Online travel startup Traveloka has set up a new engineering facility in Bangalore, India, while conglomerate Salim Group has ventured into eSports through a JV with a German gaming firm.
Traveloka launches R&D facility in India
Indonesian online travel unicorn Traveloka has announced the opening of new R&D centre in Bangalore, India.
In an official release, Traveloka said its team in Bangalore will be working in the area of discovery/user engagement and other core capabilities.
The new R&D centre is the sixth international centre for Traveloka after Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and the Philippines. It is the unicorn’s second technology centre after the one in Singapore.
Traveloka said its Bangalore centre started its operations early this year and today has a team of 60+ engineers.
By setting up an engineering facility in India, Traveloka has followed the lead of fellow Indonesian unicorn Go-Jek, which set up its facility, also in Bangalore, back in 2016.
Traveloka is reportedly in talks to raise a $400-million round led by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC.
Salim Group inks JV with ESL for foray into eSports
Indonesian conglomerate Salim Group has set up a joint venture with German gaming company ESL in a move to dive into the eSports business.
According to a report by Nikkei Asia Review, Salim and ESL signed a strategic partnership in September to host eSports championships in Indonesia.
By tapping into eSports, Salim hopes to seize an opportunity in a market that has been growing rapidly in the region. According to Dutch research specialist Newzoo, Southeast Asia’s eSports community is estimated to grow at a 36 per cent CAGR between 2015 and 2019 to 19.8 million by the end of this year, making it the world’s fastest-growing population of esports enthusiasts.
This is the latest in a number of joint venture deals Salim has forged over the last few years. In the second half of 2018, Salim signed a joint venture agreement with Singapore’s Keppel Group to develop and operate a high-availability data centre in Bogor, about 35 km from Jakarta. Before that, it announced an e-commerce JV with Korea’s Lotte group, iLotte, with an investment of $100 million.
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