Matrak raises AUD 2.9 million with China expansion in sight
Matrak, a Melbourne-based startup that focuses on streamlining supply chains for the construction sector, has raised AUD 2.9 million (USD 1.9 million) in a Series A funding round ahead of plans to establish a presence close to the industry’s manufacturing base in China.
This round was led by China-based G&M Capital with the support of Our Innovation Fund and former Aconex chairman Simon Yencken.
According to Business News Australia, the funds will be used to fortify Matrak’s balance sheet as the company is set to launch Matrak China, a collaboration with G&M Capital.
Runchise bags USD 1 million to expand footprint in Indonesia
Runchise, an Indonesia-based restaurant management and culinary franchise company, has bagged USD 1 million in a new funding round from existing investors East Ventures and Genesia Ventures. The company last raised funding via a seed round in 2022.
The company specializes in solutions for food and beverage businesses, including front-of-house operations, back office tasks, food delivery platform integrations, and customer engagement. Runchise also applies machine learning techniques to provide a daily sales prediction for each outlet.
With this new funding, Runchise is aiming to enhance its technology and solutions, invest in branding initiatives, and expand its footprint in Indonesia.
Earth VC joins YC-backed HyLight’s EUR 3.7 million round
Vietnam-based climate tech investor Earth Venture Capital has invested in Paris-based startup HyLight’s recent EUR 3.7 million (USD 3.9 million) funding round, alongside Y Combinator, Ring Capital, Kima Ventures, Collaborative Fund, and Tesla co-founder Marc Tarpenning.
Specializing in conducting aerial inspections for energy infrastructure, HyLight will use the capital to conduct its inaugural large-scale operations, expand partnerships, and recruit experts in various related fields. It will also allocate a portion of the proceeds to develop new versions of its airship drones, meeting aeronautical and industrial standards.
Singapore-based Galaxis secures USD 10 million
Galaxis, a Singapore-based blockchain startup, has secured USD 10 million from Chainlink, the Ethereum Name Service (ENS), and ENS co-founder Nick Johnson, according to Tech in Asia.
The startup is described as a “post-hype non-fungible token (NFT) utility platform.”
Primavera Venture Partners leads Optix’s pre-Series A round
Optix, a startup specializing in extended reality technology, has closed an oversubscribed pre-Series A funding round, raising USD 15 million.
The round was led by Primavera Venture Partners and saw participation from existing investors including Lanchi Ventures, which was the lead investor for Optix’s angel round.
Invest Inya Farmer reportedly raises AUD 2.8 million in Series A round
Invest Inya Farmer, a platform offering access to agriculture investment opportunities, has raised AUD 2.8 million (USD 1.8 million) in a Series A funding round from AgFunder Ventures and Investible, among other investors, according to regulatory filings accessed by Alternatives.pe.
Recent deals completed in China:
- Muyan Zhiyu, a new startup established by Zhang Yueguang, the former head of artificial intelligence photo generation app Miaoya Camera, has reportedly completed multiple rounds of funding in succession. Independent sources have confirmed to 36Kr that the startup has closed three rounds thus far, securing investments from Gaorong Ventures, Zhipu AI, Zoo Capital, Monolith, Future Capital, and BlueRun Ventures. Zhang is a former Alibaba executive and achieved notable success with Miaoya Camera in capturing the B2C market for AI products in China.
- Emposat, a commercial aerospace company, has secured close to RMB 500 million (USD 69.2 million) in Series B and C funding. An unnamed state-backed investor from Chongqing led the Series B round while Zhongshan Investment Holdings led the Series C round. CICC Capital as well as existing shareholders Essential Capital, Jundu Investment, Zero2IPO Capital, and Huge Capital, were among the participating investors. —DealStreetAsia
- Hengtong Submarine Power Cable, a wholly owned subsidiary of power and fiber optic cable maker Hengtong Optic-Electric, has snagged RMB 1.03 billion (USD 142.6 million) in a strategic funding round at a pre-money valuation of RMB 17.5 billion (USD 2.4 billion), according to DealStreetAsia. The investors include CCB Investment, the asset management arm of Bank of China, Hainan Zhongying Equity Investment Fund, and Changsha Jingkai Guofa Fund. The funding was noted to be part of the round that saw Guokai Manufacturing Transformation and Upgrading Fund inject RMB 1 billion (USD 138.5 million) in December 2023, pushing the firm’s post-money valuation to RMB 18.5 billion (USD 2.5 billion).
NSG BioLabs, SoftBank, Orange, and more led yesterday’s headlines:
- NSG BioLabs, a provider of coworking biotechnology laboratories and office space in Singapore, completed a USD 14.5 million funding round, which was jointly led by Celadon Partners and Temasek’s ClavystBio.
- SoftBank Group spearheaded the Series C funding round of British self-driving technology startup Wayve, leading a USD 1.05 billion investment in the company. SoftBank made this investment with support from various investors, including existing investor Microsoft and new investor Nvidia.
- Orange, a Japanese startup that has developed a manga localization tool, raised JPY 2.9 billion (USD 18.7 million) in a pre-Series A funding round. The investors for this round include Shogakukan, Globis Capital Partners, ANRI, SBI Investment, JIC Venture Growth Investments, Miyako Capital, Chiba Dojo Fund, Mizuho Capital, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, and GFR Fund.
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