BEENEXT plans to raise US$100m for new fund [DealStreetAsia]
Singaporean venture capital firm BEENEXT announces its plan to raise US$100 million for a new fund, and said that it’s gathered US$8 million for it from a US investor, as detailed in an SEC filing.
The emerging Asia fund will provide early-stage funding to technology startups and the firm’s operating partner Nao Ito had earlier told DealStreetAsia that BEENEXT will be on the look-out for companies operating in the healthcare and agriculture sector.
According to DealStreetAsia’s article, the fund, BEENEXT Emerging Asia LP, was launched in late October. The launch of the fund comes more than two years after BEENEXT, which is known for investing in early-stage startups across Southeast Asia, India, Japan, and the US, spun out of Singapore-based Gordian Capital, which was coincided with the VC’s US$75-million fund reaching its full investment stage.
The said fund had made over 80 investments in marketplaces, payments, fintech, and software-as-a-service startups. The VC’s website lists Zilingo, Ralali (Indonesia), Sendo (Vietnam), Cred and Faasos (both in India) among its portfolio companies, and a couple of its investments has exited, namely O2O commerce startup Kudo, acquired by Grab, and payments startup Midtrans, acquired by gojek.
BEENEXT was founded by Japanese entrepreneur Teruhide Sato, previously the chief executive of BEENOS who took it public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers market in 2004. At BEENEXT, Sato holds the position of managing partner, along with fellow Japanese investor Hironori Maeda.
Enterprise Singapore, IMDA launch one-stop innovation gateway Open Innovation Network [Press Release]
Enterprise Singapore and Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) have jointly announced the launch of the Open Innovation Network (OIN), innovation platforms to aggregate nationwide innovation challenges that call for tech solutions across diverse sectors in sustainable development, advanced manufacturing, and engineering, and more.
The OIN was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat at the Singapore Fintech Festival x Singapore Week of Innovation and TeCHnoloy (SFF x SWITCH). OIN is an online directory (www.openinnovationnetwork.sg) that will serve as a national gateway to feature open innovation challenges happening island-wide.
In line with the Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2020 plan and Singapore Digital (SG:D) movement, the OIN encourages industry growth and transformation through open innovation and digitalisation.
Edwin Chow, Assistant Chief Executive Officer (Innovation & Enterprise), Enterprise Singapore said, “Open innovation is an approach where larger companies first identify a market need and then taps external sources – typically SMEs and startups – for innovative solutions. SMEs and startups get the opportunity to develop new products with a validated market need. Working with larger, more established companies will also help them build a good track record.”
Chow continues, “ESG’s partnership with IMDA aims to build a more innovative culture amongst our enterprises, creating new and commercially-viable solutions for the global market. As a start, the Open Innovation Network will serve as the gateway for both problem owners and solution providers to plug into our ecosystem for partnerships. Eventually, we hope to scale this up to a regional platform.”
The OIN features various innovation platforms from corporates, government agencies, Trade Associations and Chambers (TACs), and ecosystem enablers calling for tech and digital solutions across diverse domains.
Solution providers including SMEs and startups with an innovative idea or technology can use the OIN to search for relevant problem statements to propose solutions to, and access co-development, test-bedding and market opportunities with major organisations. Corporates and agencies with pain points can also use the OIN to connect with partners within the ecosystem to embark on open innovation to discover new ideas and solutions.
IMDA first launched the Open Innovation Portal in 2018, a virtual crowd-sourcing platform to match business challenges with solution providers of technology expertise and innovation capabilities.
This latest OIP innovation call will have 35 challenge statements with over USS$1 million prize monies. Of these, at least 15 are sector-wide problem statements led by the Singapore Manufacturing Federation, Singapore Association of Convention & Exhibition Organisers & Suppliers and Investment Management Association of Singapore.
Enterprise Singapore is also launching an inaugural Sustainability Open Innovation Challenge, a cross-sectoral initiative in partnership with corporates and government agencies. The call aggregates 14 problem statements spanning sustainability themes including resource efficiency, zero waste, green transport, and sustainable built environment, which can be accessed through the OIN.
UNDP announces Cultiv@te, a Global Innovation Initiative for Sustainable Agriculture [Press Release]
Cultiv@te, a global technology, and innovation initiative for sustainable agriculture by Singapore government, was announced today at the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) and Singapore Week of Innovation and TeCHnology by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Chief Digital Officer Robert Opp alongside partners from the Government of Singapore and the private sector.
As the world will need to feed nine billion people in 2050 and meeting that demand will require an increase in food production levels by some 70 per cent, the effects of climate change put further strain on dwindling resources, increasing the vulnerability of resource-dependent agricultural sector.
With this regard, agriculture accounts for around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions and 68 per cent of global freshwater withdrawals and consumption. The goal of sustainable agriculture is to meet society’s present food demands without compromising future generations’ ability to meet their own needs.
Cultiv@te will curate multi-stakeholder coalitions to tackle key challenges faced by developing countries across the globe and explore opportunities in urban agriculture, climate resilience, and livestock farming. The programme offers mature growth-stage startups and R&D teams from academic institutions a unique opportunity to work in a number of emerging markets with immense potential and needs.
“We are joining forces with Singapore to help catalyze solutions that can transform agricultural practices in the face of increasing strains from climate change and increasing pressures on food supplies. To promote sustainability and climate-resilience, we will be leveraging the dynamism of Singapore and the reach of UNDP,” said Opp.
As a country that imports more than 90% of its food, Singapore is vulnerable to disruptions in the global food supply. Increasing local production is one of Singapore’s key food security strategies. “We have set a 30-by-30 goal, to locally produce 30% of Singapore’s needs by 2030. To meet this ambitious goal, Singapore will need to transform our agri-food sector to raise productivity, invest in innovation, and adopt sustainable technologies.
The new UNDP Global Centre for Technology, Innovation, and Sustainable Development is a partnership with the Government of Singapore, mandated to create and identify sustainability solutions for the developing world, focusing on sustainable finance, digitalisation and sustainable agriculture.
The global cohort will join local innovators, technology experts, corporate mentors, and financiers to co-design solutions with farmers and policymakers. Applications are now open here.
–
The post Today’s top tech news: BEENEXT reveals plan to raise US$100M in new fund, IMDA launches Open Innovation Network appeared first on e27.