Celebrating unicorns in our ecosystem

Ola Electric, EQuest Education Group, eFishery, and more raised funds. [Read from your browser]( FOMO Saturday Welcome to Tech in Asia's free Saturday VC newsletter! Get full access to our subscribers-only premium content and other insightful analysis on the big and messy topics of Asia’s tech and startup community by [registering here](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello {NAME} I’ve recently been working on some content around startup unicorns as part of what I do at [Tech in Asia Studios](. That US$1 billion valuation is a major milestone on a startup’s journey and is often seen as the first step towards greatness and growth. I talk about unicorns because one of the top-funded companies this week, Indonesian agritech firm eFishery, has joined this exclusive group at a post-money valuation of US$1.3 billion - and I do think what the company’s trying to do to support fish and shrimp farmers in the country is pretty cool. Being a unicorn isn’t the be-all and end-all for startups, but it’s certainly something worth celebrating. Plus, successful unicorns lead to investments, entrepreneurship, and increased faith in the potential of a market, hence creating a virtuous cycle that will power even more growth - and that’s a good thing. You can find all other important investment deals that happened over the last few days in our [weekly funding news wrap-up](. Let’s dive into the biggest deals and M&As that recently took place. -- Stefanie  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  IN Ola Electric, the electric vehicle arm of India’s Ola Cabs, has secured US$300 million in Series E money. Investors in the round were not disclosed. VN EQuest Education Group is an education firm in Vietnam. It [raised US$120 million]( in a late-stage round from KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co) and an undisclosed creditor. ID eFishery is an Indonesian-based agritech firm that makes a smart feeding system for the fish- and shrimp-farming industries. It [took home US$108 million]( from 42XFund, Northstar Group, and SoftBank Vision Fund. SG Tyme, a multicountry digital bank from Singapore, bagged US$77.8 million in a bridge round from Blue Earth Capital and Norrsken22. KR Musicow is a South Korean platform for music copyright sharing and trading. It scored a US$45 million series D round from STIC Investments. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [65 deals worth over US$1.04 billion](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As  IN Bleu Cares is a sexual wellness brand from India. It was acquired by femtech firm Sirona Hygiene for an undisclosed sum. MY KT Management, which offers student accommodation services in Malaysia, [was acquired]( by proptech firm LiveIn. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed. IN FinFort, an Indian firm that provides data analytics services to banks and non-bank financial companies, has been acquired by credit platform Yubi for an undisclosed sum.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  STARTUPS THAT ARE RAISING FUNDS Fundraising is hard. To make things slightly easier, we’ve compiled this list of fundraising startups for our subscribers. Do you run a startup that’s raising at the moment or know someone who does? Sign your company up for listing [here](. ID Flotus.id is an Indonesian startup that offers affordable B2C mental health solutions, available both online and offline SG Thunder.im is a Singapore-based blockchain messenger that provides users with complete control over their data and ensures their privacy. IN Black is an app that helps users discover independent and purpose-driven brands through gamification. It is based in India. You can find the full list of fundraising startups in Asia [over here](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  KILLER PITCH DECKS 1️⃣A seed-stage edtech firm’s pitch deck Orphicy is an Ahmedabad-based education startup that offers online courses based on the school curriculum and national competitive examinations in India. In 2021, it used [this pitch deck]( and raised US$325,000 in seed funding. The presentation begins with evaluation criteria points that capture investors’ attention, and then it highlights the projection for the growth of the edtech market in the next 10 years. The deck then introduces the key members of Orphicy and their diverse experiences in education and technology. 2️⃣ A blockchain-powered fintech firm secured pre-series A money via this deck Doxa Holdings links buyers, suppliers, and financiers in the industrial space. It runs a platform known as Doxa Connex, which lets construction players and real estate developers process procurement, payment, and financing digitally. Last year, the startup scored US$2.2 million in pre-series A funding with the help of [this pitch deck](. The deck is simple, uses a theme based on the company logo’s color palette, and starts off with an agenda that succinctly lays out what to expect for the rest of the presentation. 3️⃣ The pitch deck that got a US cybersecurity firm US$36 million in series C money Awake Security is a provider of AI-driven solutions capable of detecting and responding to network security threats. The company used [this pitch deck]( to raise series C funding in 2020. The deck starts with an executive summary that outlines the company’s general information, its market opportunity, and the members of its leadership team. The presentation goes on to share details such as key customers and pipeline, analyst perspectives, and the challenges that Awake Security’s services aim to tackle.  --------------------------------------------------------------- EXCLUSIVE LISTICLES Lists of most active investors in the region [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Japan]( | [Singapore]( | [Southeast Asia]( List of top-funded startups in Asia [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Israel]( | [Japan]( | [Hong Kong]( | [Singapore]( | [South Korea]( | [Vietnam](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THOUGHTFUL READS  1️⃣ Failure is the launchpad of success Ever heard of a founder that started a company, got forced out of it, and then bought it back in a bid to attempt to get it out of bankruptcy? That’s Stacy Spikes, co-founder of MoviePass. Learn more about his story in [this Masters of Scale podcast episode]( which explores how he’s reviving the company, the power of being an outsider, and how people can control the narratives of their lives. 2️⃣ The question of when in democratizing data Democratized data science is on the rise, but the reality is that not everyone needs to have analytics at their fingertips in an organization. What’s crucial for businesses and leaders is to understand when it makes the most sense to democratize data and analytics - [this piece]( from the Harvard Business Review (HBR) goes deeper. 3️⃣ Rise of the European startup mafias In Europe and Israel, every venture-backed company valued at US$1 billion or more has given rise to an average of five tech startups, [a report]( by VC firm Accel found. Many of Europe’s startups have been founded by ex-employees of its unicorns, indicating the growth and maturity of the region’s startup scene, and a sign of further opportunity. 4️⃣ Sequoia’s all in on AI AI is hot, so it’s no surprise that Sequoia Capital has got its eyes on the space. The VC firm has made several notable investments into AI companies and opened up office hours for their founders to directly speak to the firm’s partners. [Check out]( what else Sequoia’s doing to get ahead on this AI wave. 5️⃣ Generative AI and strategy If you’re tired of hearing about generative AI… too bad for you. It’s undeniably a phenomenon, and business leaders would do well to lean into it and learn how they can tap into the technology and the new strategic paths it offers. [This HBR podcast]( dives into the topic.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [ADVERTISE]( | [SUBSCRIBE]( | [HIRE]( | [FIND JOBS]( P.S. 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