The spotlight is on bicycles, fashion, food, and financial literacy this month, with Laka expanding their unique insurtech solution across Europe, Inflow bringing ethical production to fast fashion, Retailo digitalizing retail in Saudi Arabia, and Vircle offering much-needed education on safe and responsible spending habits to more kids.

Missed last month’s highlights? Check it out here.

• Laka lands US$8M and acquires French insurance broker to bring ‘no upfront premium’ insurance to more cyclists in Europe
• Inflow raises US$2M to offer unmatched design-to-production capabilities and small-batch orders to fashion brands of all sizes
• Retailo receives US$1.5M investment from South Korean big data firm Dtonic Corporation
• Vircle raises seed funding to nurture safe and responsible financial habits among children across Southeast Asia
• Vishal Harnal shares on the state of VC in SE Asia, and LPs’ views as the region matures
• Khailee Ng on the sport of venture capital as a force for good, allowing founders to rebuild economies around the world
• SepPure tackles a silent polluter with a compact and economically-viable technology that reduces emissions and bills by 90%
• FarMart is solving the world’s food security issues by connecting farmers to customers; exporting food from Africa to India & more
• Aerodyne publishes inaugural Sustainability Commitment Report, sharing the ways drone intelligence is advancing humanity
• Homage partners SingLife to provide greater access and reduced service rates for home and nursing care in Singapore
• Pandorum Technologies advances to human trials for bio-engineered ‘liquid cornea’, Kuragenx, to cure corneal blindness
• ION Mobility and TVS Motors collaborate on new sports scooter for riders with the need for speed, performance, and sustainability
• Transcelestial partners Xaccel to bridge the digital divide with superfast Internet across North America
• TheNoor went from a chance encounter at a mosque to enriching the lives of Muslims around the world
• CrediLinq is helping small businesses and solopreneurs gain equitable hassle-free access to credit for growth capital
• Phasio’s command center empowers manufacturing SMEs to improve customer relationships
• Involve Asia’s fraud prevention system enables brands to pay only for marketing that works

Other stories you may have missed:

• Braintree Technologies is one of 3 winners in Malaysia’s Khazanah Impact Innovation Challenge 2023
• Sumsub boosts crypto fraud detection with Merkle Science’s wallet tracking
• Carsome appointed Miguel Fernandez as its new Group CFO, succeeding Juliet Zhu, who now serves as the company’s Group President
• iMotorbike partnered with Triumph Motorcycles Malaysia to enhance the accessibility and availability of Triumph motorcycles in the country and offer enthusiasts a seamless trade-in experience
• Involve Asia won Malaysia’s Affiliate Marketing Pioneer Awards at the Malaysia Digital Expo (MDX) 2023 Awards Night