Singapore, 7 January 2020 – Accelerating Asia, a startup accelerator and early stage venture capital fund headquartered in Singapore, has formally unveiled its second cohort. The ten startups that comprise Accelerating Asia’s second cohort hail from six countries including Australia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia and Singapore. They have already raised over S$2 million in funding ahead of the programme, employ close to 200 people and have an average monthly recurring revenue of over S$40,000.
As a partner of Enterprise Singapore’s Startup SG Accelerator programme, Accelerating Asia contributes to the growth of startups and the vibrancy of the innovation ecosystem in Singapore. Each startup will receive an additional S$100,000 in growth funding from Accelerating Asia’s venture arm, taking the second cohort’s combined funding to over S$3 million.
Craig Bristol Dixon, Co-Founder of Accelerating Asia said, “We are delighted to unveil the latest cohort of startups – companies who are already disrupting traditional industries such as agriculture, logistics and finance. This truly reflects the depth and maturity of entrepreneurs and the Southeast Asia ecosystem.“
In a first for Accelerating Asia, startups from Myanmar and Australia have joined its program. The inclusion of these startups diversifies Accelerating Asia’s investments into new markets, expanding its combined reach to nine countries. Accelerating Asia also saw an increase in startup maturity based on the number of startups already generating revenue. The new cohort also features female-led ventures – Romoni, Recyglo, Priyoshop and Joni.ai, with 40 percent of the Accelerating Asia portfolio now including startups with female co-founders.
“All the ventures coming into cohort 2 are catalysts for positive change, for example, Joni.ai is transforming education, delivering AI-powered platforms that are customising learning according to student needs,” Accelerating Asia Co-Founder Amra Naidoo said.
The number of startup investment deals done in Southeast Asia has almost doubled in the past year, according to a recent 2019 report by Cento Ventures. Early-stage investments below US$500,000 spiked in the first half of 2019 due in part to deals done by accelerators and incubators such as Accelerating Asia. The announcement of the second cohort brings the number of Accelerating Asia’s deals to 20 in the last six months, worth a total of S$2million.
“During recruitment, we had touchpoints with over 2,000 startups and selected ten from over 200 eligible applications,” Amra said. “Our recruitment and selection process allows us first-look access to emerging technologies and direct deal flow across the portfolio. Our last cohort had significant growth during the four months with Accelerating Asia – these startups raised over $3million, achieved 2.5x MRR growth and created 40 new jobs,” added Amra.
Ms Lim Seow Hui, Director of Startup Development at Enterprise Singapore, said, “Enterprise Singapore looks forward to a continued relationship with Accelerating Asia, an important partner in our network of Startup SG partners. Accelerating Asia will play a crucial role in supporting a diverse group of innovative entrepreneurs. These startups are well-placed to leverage the connections and knowledge of our Startup SG partners to identify and capture new opportunities brought about by the rapid economic growth in the region, as well as the increasing emphasis on sustainable development globally,” she said.
Accelerating Asia’s 2nd cohort of startups include:
● Hellotask is an app based platform that upskills domestic workers and connects them to employment opportunities as on-demand, verified maid services to households.
● iFarmer delivers innovative financing for agriculture and farming by enabling secure investing for individuals and institutions and ensures a return on investment by providing market access and support services for partner farmers.
● IZY.ai uses the latest mobile and machine learning technology to deliver concierge services that customises guest experience to elevate hotel stays, digitises hotel services and improves internal hotel productivity.
● Joni.ai is an AI-powered adaptive assessment platform that personalises education and helps students to make sense of their learning data.
● Moovby is a car rental marketplace or the Airbnb for Cars, where travellers can rent any car they want, whenever they want it, from a vibrant community of local owners.
● Nitex connects businesses to streamlined overseas production and standardised apparel sourcing for remote buyers by providing transparency and process optimisation.
● NumuWorld is an app that enables brands to reward customers who promote their business on social media. Numu offers brands flexible promotional opportunities tailored to social media activity as well as visibility over who and when someone posts.
● Priyoshop is an e-commerce platform enabling small town micro-entrepreneurs to sell a wide selection of authentic products to customers without having to invest in working capital stock and get access to affordable financing.
● Recyglo is a waste management platform that provides circular economy, zero waste management, traceability, monitoring and analytics and recycling solutions in ASEAN.
● Romoni is a one stop destination of beauty and lifestyle needs of women and a credit facilitation platform for micro and women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh.
The cohort’s Demo Day will take place in May 2020, contact Accelerating Asia to apply to attend the event. For more information on the program, visit https://acceleratingasia.com
