Secai Marche raises fresh capital for Malaysia push
Secai Marche has raised an undisclosed amount of additional funding in a round co-led by NTT Docomo Ventures and Synexia Ventures, according to e27.
The Tokyo-headquartered startup operates a farm-to-table fresh food distribution platform across Southeast Asia, connecting producers directly with restaurants, retailers, and other buyers. The funding comes alongside a partnership with NTT Data to digitalize invoicing and payments for Malaysia’s hotel, restaurant, and catering businesses.
Secai Marche plans to integrate NTT Data’s payment and invoicing solutions into its marketplace, expanding its platform beyond procurement and logistics to include settlement and embedded finance. It is also exploring buy now, pay later services, supply chain finance, and microloans for farmers and small producers, using transaction and invoice data to support underwriting.
Separately, Welzo made an equity investment in Secai Marche and signed a memorandum of understanding with the company and its subsidiary, JAHT, to support agricultural expansion across Southeast Asia.
K25.ai raises USD 2 million from NewGenIVF
NewGenIVF Group has entered into an investment agreement with K25.ai, an Asia Pacific-focused live streaming and watch-to-predict platform.
Under the agreement, NewGenIVF will make an initial USD 2 million investment in K25.ai at a USD 100 million pre-money valuation. NewGenIVF also has the option to increase its investment to USD 10 million if exercised in full, subject to definitive agreements and closing conditions.
K25.ai combines artificial intelligence, live streaming content, creator communities, and prediction-based engagement for permitted APAC markets. Its platform is designed to support prediction events linked to sports, esports, entertainment, creator challenges, and other live content.
The companies will also enter into an exclusive APAC agency partnership covering Thailand, Singapore, Japan, and other permitted markets, excluding mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and restricted jurisdictions.
Lightrock and Trirec co-lead Stride’s Series B round
Vietnam-based Stride has raised USD 15 million in a Series B round co-led by Lightrock and Trirec via the Accelerate7 platform. Existing investors Clime Capital’s SEACEF II and UOB Venture Management’s Asia Impact Investment Fund II also participated.
Stride operates a distributed solar platform for households and micro, small, and medium enterprises. Its deferred payment model enables customers to install rooftop solar and battery systems with a modest upfront contribution and structured monthly payments.
The company will use the funds to scale its platform across Vietnam and into new markets, expand its verified engineering, procurement, and construction subcontractor network, strengthen its digital platform, and deepen its quality assurance framework.
Founded in 2021, Stride said it operates across Vietnam through more than 75 verified subcontractors.
Clouted raises USD 7 million in seed funding
Clouted has raised USD 7 million in a seed round led by Slow Ventures, with participation from Gold House Ventures, Weekend Fund, Line-Yahoo’s Z VC, Gondor Capital, Iterative, AppWorks, Surge by Peak XV Partners, and a16z Speedrun.
Clouted operates what it calls a “virality engine” for consumer and entertainment brands, using AI agents to plan, execute, and optimize campaigns across clipping, user-generated content, fan pages, influencer seeding, performance ads, and viral stunts.
The company will use the capital to expand its infrastructure, grow its creator network, and accelerate its expansion into gaming and streaming.
Primer raises USD 100 million in Series C round
Primer has raised USD 100 million in a Series C round led by Sofina, with participation from Peak XV Partners and existing investors including Balderton, Accel, Iconiq, Tencent, and Speedinvest.
Founded in 2020, Primer provides unified payments infrastructure for merchants, giving finance and payments teams visibility and control across processors, acquirers, fraud tools, and payment methods.
The company will use the funds to accelerate investment in AI capabilities for payments and finance teams, including the expansion of Primer Companion, its proprietary AI agent. Primer also plans to deepen its US expansion, where it aims to grow revenue to more than one-third of total revenue by 2028 and hire up to 50 employees.
Primer has raised USD 170 million to date.
Variational raises about USD 50 million
Variational has raised about USD 50 million in a Series A round led by Dragonfly, with support from Bain Capital Crypto, Coinbase Ventures, and other strategic investors.
The company operates a peer-to-peer trading protocol for perpetuals and generalized derivatives. Its platform powers Omni, a trading platform that aggregates liquidity from on-chain and traditional markets.
The funding coincides with the launch of Variational’s first real-world asset markets, beginning with commodities such as gold, silver, copper, and WTI crude. The company plans to use the capital to expand its real-world asset market listings, deepen liquidity through additional partnerships, and release a trading API.
Recent deals completed in China:
- HeyGears, a 3D printing company, has raised more than RMB 300 million (USD 44.1 million) in a Series C round. Legend Capital Management and Fortune Capital co-led the round, with participation from Gopher Asset Management and CAS Investment Management. It will use the funds for photopolymerization technology R&D, global supply chain development, talent acquisition, and the launch of next-generation products. —36Kr
- Link-Touch, a six-axis force sensor company, has secured a nine-figure RMB sum in a Series C++ round co-led by SAIC Financial Holdings and Shang Qi Capital. China Fortune-Tech Capital, Charoen Pokphand Robot, and Houwei Capital also participated. The funds will be used for product R&D, digitalized production, and international expansion. —36Kr
- EBKernel, an embodied intelligence company, has raised a nine-figure RMB sum in a new round led by industrial investors, alongside undisclosed funds and existing shareholders. It will use the funds for technology R&D, team expansion, and market development. —36Kr
- OmniDimension, an embodied intelligence chip developer, has raised RMB several hundred million in a seed round jointly led by Zhongguancun Development Group and Qihang Investment Management. Shanghai Engine Fund, Stony Creek Capital, Biwin Storage Technology, Yanchuang Group, Haiyi Equity Investment, and Tanyuan Venture Capital also joined the round. —36Kr
- AutoAgents.ai, an agentic AI startup, has completed a pre-Series A round. New investors include Fanchuang Capital, Zhongguancun Development Group, and Tanyuan Venture Capital, while an Orient Securities subsidiary and KylinHall Partners returned as existing backers. The funds will go toward procuring compute, expanding the team, and developing and operating its product ecosystem. —36Kr
FusionAP, Melazyme, TME, and others made recent headlines:
- FusionAP, a Malaysia-based semiconductor packaging company, raised USD 2 million in a pre-seed round co-led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India and Southern Capital Group.
- Melazyme, a precision fermentation company, raised USD 2 million in a seed round led by Thailand-based SeaX Ventures, with participation from Stellaris Venture Partners and Plug and Play Ventures.
- Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) completed its acquisition of Ximalaya on May 18, making the online audio platform a wholly owned subsidiary.
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