CDP Institute

The partnership between M2M Connectivity and US-based Blue Sky Network will focus on improving connectivity for agricultural, transport, mining, and utility companies. Blue Sky network is a leader in the development of satellite tracking systems and two-way communication for remote land, air and sea applications, and this solution with M2M will use omnidirectional antennas making it easier to deploy for both fixed and mobile IoT devices. It will support mid-band IP data applications to offer an affordable alternative to  users needing IP, but not the throughput speeds of higher-cost offerings.

Respond.io, a Malaysia-based social-to-conversational commerce software as a service (SaaS) platform, has closed $7 million in Series A funding. Respond.io has grown its revenue 25 times since the previous round and will use the funding to continue its push into large enterprises by extending its extensive suite of integration capabilities, expanding from its home in Asia to build a presence in the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.

Singapore-based Sea Ltd. is preparing to fire 3% of Shopee employees in Indonesia, part of a broader wave of regional job cuts intended to curb ballooning losses and win back investors. The 3% cut in Indonesia aligns with layoffs of a low-single-digit percentage across the division.

Leoparda Electric, a São Paolo–based startup, is working to build out a network of battery swapping stations that should help spread adoption of electric two-wheelers in the region. While Leoparda’s core business is battery swapping, the startup aims to do something similar by putting together a subscription package that includes an electric motorcycle or seated scooter, unlimited battery swaps, maintenance and insurance. Leoparda will first open its battery swapping locations in geographically concentrated zones where most couriers operate.

Hivestack, the world’s leading independent programmatic digital out of home (DOOH) ad tech company announced the expansion of its LATAM business with the launch of operations across Brazil. Now for the first time, brands, agencies, omnichannel demand-side platforms (DSPs), and media owners – both in the country and globally – can access the Hivestack platform and suite of solutions to plan, activate, measure, and drive revenue from programmatic DOOH campaigns in Brazil.

Secondary Securities Trading and Aggregation eXchange (SecondSTAX), a Ghanian Fintech startup which will allow broker-dealers, asset managers, pension funds, and institutional investors to access markets outside their own country, is announcing its launch to the public today. To bolster its efforts, it has also raised $1.6 million in pre-seed funding from private investors and venture capital firms, including LoftyInc Capital and STEMeIn.

Nigerian startup Remedial Health, which develops solutions to make Africa’s pharmaceutical value chain more efficient, has raised US$4.4 million in seed funding to accelerate its expansion across Nigeria and to provide access to credit for inventory purchases for its growing customer base of neighborhood pharmacies.

Janngo Capital has announced the first close of its second fund at EUR34 million (US$36 million) and is targeting a further EUR26 million (US$26 million) to bolster its ability to invest in innovative African tech startups.