Bukalapak said to have held merger talks with Alibaba-backed Lazada

Bukalapak recently closed Series F financing backed by South Korea's Shinhan GIB and Indonesia's Emtek at a $2.5 billion valuation.

Deals

Editor’s Take: The week that was – October 14-18

Our scoops this week included merger talks between e-commerce unicorn Bukalapak and Alibaba-backed Lazada in Indonesia.

Unicorns

Alibaba-backed Qianxun SI hits $1.83b valuation after Series A round

The positioning service provider was set up in 2015 by Alibaba and Norinco Group, a Chinese defence corporation.

Unicorns

SoftBank’s WeWork rescue plan said to value startup below $8b

Deals

Indonesian edtech startup Zenius eyes $20m funding, in talks with Northstar

Private Equity

Singapore

PAG mulls sale of Singapore restaurant chain Paradise Group

A potential sale could value Paradise Group at as much as S$500 million ($367 million).

Rest of Asia

Mubadala eyes debt market, mulls backing SoftBank Vision Fund 2

The Gulf has seen a flurry of international debt issuance as governments and companies take advantage of low global rates to attract yield-seeking inv

Singapore

Singapore’s Temasek mulls setting up new renewables-focused unit

Temasek was said to have decided against investing in Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering, in part over environmental concerns.

Venture Capital

Greater China

Tencent co-leads $141m Series B round for Chinese e-invoicing firm

Golden Technology's existing investors including Hillhouse Capital, Wanda Group, Prometheus Capital, and IDG also joined the round.

India

India’s RupeeRedee raises $6m from Digital Finance International

The capital raised will be used to enhance its technology and backend processes.

Thailand

Seafood major Thai Union sets up VC arm, commits to invest $30m in foodtech

The fund has made its maiden investment in alternative protein startup Flying Spark.

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Q & A

Philippines

SaaS startup Deskera says it’s ready to evolve into a business super app

Deals

Singapore

Editor’s Take: The week that was – October 14-18

Our scoops this week included merger talks between e-commerce unicorn Bukalapak and Alibaba-backed Lazada in Indonesia.

India

India’s Cipla buys novel anti-infective drug Elores from Venus Remedies

Cipla is the third-largest pharmaceutical company in India.

India

India: L&T to acquire partner in L&T IDPL, make it fully-owned arm

L&T said it was buying out its partner as a gesture of goodwill towards a longtime investor.

IPOs and Markets

Greater China

China opens up access to dual-class shares listed in Hong Kong

The move gives onshore investors access to some of the world’s hottest startups such as Xiaomi Corp and Meituan Dianping.

Greater China

Hong Kong IPOs signal renewed confidence in China’s film studio companies

Cathay Media filed for an IPO in HK last month in possibly the third major sale this year for a mainland movie firm.

Rest of Asia

Aramco delays planned IPO launch, hopes Q3 results will boost investor sentiment

Aramco had been expected to announce plans next week to float a 1% to 2% stake on the kingdom’s Tadawul market.

Opinion

India

Flipkart’s likely PhonePe spinoff a good sign for Indian tech

Rest of Asia

How Son is taking a huge risk by jumping in to save drowning unicorn WeWork

India

India: VC firms urge startups to get ‘boring’, focus more on ‘processes’

World

WeWork case becomes a lesson for startups in what not to do

Policy & Regulations

Malaysia

Bukalapak said to have held merger talks with Alibaba-backed Lazada

Editor’s Take: The week that was – October 14-18

Alibaba-backed Qianxun SI hits $1.83b valuation after Series A round

SoftBank’s WeWork rescue plan said to value startup below $8b

Indonesian edtech startup Zenius eyes $20m funding, in talks with Northstar

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PAG mulls sale of Singapore restaurant chain Paradise Group

Mubadala eyes debt market, mulls backing SoftBank Vision Fund 2

Singapore’s Temasek mulls setting up new renewables-focused unit

Tencent co-leads $141m Series B round for Chinese e-invoicing firm

India’s RupeeRedee raises $6m from Digital Finance International

Seafood major Thai Union sets up VC arm, commits to invest $30m in foodtech

Unlock Your Competitive Advantage

SoftBank’s WeWork rescue plan said to value startup below $8b

Alibaba-backed Qianxun SI hits $1.83b valuation after Series A round

Bukalapak said to have held merger talks with Alibaba-backed Lazada

PH payments startup PayMongo sees room for more players in home market

Asia PE-VC Summit 2019: Grab’s Tan Hooi Ling on super app ambitions & IPO plans

Paytm founder Sharma says winning in India prepared him for the world

SaaS startup Deskera says it’s ready to evolve into a business super app

Editor’s Take: The week that was – October 14-18

India’s Cipla buys novel anti-infective drug Elores from Venus Remedies

India: L&T to acquire partner in L&T IDPL, make it fully-owned arm

China opens up access to dual-class shares listed in Hong Kong

Hong Kong IPOs signal renewed confidence in China’s film studio companies

Aramco delays planned IPO launch, hopes Q3 results will boost investor sentiment

Southeast Asia’s overcrowded mobile payments market faces shakeout

Vietnamese ride-hailers choose niche play to avoid faceoff with cash-rich decacorns

Family office advisers see rising interest from clients wanting to move assets from HK

Flipkart’s likely PhonePe spinoff a good sign for Indian tech

How Son is taking a huge risk by jumping in to save drowning unicorn WeWork

India: VC firms urge startups to get ‘boring’, focus more on ‘processes’

WeWork case becomes a lesson for startups in what not to do

Malaysia govt ‘open’ to dropping 1MDB charges against Goldman Sachs

China to lift business curbs on foreign banks, brokerages and fund managers

Malaysia extends tax incentives for VCs, angel investors to 2023

Chinese firm TikTok ropes in Nikhil Gandhi as India head

SoftBank Vision Fund partner overseeing Didi Chuxing, Grab resigns

Troubled delivery startup honestbee appoints new COO, beefs up core team