Seeking out alternatives in the funding winter

Nio, Metro Pacific Investments Corporation, Bolttech, and more raised funds this week. [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 been trying to cut back on my consumption of sugary drinks recently, which is really hard for someone who subsists on Coca-Cola, Milo, and fruit juice. I’ve been trying to drink more fruit-infused water and unsweetened teas instead - it’s not the same, but as far as alternatives go, it could be worse. Looking at today’s funding data, a number of companies have sought out “alternatives” to traditional fundraising, such as debt financing or strategic investments. While these may not come from the typical VC, they still provide firms with an opportunity to raise funds in the ongoing economic downturn. And if it works, it works. You can find all other important investment deals that happened in the last few days in our [weekly funding news wrap-up](. Let’s dive into the biggest deals that recently took place. -- Stefanie  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  CN Nio is a Shanghai-based company that produces electric vehicles. It raised US$1 billion in a debt round. PH Philippine-based, publicly listed investment and management company Metro Pacific Investments Corporation has bagged US$148 million in a strategic investment from Mitsui & Co. IN Asian Institute of Nephrology and Urology, a leading specialty hospital for kidney care in India, has received US$72 million in a strategic investment from Asia Healthcare Holdings. SG Singapore-based insurtech firm Bolttech [has raised US$50 million]( in a series B extension from LeapFrog Investments. HK Bowtie is a Hong Kong-based insurtech firm as well as a fully licensed virtual insurance company. It raised US$34.9 million in series B money from Mitsui & Co and Sun Life Financial. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [58 deals worth over US$1.4 billion](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As SG Avirtech is a Singapore-based firm that provides crop intelligence through aerial and ground information. It [was acquired]( by Terra Drone, a Japan-headquartered drone and urban air mobility tech provider 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 Dear Senja is a mental health platform in Indonesia providing community support, content, and events. SG Quantgraph is a Singapore-based firm that positions itself as an “Airbnb" for buying and selling of real-time computational resources. KR Realry is a global fashion price comparison engine from South Korea that helps users save money and time when shopping online. You can find the full list of fundraising startups in Asia [over here](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  KILLER PITCH DECKS 1️⃣ The deck that helped a Singapore co-living startup raise US$740,000 Bespoke Habitat, a Singapore-based co-living and property management startup, provides spaces where clients can live, work, and play. It used [this pitch deck]( to raise its seed round from undisclosed angel investors this year. The deck provides an overview of the company and introduces its team, going on to highlight the solutions that Bespoke Habitat offers. It also shares the startup’s unique selling point and business model. 2️⃣ A flying taxi startup’s pitch deck helped it score US$1 million in seed funding The ePlane Company aims to develop electric planes to make commuting within cities easier, while keeping prices at only 1.5x of current taxi fares. It used [this pitch deck]( to secure seed funding last year. The presentation immediately lays out the transportation firm’s business plan and then outlines its vision going forward. 3️⃣ This pitch deck helped an equity management platform raise US$80 million California-based Carta helps companies and investors manage their cap tables, valuations, investments, and equity loans. The company used [this pitch deck]( to raise US$80 million in series D money in 2018. The deck is neat and has a consistent design, making it look professional. It also details Carta’s traction, milestones, and business model for investors to assess.  --------------------------------------------------------------- TECH IN ASIA’S FOUNDERS MEETUP: PHILIPPINES Founders’ real talk: a candid conversation about the Philippines’ startup ecosystem Want to find out what it’s really like to build and scale a startup in the Philippines? Learn more at our Founders Meetup in the country. Tech in Asia editor-in-chief Terence Lee will moderate the panel discussion, which is the first panel setup in our Founders Meetup series. The event features Brian Cu (CEO and co-founder, SariSuki) and Rexy Josh Dorado (president and co-founder, Kumu). On September 27, join us at Weremote Makati Central Square in the heart of Manila to gleam practical insights and connect with fellow founders from the Tech in Asia community. Why navigate the startup journey alone when you can collaborate with others and break through barriers together? Tickets are now on sale at US$12.50 each, inclusive of complimentary light bites and drinks. Hurry, seats are limited. [Secure yours before it’s snatched up!]( Special thanks to our official event partners - AWS, CleverTap, Cooley, Oracle, Sinarmas Land, Singapore Global Network (SGN), Quest Ventures, and Purple Quarter - and our community partners - WeWork, Gobi Partners, and AHG Lab - as well as our venue host Weremote for making this meetup possible.  --------------------------------------------------------------- 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 Another split GGV Capital has announced that it [is splitting into two independent businesses]( focused on Asia and the US. This comes three months after Sequoia Capital made a similar move. GGV’s split is likely a response to the tense relations between Washington and Beijing and increasing pressure on American tech investors to disengage from China. 2️⃣ Tactfully speaking In [this Harvard Business Review podcast]( executive coach Muriel Wilkins shares how leaders can build the right interpersonal communication skills to reach the next level and build the right connections to help themselves and the people around them succeed. 3️⃣ Specialists vs generalists This is an interesting one. As fundraising for VCs becomes more challenging, firms are finding ways to differentiate themselves from the pack. One way is through specialization, focusing on a specific vertical. But is there a difference in their performance? [This piece from PitchBook]( explores this question. 4️⃣ Adverse selection In [this piece]( from Dan Gray, head of marketing at Equidam, he discusses the phenomenon of “adverse selection” in the VC world. He argues that this is a problem of VC’s own making, thanks to a lack of transparent standards for the industry. He also writes that adverse selection creates broader issues for the performance of VC firms, the quality of ventures backed, and the diversity of founders and ideas that will receive investments. 5️⃣ Sustainable investments, the right way One of the biggest problems holding sustainable investing back is that people have too narrow an understanding of what it could look like. [This Harvard Business Review article]( introduces the idea of “field building,” where investors play a greater role in influencing the norms, assumptions, rules, and stakeholders surrounding companies to drive significant impact.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [ADVERTISE]( | [SUBSCRIBE]( | [HIRE]( | [FIND JOBS]( P.S. Don't miss out on the biggest tech news and analysis. Add newsletter@techinasia.com to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list. Or simply move us into your inbox. Too many emails? Switch to a different frequency or get new content through our [preference center]( or [unsubscribe](. You can also break our hearts and remove yourself from all Tech in Asia emails over [here](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  Tech in Asia’s newsletters are handcrafted daily with love - and sometimes powered by good kopi. Today’s edition was written by Stefanie Yeo. It’s edited by Dhania Putri Sarahtika. Copyright © 2023 Tech in Asia, All rights reserved. 63 Robinson Road, Singapore 068894