China-based e-commerce giant Alibaba Group discussed raising at least $1 billion for its Southeast Asian arm Lazada before calling off negotiations with potential investors when talks bogged down over Lazada’s valuation, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, quoting people familiar with the matter.
Group M Australia has become the latest country in the Group M network to launch Inca, an AI-powered influencer and content marketing platform designed to promote brand safety and return on investment. The platform was first rolled out for APAC in 2019, and launched in New Zealand in early 2021 and – with the addition of Australia – now spans across 30 countries.
Philippines’s fintech and online payments company PayMongo has secured US$31m in funding from their series B funding, which they aim to serve local SMEs more. Said investment round participants include Justin Mateen’s JAM Fund, Philippine VC firms ICCP-SBI Venture Partners and Lisa Gokongwei’s Kaya Founders, together with existing investors Global Founders Capital and SOMA Capital.
Customer intelligence platform Acxiom will collaborate with ActionIQ to deliver enhanced customer insights. ActionIQ’s CDP will integrate with Acxiom’s demographic, household, behavioral and preference data and with Acxiom’s RealID identity resolution solution. Acxiom experts will work with clients to customize and streamline ActionIQ.