East Ventures leads investment in Singapore-based Har Har Chicken
Har Har Chicken, a takeaway kiosk operator serving specialty menu items inspired by fermented prawn paste chicken, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding in a round led by East Ventures.
The company will use this funding primarily for supply chain optimization to ensure consistent product quality for its customers.
Har Har Chicken recently debuted at Junction 8, a heartland shopping mall in Singapore, and plans to expand locally with outlets at VivoCity and Ion Orchard. Regional expansion is also under consideration for the near future.
Wittaya Aqua reels in USD 2.8 million of seed funding
Wittaya Aqua, an aquaculture technology company, has secured USD 2.8 million in a seed funding round to support seafood farmers, feed mills, and ingredient suppliers as the industry responds to the United Nations’ call to boost global sustainable aquaculture production.
Wittaya Aqua operates a platform that consolidates data points across the seafood supply chain to drive greater profitability, sustainability and efficiency. In a statement, the company said that, in 2023, its platform “directly enabled” seafood amounting to over 1.64 billion meals and it is on track to enable 3.3 billion meals in 2024. It added that farms using the platform have saved up to 20% in feeding costs.
The funds will help Wittaya Aqua to further develop its feed-to-farm platform and expand its reach in the Asia Pacific region, where aquaculture is a major industry.
“In the face of climate change, uncertain market dynamics, and evolving supply chains, ensuring the sustainable provision of seafood requires every stakeholder to adapt. But there is still a critical need to harness and transform the deep knowledge they each own into actionable strategies—and Wittaya Aqua is built to respond to this,” said Evan Hall, co-founder and CEO of Wittaya Aqua.
Mon Protocol launches new venture with 500 Global
Mon Protocol, a publisher of Web3 IP and games, has launched a new venture, Mon Ventures, with 500 Global as the lead investor. The fund will invest in gaming and infrastructure-focused blockchain applications that are raising capital at seed and pre-token generation event (TGE) stages.
As a publisher, Mon Protocol works with platforms like Solana, Aptos, and Immutable, and is said to have onboarded a wide network of blockchain applications, games, and IPs including Aethir, Nyan Heroes, and Avalon.
In a statement, Giulio Xiloyannis, co-founder of Mon Protocol, said that the entity is “excited to be partnering with a leading multi-stage firm like 500 Global.”
Pexx raises USD 4.5 million in seed round
Pexx, a fintech startup specializing in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, has raised USD 4.5 million in seed funding to develop its stablecoin-to-fiat payment platform. The funding round was led by TNB Aura with participation from Antler and Emo Capital.
Pexx’s platform enables users holding stablecoins from Tether and Circle to transfer their assets directly to a bank account globally, enabling ease of transfer without intermediaries. The funding will bolster the company’s engineering and product teams and enhance its marketing and business development efforts, with an initial focus on Southeast Asia.
Recent deals completed in China:
- Jasung, a R&D company specializing in intelligent industrial rollers, maintenance systems for bulk material conveyors, and smart industrial motor applications, has secured a nine-figure RMB sum in a funding round jointly led by Richland Capital and NRL Capital, with additional investments from Zishi Capital and the State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC). The funds will be used for new product development and capacity building. —36Kr
- Xellar Biosystems, an artificial intelligence-enabled biotechnology company, has announced the completion of an angel extension round worth hundreds of millions of RMB. The round was led by TriApex, with participation from Zhengxuan Investment, Tiantu Capital, Legend Capital Management, and Yael Capital. Haoyue Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor. The funds will be used to further develop its “organ-on-chip” technology platform and promote its application in drug R&D. —36Kr
- Keber Technology, an intelligent manufacturing company, has raised a nine-figure RMB sum in its pre-IPO funding round. SAIC Motor-affiliated Shang Qi Capital participated as one of the investors. —DealStreetAsia
Lhoopa, JigSpace, Xiaohongshu, and more led yesterday’s headlines:
- Lhoopa, a prop tech company focused on affordable housing in emerging markets, raised USD 80 million. USD 20 million was secured in an equity funding round co-led by the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Wavemaker Partners, with participation from Pavilion Capital, 10X Group, Concentric Equity Partners (CEP), Mirath Investments, NataRock Partners Fund, Steve Melhuish, Black Kite Capital, Ron Hose, as well as existing investors Patamar Capital and Tekton Ventures. The remaining USD 60 million was raised in debt facilities from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and Lendable.
- JigSpace, a spatial computing demonstration platform, closed its latest funding round, raising an undisclosed sum. The round was led by Breakthrough Victoria, with participation from Investible (through its first early-stage fund and Club Investible Syndicate) as well as several unnamed global investors.
- Xiaohongshu, one of China’s fastest-growing social media platforms, attracted an investment from DST Global in a funding round that involved the sale of existing shares, valuing the company at USD 17 billion. HongShan, Hillhouse Investment, Boyu Capital, and CITIC Capital were among the other participants. The deal size was not disclosed.
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