Integrating cashless payments options

• 500-backed Fave has received an undisclosed investment from Pine Labs, one of Asia’s leading digital payments company which achieved unicorn status earlier this year.
• Under the terms of the investment, Fave’s QR code will become interoperable and integrated with Pine Labs’ point of sale terminals across Southeast Asia.

• Fave’s merchant payment acceptance and loyalty cashback solutions will expand into both debit and credit cards platforms via Pine Labs payment terminals.
• Both companies have credible presence in the region. According to Business Standard, Pine Labs processes payments of US$30 billion per year and serves some 150,000 merchants across about 450,000 network points in Asia.
• To date, Fave is available across 35 cities in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia with over 30,000 merchants on its platform specialising in F&B, beauty & wellness, retail, services, fitness, travel.

Fresh funds

• 500-backed InvestaX, a licensed digital securities issuance, investments, and trading platform announced yesterday it has entered into a strategic partnership with LIFULL, the public listed Japanese company with decades of experience in proptech.
• InvestaX wrote on its blog, “LIFULL’s strategic investment into InvestaX paves the way for further growth of the Japanese real estate digital securities industry and access to the Japanese real estate market for foreign investors on the InvestaX platform.”

• LIFULL was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2006. First starting as a real estate listing portal, it has since grown to offer its services to over 60 different countries.
• The fresh funds will be channeled to invest in technologies to enhance a secondary exchange platform, smart contracts and to make key hires to drive the partnership and product pipeline, the announcement reads.
• “The timing of this partnership underscores the growing momentum and potential growth of digital securities as being accelerated by recent global challenges,” says InvestaX CEO and co-founder, Julian Kwan.

Sign up!

• 500 Startups has just launched Batch 2 of its Global Launch San Francisco program, with the goal of helping startups develop and execute a targeted strategy to test and validate the US market.

• They’re on the hunt for 25 Singapore-based startups who are in the seed to series A stages.
• Here’s what to expect from the program: Work with 500 to develop a customized go-to-market business plan and US-specific growth strategy, get access to our global pool of relevant and highly active mentors with solid US business experience, and network with startups from past batches, corporate partners, and key industry stakeholders.
• Applications are open now with a closing date of August 14, 2020. For more details and how to apply, click here.

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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