Banks need funding too

GXS Bank, HashKey Group, JD Energy, 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 just wrote last week that it’s rare to see a Singaporean company at the top of these funding newsletters, but GXS Bank’s US$109 million deal makes it two in a row. Am I about to launch into a patriotic speech? No; it is Friday and I have had a busy - but fruitful! - week. I hope yours was as well, and that you have a good weekend ahead. 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. -- Winston  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  SG GXS Bank, a Singaporean digital bank, received [US$109 million in strategic funding]( from Grab and Singtel. HK HashKey Group is a Web3 infrastructure developer and virtual asset group based in Hong Kong. It closed a [US$100 million series A round]( claiming unicorn status with a pre-money valuation of US$1.2 billion, according to the company. The investors were undisclosed. CN JD Energy is a Chinese energy storage system developer. It secured US$42.2 million in series C funding from Bank of Communications Financial Assets Investment, CCB Financial Asset Investment, China International Marine Containers, and Guangzhou Industrial Investment and Capital Operation Holding Group. IN Based in India, Medi Assist is a healthtech and insurtech company. It got over US$42 million in late-stage funding from a group of investors, including the likes of Aditya Birla Group, Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance, and Bandhan Mutual Fund. AE Tumodo, a business travel platform from the United Arab Emirates, has raised [US$35 million in a pre-seed round]( co-led by angel investors focused on the Middle East and North Africa. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [70 deals worth over US$560 million](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As PH JustPayroll offers enterprise-grade payroll solutions for the Philippine market. It was acquired by HR technology provider Sprout Solutions for an undisclosed sum. IN Bengaluru-based buy now, pay later firm ZestMoney was [acquired by financial services firm DMI Group]( the financial details of the deal were not made publicly available. ID Indonesian firm LifePal is an online marketplace for insurance. It was acquired by Thai insurtech company Roojai Group for an undisclosed amount.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  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](  SG Singapore-based Robstack is developing an AI-based design platform that enables property owners and architects to generate real-time 3D designs within minutes. PH Sandbox Ecommerce is a Philippine ecommerce enabler/solutions provider and creator agency specializing in livestream content. MY Wedding Mate is a Malaysian online wedding platform for couples to connect with vendors and service providers. You can find the full list of fundraising startups in Asia [over here](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  KILLER PITCH DECKS 1️⃣ A legaltech startup’s pitch deck earned it 500 Startups money Dubai-headquartered Lexyom is an online legal platform crafted by lawyers, developers, and executors. In 2018, it used [this pitch deck]( at a 500 Startups Demo Day and received an undisclosed amount of seed funding. The deck starts by pointing out the problems of the legal industry in the Middle East and shows the market opportunity that Lexyom can tap into. It then proceeds to introduce the startup’s service, explaining how it can help address the industry’s issues. 2️⃣ The pitch deck that got the attention of Andreessen Horowitz US-based Fivetran is an automated data integration platform that offers over 150 fully managed and automated connectors for databases, applications, events, files, and functions. The startup used [this pitch deck]( to secure its series B funding in 2019. The presentation has a consistent flow, beginning with an explanation of the problems around data integration and going on to describe the solution that Fivetran provides. It also features a graph that outlines the company’s competitive edge. 3️⃣ A Pakistani health super app used this pitch deck for its pre-series A round Find My Doctor is a platform that provides a one-stop, at-home solution for all medical needs. With [this pitch deck]( the firm raised pre-series A funding in 2022. The deck is concise and well-designed, looks professional, and balances words and visuals. It begins with an introduction of the team, followed by key information on Find My Doctor’s growth and services.  --------------------------------------------------------------- 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 Not letting hype take over At last year’s Tech in Asia Conference, I moderated a panel on hype in the tech and startup world and whether it brings more harm than good. That discussion continues in this [Masters of Scale podcast episode]( featuring Austin Russell, CEO of Luminar Technologies. 2️⃣ No product-market fit, no problem? Product-market fit is, like, one of the holy grails in the world of tech startups. Finding it usually means that the company is set - if not for life, then for a very long time. But is it absolutely necessary for growth? [This article from Entrepreneurship Handbook]( explores the question. 3️⃣ The tech winter also affects new VCs It’s not just tech startups that are facing tough times in the current economy. The startups of the VC world - otherwise known as emerging funds - are also [finding it difficult to stay relevant]( with shutdowns and layoffs a part of the landscape. 4️⃣ Paris 2024 isn’t just for athletes The Olympics are in Paris this year, and besides the purity of sporting competition, there’s also… a ton of business opportunities, I guess. (Sure takes the romance out of the whole spectacle.) Anyway, [this Sifted article]( looks at the myriad collaboration opportunities for French startups as we approach the event. 5️⃣ For creatives, process > outcomes It can feel counterintuitive in the results-oriented tech and startup world, but as a writer and editor, I’m firmly in the “process over outcomes” camp. You find so many better ways of saying or presenting something by going through and iterating the creative process, and a large part of this journey can’t be directly tied to a stated goal. [This Entrepreneurship Handbook piece]( goes deeper into the topic.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [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 Winston Zhang. It’s edited by Dhania Putri Sarahtika. Copyright © 2024 Tech in Asia, All rights reserved. 63 Robinson Road, Singapore 068894