A boost in inclusion
- 500-backed super app Grab announced a strategic alliance with Indonesian media conglomerate Elang Mahkota Teknologi (Emtek). As part of this arrangement, Emtek will invest US$375 million in Grab’s technology unit in Indonesia.
- The two companies said the partnership combines Grab’s superapp with Emtek’s portfolio of media, all-commerce and content production businesses.
- According to a joint statement, this will help achieve their goal of developing digital products for the country’s micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The companies said that while MSMEs account for 99% of all businesses in Indonesia, only 21% have any digital presence.
- The companies will provide digital solutions supported by 500-backed e-commerce startup Bukalapak, GrabFood, GrabKios, and GrabMart platforms.
- Get the full story on Forbes here.
Add to cart
- 500-backed e-grocery startup HappyFresh announced it has raised US$65 million in funding. The Series D round was led by Naver Financial Corporation and Gafina B.V.
- HappyFresh will use the investment to scale its operations, including growing its fleet of drivers. It also plans to add more payment methods, improve user experience, and increase its grocery options.
- According to the startup, it “has been experiencing an unprecedented growth” over the past 18 months. The adoption of grocery deliveries surged during the pandemic. Traffic grew by 10x to 20x in its three markets, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.
- “We see a big shift in customers’ behavior…retention and frequency rates have significantly increased while the overall basket size has been consistently growing,” CEO Guillem Segarra said. “We attribute this to a major shift in share of wallet from offline to online, which is here to stay.”
- Read the full article on TechCrunch here.
Developing tools and talent
- Willson Deng, CEO of 500-backed digital manufacturing startup Arcstone, appeared on Singapore’s business and personal finance radio station Money FM to share more about its recent collaboration on a joint laboratory with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star).
- According to Willson, the laboratory was designed to boost digital adoption among small- and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing sector by providing the right tools. “[We want to] make it easy so you don’t need an army of engineers to come in to be able to support that,” he said.
- He added that education is a critical part of the process, especially for factories that have been run traditionally for decades. He said there needs to be talent that can understand and take action on the data provided once a factory goes digital.
- In order to achieve that, Arcstone works closely with institutes of higher learning where students learn about digital manufacturing in relevant courses.
- Listen to the full interview on Money FM here.
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500 Startups is a venture capital firm on a mission to discover and back the world’s most talented entrepreneurs, help them create successful companies at scale, and build thriving global ecosystems. In Southeast Asia, 500 Startups invests through the pioneering 500 Southeast Asia family of funds. The 500 Southeast Asia funds have backed over 240 companies across multiple sectors from internet to consumer to deep technology. It continues to connect founders with capital, expertise and powerful regional and global networks to help them succeed.
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