A close look at Singapore's thriving startup ecosystem

Singapore is home to fewer than six million people, making it one of the smallest ASEAN countries, in terms of population. It is a young country as well — having gained independence in 1963 — and resides in a neighborhood with far larger economies, including China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. When

FreshBooks reaches $1B+ valuation with $130.75M for its SMB-focused accounting platform

FreshBooks, a Toronto-based cloud accounting software company focused on SMBs, announced today it has secured $80.75 million in a Series E round of funding, as well as $50 million in debt financing. Existing backer Accomplice led the equity financing, which the company described as “an inside

The Station: An ADAS business bidding war, the gig worker fight heats up and Biden’s executive order

The Station is a weekly newsletter dedicated to all things transportation. Sign up here — just click The Station — to receive it every weekend in your inbox. Hello readers: Welcome to The Station, your central hub for all past, present and future means of moving people and packages from Point

Venture capital probably isn't dead

Venture capitalists are chatting this week about a recent piece from The Information titled “The End of Venture Capital as We Know It.” As with nearly everything you read, the article in question is a bit more nuanced than its headline. Its author, Sam Lessin, makes some pretty good points. But

Stage 2 Capital launches $80M Fund II targeting B2B software startups

Boston go-to-market venture capital firm Stage 2 Capital kicks off its second fund with plans to invest $80 million into B2B software companies. The firm's approach combines venture capital expertise with a diverse community of over 250 limited partners and go-to-market experts who work with po

Best Buy investing millions in Brown Venture Group, a firm exclusively backing BIPOC founders

Last summer, in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, Best Buy committed to “do better” when it came to supporting communities of color. As part of the retail giant's self-proclaimed mission to better address underrepresentation and technology inequities, the company announced today that

Venture capital undermines human rights

The future of technology is determined by a handful of venture capitalists. The world's 10 leading venture capital firms have, together, invested over $150 billion in technology startups. The venture capitalists who run these firms decide which startups today will develop the new platforms and

Human Interest raises $200M at a $1B valuation, plans for an IPO

Less than six months after raising $55 million in a Series C round of funding, SMB 401(k) provider Human Interest today announced it has raised $200 million in a round that propels it to unicorn status. The Rise Fund, TPG's global impact investing platform, led the round and was joined by SoftB

Baleon Capital closes first fund to provide capital infusion to healthcare startups

Baleon Capital, a one-year-old venture capital firm started by investment veteran Jon Kaiden, closed its first fund to invest in pre-Series A and Series A companies focused on health and medical care in the United States. Before starting the Miami-based firm, Kaiden was a founding member and princi

Extra Crunch roundup: Square buys Afterpay, paid search basics, career advice for devs

Square paid around a quarter of its present-day value for Afterpay, Alex Wilhelm notes in The Exchange. That seems like a lot. But was it too much? “Afterpay brings global revenues, global users and a more diverse merchant network to Square,” Alex notes. “It would have had to spend to derive

Element Ventures pulls in $130M to double-down on the fintech enterprise trend

With the rise of Open Banking, PSD2 Regulation, insurtech and the whole, general fintech boom, tech investors have realized there is an increasing place for dedicated funds which double down on this ongoing movement. When you look at the rise of banking-as-a-service offerings, payments platforms, i

BoxGroup closes on $255M across two funds to back startups at their earliest stages

BoxGroup has quietly, yet diligently, been funding companies at the early stage for over a decade. The 11-year-old firm in fact was the first investor in Plaid, a fintech company that nearly got sold to Visa last year for billions of dollars. It has seen a number of impressive exits over the years,

Chilean fintech Xepelin secures $230M in debt and equity from Kaszek, high-profile angels

Chilean startup Xepelin, which has created a financial services platform for SMEs in Latin America, has secured $30 million in equity and $200 million in credit facilities. LatAm venture fund Kaszek Ventures led the equity portion of the financing, which also included participation from partners of

European Investment Fund puts $30M in Fabric Ventures’ new $130M digital assets fund

Despite their rich engineering talent, blockchain entrepreneurs in the EU often struggle to find backing due to the dearth of large funds and investment expertise in the space. But a big move takes place at an EU level today as the European Investment Fund makes a significant investment into a bloc