Ola’s next play is on-demand food delivery. Photo credit: Ola
There were big deals for three of the region’s major ride-hailing firms today, each targeted at expansion into new territories or new verticals. Find out more here.
Transportation
Ola buys Foodpanda business (India). The ride-hailing company has acquired Foodpanda India from Delivery Hero as part of a diversification push into on-demand food delivery. Germany’s Delivery Hero, which acquired the unit when it purchased the global FoodPanda business from Rocket Internet last year, will obtain an undisclosed stake in Ola in return. (Reuters)
Grab launches in Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Grab’s fixed fare service is now available in the Khmer capital, where it will compete against the service launched by Uber in September. The firm has also signed collaboration agreements with Cambodian payments company Wing Money and the government’s transport and public works department. (Tech in Asia)
Didi wants cross-strait relations (Taiwan). Mainland China’s ride-hailing unicorn has signed up Taiwan’s LEDI Technology as a franchisee and has been recruiting local taxi drivers through its Facebook page as it plans expansion to the island. Apart from a few trials and limited offerings overseas, Didi has remained largely focused on serving its home market. (Bloomberg)
Ecommerce
Ezbuy ends Taobao Buy-For-Me service (Singapore). The end of the service – which allowed Singaporeans to purchase goods directly from China-based ecommerce sites – came after it claimed Alibaba-owned Taobao had inexplicably suspended its accounts. Ezbuy’s Buy-For-Me services for other CHinese sites such as JD and Mogujie, as well as for Japanese, Korean, and US sites, are still available. (The Straits Times)
Property and real estate
A bag of WeWork snacks in the company’s Singapore Beach Center venue. Photo credit: Tech in Asia
UrWork and WeWork settle trademark dispute (Asia-Pacific). The shared workspace providers have reached “an amicable solution” to their legal clash, which saw US company WeWork accuse China’s UrWork of infringing its trademark rights. UrWork has withdrawn trademark applications and will drop the UrWork name and branding for operations outside of its native China, using its Chinese name You Ke Gong Chang (优客工厂) instead. (Technode)
Education
Springboard raises US$9.5 million (India/US). Costanoa Ventures led the series A round, with Learn Capital and Appdynamics founder Jyoti Bansal joining in alongside existing investors Blue Fog Capital, Moneta Ventures, and Rocketship. Online course provider Springboard – which has headquarters in Bangalore and San Francisco – said it will use the funds to expand its product offerings, with a focus on the Indian market. (Springboard)
Data analytics
Peel-Works secures series B funding (India). The big data and software-as-a-service startup will use the capital for product development, hires, and geographical expansion. Unilever Ventures – the VC arm of European consumer goods giant Unilever – led the round with its first-ever investment in an Indian startup. Previous backers Inventus Capital Partners and IDG Ventures also participated. (Unilever)
Media and entertainment
US$1.55 million seed capital for 9stacks (India). The online gaming startup received the funding from several angel investors. It will use the money to enhance its tech platform and build its customer base, with an emphasis on online poker. (Inc42)
Fintech
Photo credit: dimarik16 / 123RF
Crypto exchange Youbit files for bankruptcy (South Korea). The cryptocurrency exchange has shut down and filed for bankruptcy after it was hacked for the second time this year, suffering a loss worth 17 percent of its total assets. In the earlier breach in April, nearly 4,000 bitcoins were stolen in a cyber attack that South Korean authorities linked to North Korea. (Reuters)
Taxman goes after 500,000 cryptocurrency traders (India). The Bangalore arm of the country’s Income Tax Department is sending notices to around 500,000 digital token buyers to inform them that they are liable to pay tax on their cryptocurrency holdings. The action comes after tax officials carried out an extensive survey of India’s crypto exchanges and their users in recent weeks over tax evasion concerns. (Inc42)
See: Previous Asia tech news roundups
This post Asia tech news roundup – Dec 19 appeared first on Tech in Asia.
from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/apac-news-19-12-2017
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