<article>Eko, a Bangkok-based messaging platform for businesses, announced that it has raised a $20-million Series B round led by Indonesian venture capital firm SMDV, it said in a statement on Tuesday.</article>

Eko, a Bangkok-based messaging platform for businesses, announced that it has raised a $20-million Series B round led by Indonesian venture capital firm SMDV, it said in a statement on Tuesday.
The round was joined by budget carrier AirAsia&#8217;s digital investment arm Redbeat Ventures, China and KL-based VC firm Gobi Partners, East Ventures and existing shareholders.
According to the startup, the capital raised will help Eko further accelerate its expansion in Europe and North America, especially to increase its partner and customer base in the region. Revenues have more than tripled in the past year and Eko now has over half a million recurring paid users across retail, hospitality, banking, and other service-based industries.
It launched its sales, business and partnership operations in Europe earlier this year, with an office in London. Eko claims that with the Europe expansion, it saw its global sales pipeline grow by more than 10 times, with a majority of client opportunities now coming from Europe and North America.
“The EU’s economy is roughly seven times larger than that of Southeast Asia’s, whilst the US is roughly the same size as Europe. The difference in the size of the enterprise IT market is even wider as the EU and the US spend heavily on software.
&#8220;Thus, if Eko is to achieve the necessary scale to become a serious global player in the mobile enterprise market, continued growth in these markets is critical,&#8221; said Eko&#8217;s founder and CEO Korawad Chearavanont, who is the grandson of Dhanin Chearavanont, senior chairman of Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group and one of Thailand&#8217;s wealthiest men. Korawad is the son of Supachai Chearavanont, the CEO of CP Group.
Prior to this round, Eko had raised $8.7 million from investors including Gobi Partners, 500 Startups and Japanese trading house Itochu Corporation. The last investment round concluded in October 2017 valued Eko at over $20 million.
Founded in 2012, Eko is a mobile-first collaboration and communications platform for businesses, providing users with easy-to-use functionality. It now has over one hundred people on its team across offices in Bangkok, London, Amsterdam, Berlin and New York.
Also Read:
<a style="color: #ff0000;" href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/thailand-eko-closes-2m-strategic-investment-led-by-itucho-80985/">Thailand: Eko closes $2m strategic investment led by Itucho</a>
<a style="color: #ff0000;" href="https://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/grab-gets-50m-from-kasikornbank-marks-entry-of-payments-biz-in-thailand-110742/">Grab secures $50m funding from KASIKORNBANK, marks entry of payments biz in Thailand</a>

Bangkok-based messaging platform for businesses Eko announced that it has raised a $20 million Series B round led by Indonesian venture capital firm SMDV.

Thai communication platform Eko snags $20m Series B funding led by SMDV

Bring stories like this into your inbox every day.

Sign up for our newsletter - The Daily Brief

Thai communication platform Eko snags $20m Series B funding led by SMDV

Start your deal-making journey now!

Bring stories like this into your inbox every day.

Sign up for our newsletter - The Daily Brief