In other news, Communications platform for frontline staff Noticeboard gets US$1.2M in funding and Blockchain startup Everex gets US$500K in funding
SoftBank eyes multi-billion dollar investment in Uber
Japanese telecom conglomerate SoftBank Group has set its eyes on Uber, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
This development comes just a day after the company led a US$2 billion round in Uber’s competitor, Grab, with Chinese ride-hailing giant DiDi.
The report stated that SoftBank may take a multibillion dollar stake in the US company. No other pertinent details, such as a dateline for this deal, were stated.
SoftBank has been ramping up tech investments in recent years. In May, it made a whopping US$5 billion investment in DiDi. Later in the month, SoftBank announced it raised about US$93 billion for its tech-focussed Vision Fund.
Mobike rides in to Italy
Chinese bike-sharing giant Mobike has announced that it is riding into Italy, its second European stop after it launched in the UK last month.
Mobike said it will begin with rolling out bikes in the cities of Florence and Milan.
“Florence has made an irreversible choice towards sustainable mobility today – we are proud to be launching this innovative system as Italy’s first stationless bikeshare. Florence is a bike-friendly city; from now it will be even easier and faster to choose two wheels to move from one part of the city to another,” said Dario Nardella, Mayor of Florence, in an official press statement.
In June, Mobike raised over US$600 million in a Series E round led by long-time backer Tencent. This brings its war chest to over US$1 billion. Expect to see its armada of bikes move into other parts of the world soon.
India-based communications platform Noticeboard raises US$1.2 million
Noticeboard, a communications platform for frontline staff, has raised US$1.2 million Stellaris Venture Partners. A handful of angel investors, including Blackbuck founder Rajesh Yabaji and YuMe co-founder Jayant Kadambi, from Stellaris’ founder network also participated in the deal.
The India-based startup plans to use the funding to strengthen its technology, product and design teams. Noticeboard’s focus now is to make the platform more mobile-friendly.
Also Read: Captain’s Log, July 24: iflix launches original content, Singapore taxi company goes contactless
“At Noticeboard, we believe organisational communication has to be more inclusive. Noticeboard aims to empower frontline staff with real time communication and make them participants of the knowledge economy, much like email did for the desk workers,” said Vishal Gahlaut, CEO, Noticeboard, in an official press statement.
Blockchain startup Everex raises US$500K
Singapore-based blockchain startup Everex has raised US$500,000 from Chinese multinational manufacturing group Holley Group. This is Holley’s first investment in a Southeast Asian company.
Everex will use the cash injection to expand its presence in Thailand.
Founded in 2016, Everex offers blockchain-enabled digital cash transfer platform. It also offers a Crypto-asset wallet called Everex Wallet (used for remittance only).
It is currently trialling its product suite in Thailand. To date, more than 100 migrant workers in the country have used Everex to send money home to Myanmar.
“Ethereum, and blockchain technology generally, have the capacity to lower transaction costs, increase transparency and onboard diverse swathes of individuals who don’t have access to the financial services many of us take for granted,” said Everex CEO Alexi Lane.
Everex is currently running a token sale on its site, accepting payments in bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH). It aims to raise ETH 70,000.
Everex will face an uphill task in growing its pool of users. Blockchain technology is still alien to most adults — even in the developed world. So making it easy for migrant workers, who are typically not tech savvy, to adopt this solution will be quite a challenge.
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