In today’s edition of News Capsule, an Indonesian fintech startup raised Series A and a cricket legend has invested in his first startup
Sourav Ganguly (middle) with Flickstree co-founders
Cashlez raises US$2 million Series A led by Mandiri Capital Indonesia
Indonesian fintech startup Cashlez announced today that it has raised a US$2 million Series A funding led by Mandiri Capital Indonesia (MCI), with participation from Gan Kapital and several undisclosed individuals.
Founded in 2015, Cashlez offers mobile points-of-sales (mPOS) system that allows users to pay using credit and debit cards through a Bluetooth-based card reader.
The startup plans to use the new funding to purchase new EDC machines from abroad, expand to more big cities in Indonesia, fund digital marketing efforts, and open a new representative office.
“Last year we were focussing on product development, but now we will focus on sales. The goal is to have more [merchants] using the Cashlez platform,” said Cashlez CEO and Co-Founder Teddy Setiawan told DailySocial.
Cashlez claimed to have worked with around 1,000 merchants across Java, Bali, Celebes, and Sumatra.
About 61 per cent of its users are in the retail and tourism sectors; it has processed IDR15 billion (US$1.1 million) of monthly transaction and aims to increas the number to IDR50 billion (US$3.7 million).
Flickstree raises US$464K seed funding round led by Venture Catalysts
Mumbai-based tech entertainment company Flickstree announced that it has raised INR30 million (US$464,000) led by Venture Catalysts, with participation from Anirban Aditya & Ankit Aditya (Aditya Group, Kolkata), Moksh Sports Ventures, and Indian cricket legend Sourav Ganguly.
Flickstree dubbed itself as a “personal video magazine.” It compiles free-to-watch online videos from social networks, media sites, and blogs, and then creates customised video feed for users.
In a press statement, Ganguly stated that the team will further develop their platform by creating features that enable work on product development by allowing users to “create multiples [of such] magazines”
The platform was launched in August 2016 by co-founders Saurabh Singh, Rahul Jain, and Nagender Sangra, who started the company in 2014.
Also Read: News Capsule: Jia Yueting demoted, Global Brain closes US$180M fund and ROBOTS!
Arcadier, Omise join forces to expand within the Southeast Asian market
Online marketplace creator Arcadier and white label payments solutions Omise announced on Tuesday that they have entered a strategic partnership that aims to expand Arcadier’s presence in Thailand, and thereafter the rest of Southeast Asian region and Japan.
Through the partnership, Arcadier users can use the Omise service to accept payments in Thailand and Southeast Asian markets.
The announcement came only a week after Omise announced that it has acquired dtac-owned payments service provider Paysbuy.
Y Ventures debuts trading on SGX’s Catalist, raises US$5.5M
Singapore e-commerce retailer and distributor Y Ventures has commenced trading on Singapore Exchange’s (SGX) growth board Catalist.
Opening at S$0.27 cents, the company’s initial public offering raised S$7.7 million (US$5.5 million), placing 35 million shares at S$0.22 each.
According to several media reports, the shares reached a record high of S$0.28 before landing at S$0.26 at 0925 hrs.
It was also among the top 20 most actively traded share with three million shares being traded.
“The success of our listing marks a key milestone for our Group. With our scalable business model and robust proprietary data analytics capabilities, we hope to capture promising e-commerce industry prospects and continue to enjoy growth upside,” said Y Ventures Group CEO and Executive Director Alex Low in an official statement.
Ant Financial refiles for US government approval for its MoneyGram deal
Alibaba Group’s Ant Financial has resubmitted its deal to acquire money transfer company MoneyGram for a review by the US government, according to a Reuters report.
The refiling was made after Ant Financial and MoneyGram was unable to secure clearance from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), making it the “latest and most high profile” transaction to be refiled this year.
The refiling will give the companies another 75 days to complete national security review and try to resolve potential issues. However, it does not imply that the government is rejecting the companies’ plea.
Ant Financial’s effort to acquire MoneyGram has been facing tough challenges as President Donald Trump’s administration has been taking hard stance against Chinese investment in local US companies.
It is also facing competition from Euronet.
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Image Credit: Flickstree
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Source: e27
