, due to a young population, widespread smartphone usage and urbanisation, and a growing middle class. All six countries are expected to post double-digit growth between now and 2025, with Vietnam having the fastest growing digital economy this year at 28%. "Universally investors generally expect deal activity to recover from 2024 onwards," said Fock Wai Hoong, Deputy Head of Technology & Consumer and Southeast Asia at Temasek.

☆ Southeast Asia's top digital economies expected to hit $200 billion in 2022, report shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

SINGAPORE — South East Asia's top digital economies grew faster than expected in 2022 and is set to reach $200 billion in total value of transactions made this year, according to a new report by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company. An earlier report in 2016 estimated the internet economy in the region's six major countries will close in on $200 billion in GMV by 2025. The six major economies covered in the report are: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. "After years of acceleration, digital adoption growth is normalising," said the report released Thursday. Southeast Asia continues to see growth in the number of internet users — with 20 million new users added in 2022, raising the total number of users to 460 million.

☆ Temasek shifts president, CFO in management shuffle
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 26 (Reuters) - Singapore's Temasek Holdings said on Wednesday President Tan Chong Lee will resign to take up the role as chief executive officer at its fund management firm 65 Equity Partners. In a slew of management changes announced by the investment giant, Leong Wai Leng will step down as the chief financial officer after 16 years to lead the Singapore market team as president. The company's deputy CFO Png Chin Yee will replace Leng from Jan. 1, 2023, it said in a statement. It has in recent days seen stock markets tumble in the face of higher interest rates and inflation. Reporting by Savyata Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Israel's Trigo raises $100 mln to expand autonomous shopping technology
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JERUSALEM, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Israel’s Trigo said on Wednesday it raised $100 million in a private funding round to ramp up deployment for its technology that allows customers to shop without having to wait in line at a store’s checkout. The round was led by Singapore investment firm Temasek and 83North. Trigo said its technology transforms existing supermarkets into fully autonomous digital stores through the use of ceiling-mounted cameras that track customer movement and product choices, to make shopping “frictionless”. It said it would use the new funds to expand further into the United States and Europe, while developing an inventory management application suite. Trigo noted its technology is being used by Tesco PLC (TSCO.L) in Britain, ALDI (ALDIEI.UL) in the Netherlands, Wakefern in the United States and and Netto and REWE (REGRP.UL) in Germany.

☆ Temasek-backed Vertex set to raise nearly $500 mln for new China-focused fund
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING/HONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Venture capital firm Vertex Ventures, backed by Singapore state investor Temasek, is set to raise nearly $500 million for a new fund that will invest in efforts to step up China's domestic tech development, a senior executive said. The new fund's size will exceed an initial target of $400 million, compare with an earlier, similar fund that raised $275 million, said Tay Choon Chong, managing partner at Vertex Ventures China. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"China is pivoting from relying on imported technologies to its own tech know-how," Tay said. The latest Vertex fund comes amid a slowdown this year in U.S. dollar-denominated fundraising by China-focused venture capital and private equity firms. While looking for investment opportunities involving companies developing advanced technologies, Vertex will also look for firms that have potential in reducing Beijing's reliance on foreign suppliers, Tay said.

☆ CEO of Singapore's multi-million dollar homecare start-up shares top tips for success
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Goh Chiew Tong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

It's doing good, while doing well," said Gillian Tee, co-founder and CEO of Homage. After spending 15 years abroad, Singaporean entrepreneur Gillian Tee decided to return home in 2016 to be closer to her family. "I started off as a software developer and I was just very drawn to it because I liked building things. Gillian Tee Co-founder and CEO, HomageShe was referring to the book Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days, written by Jessica Livingston, who co-founded seed stage investment firm Y Combinator. Gillian Tee Co-founder and CEO, Homage"It's important to lean on specialists for clinical governance and compliance.

A helicopter flies over the downtown skyline, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, as seen from the Cleveland Clinic hospital in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, April 20, 2020. ADQ, the smallest of Abu Dhabi's three main sovereign wealth funds, began in 2018 as a vehicle for holding state assets. ADQ and the UAE foreign ministry did not respond to emailed requests for comment. Among recent deals, ADQ launched a $300 million technology fund in March with Turkey's sovereign wealth fund to invest in venture capital funds and opportunities inside Turkey. "They are the ones that promote UAE economic diplomacy, its regional and global influence," he said.

☆ Singapore air cargo deal elevates its hub status
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, Sept 29 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Singapore is boosting its hub status as global recession fears loom. Aviation services group SATS (SATS.SI) is acquiring the world’s largest air cargo logistics provider for $2.2 billion from U.S. buyout firm Cerberus. The deal could ultimately lift trade flows through Singapore where aviation contributes more than 5% of GDP. SATS is part of the city-state’s industry trinity that includes its former parent Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI) and Changi Airport. As global cargo activity nears pre-pandemic levels, Singapore is providing a strategic home to an asset that’s passed through multiple financial owners.

☆ Singapore's SATS in $1.1 bln deal to become biggest air cargo handler
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Yantoultra Ngui | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Singapore-based ground handling and catering provider SATS Ltd (SATS.SI) is acquiring Paris-based Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) for 1.19 billion euros ($1.14 billion) cash in its largest ever deal, to create the world's biggest global air cargo handler. SATS' CEO Kerry Mok called the deal "a transformational opportunity for SATS", saying it would create a global leader. Last week, Bloomberg News reported that SATS had sounded out financing for a possible deal that could be worth about $3 billion. WFS reported 1.722 billion euros in revenue and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization of 232 million euros for the year ended March 2022. Founded in 1984, WFS is the world's largest air cargo logistics provider and a major provider of ground handling and technical services.

☆ JPMorgan's Erdoes: In this turbulent market, there are opportunities everywhere
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

watch nowIn this turbulent market, opportunities abound, according to JPMorgan's Mary Callahan Erdoes. Stocks have been trading in a bear market this year as investors navigate inflation, Federal Reserve interest rate hikes and talk of a potential recession. A black swan is an unexpected event that results in panicked selling, while a white swan is a predictable crisis that can be addressed. Specifically, Erdoes sees a tremendous amount of opportunity in China, although she admits the country's complex market might not be for everyone. On Wednesday, the Bank of England purchased U.K. bonds in an effort to calm the market chaos.

☆ Singapore's Temasek leads a $40 million funding round in a Chinese startup
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Ina Fassbender | Afp | Getty ImagesBEIJING — Singapore state investment firm Temasek is leading a $40 million funding round in a Chinese startup despite a dry spell of deals in the country. The startup, Well-Link Technologies, counts Chinese tech company Xiaomi and Chinese gaming star miHoYo as investors, according to business database Tianyancha. The $40 million deal announced Monday is an early-stage, or B2 round, led by Temasek and includes existing shareholders Future Capital and VGC. Cloud rendering uses multiple servers on the cloud, rather than a single computer, to make the computations necessary for creating images such as animations and movies. The company is also exploring how its real-time cloud rendering tech can help with the development of virtual reality and other technologies of the future.

"Today, there's much stronger appetite for India and Southeast Asia," Joel Thickins, co-managing partner at TPG Capital Asia, told Reuters. The enthusiasm persists despite due diligence for startups that requires many months while valuations are under pressure, investors said. But although funds were diversifying, investors said the region's vastly different markets meant a uniform investing strategy was not ideal. One area that I constantly notice that everybody is very interested in is Southeast Asia. "There are still individual U.S. cities where startups are raising more money than all of the startups in Southeast Asia," said Julie Ruvolo, managing director of venture capital at Global Private Capital Association, which says its 300 members manage assets of more than $2 trillion.

☆ Gone are the days of chunky bonuses and salary increases. Wall Street's top brass are ready to trim their workforces as annual staff cuts return.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Aaron Weinman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It's a shift from this time last year, when junior bankers scored significant pay bumps, dealmaking reached record-breaking highs, and investment bankers prepared themselves for some of the chunkiest bonuses they'd ever received. Per this story from Bloomberg, however, the layoffs should not be as severe as what Wall Street experienced after market crashes in 1987 and 2008. For many, the return of staff cuts is kind of a return to normalcy. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images2. Credit Suisse is planning on splitting its investment bank into three parts, according to the Financial Times. The US Securities and Exchange Commission will let Wall Street keep payment-for-order flow, per Bloomberg.

☆ We got an exclusive look at the 9-slide pitch deck Innovafeed, an insect protein startup, used to raise $250 million
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

We got an exclusive look at the 9-slide pitch deck it used to secure the funding. A startup developing insect-based food for aqua-farming, pet food, and eventually humans just raised $250 million to ramp up production. "One of the products we replace in aqua-feed is fish meal," Ray said. "Fish meal is made of small fish caught in South America, in Africa, turned into a meal to feed other food production. Replacing fish meal with Innovafeed's product reduces the carbon footprint of salmon feed by 50%, the cofounder said.

☆ FTX in talks to raise up to $1 billion at valuation of about $32 billion, in-line with prior round
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Kate Rooney | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto conglomerate FTX is in talks with investors to raise up to $1 billion in new funding that would keep the company's valuation at roughly $32 billion, according to people with knowledge of the discussions. Negotiations are ongoing and the terms could change, said the sources, who asked not to be named because the talks are confidential. Coindesk previously reported on a coming investment at flat valuation, following FTX's last capital raise in January. FTX also offered to buy bankrupt crypto brokerage Voyager Digital in August but was turned down for what was called a "low ball bid." FTX saw net income of $388 million last year, up from just $17 million a year earlier.

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