Newsletter - July 2021
Carsome Becomes Malaysia’s First Tech Unicorn
Bloomberg covered Carsome’s share-swap deal with ASX-listed iCarAsia. Carsome founder Eric Cheng explained to CNBC Asia how the integrated used car e-marketplace positions itself as a “one-stop solution” and how it deals with competition in Southeast Asia.
FOLLOW-ON ROUNDS & OTHER NEWS
GOGOX
Hong Kong’s first unicorn closed US$100 M of fresh funding co-led by BOCOM International and Cyberport Hong Kong Macro Fund.
Prenetics
Nikkei Asia reported that Hong Kong tycoon’s Nasdaq-listed SPAC will buy COVID tester Prenetics, which has a 3-year partnership with Oxford University.
Speedhome
Malaysian PropTech startup Speedhome raised RM7 Million in a Series A funding roundbacked by Allianz Malaysia and Gobi Partners.
iStore iSend
In an extension of their Series B round, iStore iSend received funding from Japanese-listed company Yamato Holdings.
Favful
Malaysian digital media firm iMedia acquired Favful, a beauty influencer and e-commerce platform.
BEHIND THE DUNES
VirtAI Closed Multi-million US$ Series B Round
Founded in 2019, VirtAI is focused on building an efficient AI computing resource pool that helps customers improve how they use AI, reduce their total cost of ownership and optimize the efficiency of their algorithm engineers.
Tale of the (Used Car) Tape: Putting Carsome and Carro Head-to-Head
Carsome’s planned merger with iCarAsia makes it Malaysia’s first unicorn — just a month after its closest competitor, Singapore’s Carro passed the $1 billion mark.
A Beauty-ful Ride: How Favful Transformed Malaysia’s Beauty Industry
Right on the heels of an announcement by iMedia of their acquisition of Favful, Gobi Partners shared our thoughts on their ascent to become one of Malaysia’s most popular online social platforms.
GOBI EVENTS
- August 17-19: South China Morning Post’s Asia Sustainability Conference will highlight our colleagues and portfolio companies that are working towards a green recovery in Asia.
- August 26: Building the Gender Lens Investing Ecosystem in Southeast Asia is a virtual webinar that will feature gender lens investors and ecosystem builders from across the region.
- September 6: The Impact Kommons program wants to collaborate with companies working on solutions in Renewable Energy, Waste Management, Circular Economy, Wastewater Treatment, or Virus Mitigation.
- September 9: She Loves Tech Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia Pitch Days will narrow down the top 10 gender lens startup finalists. Find out who will make it to the global semi-finals where female founders from 50+ countries will pitch at the largest competition for women and technology!
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
This month, Gobi’s Greater Bay Area (GBA) office is promoting jobs for top startups Airwallex, Prenetics, WeLab, LYNK and GOGOX, so if you’re looking for a change of pace, check out July’s featured postings here and follow Gobi GBA for monthly updates on career opportunities.
And that’s all for now, folks! Check out further news and updates from us via LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook or stop by our website for more information.