Banking on the business

• Strategic investments by the VC arms of two major banks in Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) and Bank Mandiri, have been made in 500-backed Bukalapak. These investments are part of an earlier announced US$234 million funding round led by Microsoft.
• Both firms are looking to support the 13.5 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) currently operating within the startup’s ecosystem.
• Under this deal, Bank BRI will be able to offer its digital banking and lending products to merchants and customers on Bukalapak.
• Read the full article on KrAsia here.

Sporting a new deal

• 500-backed online tournament platform Esports Player League (ESPL) has announced a partnership with record label Warner Music Asia. According to Esports Insider, this is Warner Music Asia’s entrance into the esports industry.
• This deal makes Warner Music Asia the platform’s exclusive music partner. ESPL will also be able to embed music owned by the record label into its platform.
• Michael Broda, CEO and co-founder of ESPL, commented, “Esports is the fastest growing industry in the digital age of entertainment. Warner Music has been active in the ever-changing landscape of today’s world and so this strategic partnership will bring a value proposition to both players and brands across our global network that we are confident will elevate amateur esports to another level.”
• Read the full article on Esports Insider here.

Fighting fraudsters

• 500-backed e-commerce marketplace Carousell Group announced it is celebrating an all-time low of 0.026% fraud rate in Q4 2020.
• According to the startup, it will continue doubling down on its efforts to support the company’s growth in Southeast Asia.
• In the coming year, its engineering team will focus on the development of tools to combat fraud and support content moderation, innovating adtech solutions for a recently formed Carousell Media Group, and developing new customer acquisition and search engine optimization (SEO) solutions.
• Read the full announcement on Carousell here.

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500 Startups is a venture capital firm on a mission to discover and back the world’s most talented entrepreneurs, help them create successful companies at scale, and build thriving global ecosystems. In Southeast Asia, 500 Startups invests through the pioneering 500 Southeast Asia family of funds. The 500 Southeast Asia funds have backed over 240 companies across multiple sectors from internet to consumer to deep technology. It continues to connect founders with capital, expertise and powerful regional and global networks to help them succeed.

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