Start Singapore: MakanLuar's Choped for 7-figure sum

Guillaume Martin

MakanLuar's Choped for 7-figure sum

Singapore restaurant reservation start-up Chope has acquired its Indonesian equivalent MakanLuar for a seven-figure sum.

The acquisition allows Chope users to make reservations in about 120 restaurants in Jakarta, Bandung and Bali.

It comes just eight months after Chope raised $11 million in a funding round led by Singapore-based venture capital firm NSI Ventures.

MakanLuar is Chope's second acquisition. It bought Appic Technologies, which developed queuing technologies, in 2014.


Book short-term office space online

Mobile professionals and start-up founders can use a new digital platform to find a variety of short-term work and meeting spaces here.

Called FlySpaces, the Singapore-based start-up aggregates co-working spaces, meeting rooms, event spaces and fixed offices so users can choose the most suitable place.

Co-founder Guillaume Martin (photo), said: "We've a variety of short-term work space. It can be vacant offices, unused desks at co-working spaces or unbooked event venues."

Users go to its platform to find and reserve the work space they want. FlySpaces takes a commission from each rental.

Since it started six months ago, the firm has served 150 clients and generated US$136,000 (S$184,000) in revenue. It has operations in Manila and Cebu.


Talk by serial entrepreneur

Serial entrepreneur Ong Peng Tsin has founded or co-founded three tech start-ups - dating site match.com, content management portal Interwoven and enterprise identity management software firm Encentuate. The start-ups were later acquired and are part of large companies like Hewlett-Packard and IBM.

Mr Ong is now a venture capitalist leading his own firm, Monk's Hill Ventures, which invests in tech start-ups targeting the South-east Asian market.

Entrepreneurs, business executives and others who want to hear about his experiences can attend his talk on April 20 at Impact Hub in Prinsep Street.

Grace Chng

• Send start-up news and developments to chngkeg@sph.com.sg

• For more information go to www.startupgrind.com/singapore/

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 07, 2016, with the headline Start Singapore: MakanLuar's Choped for 7-figure sum. Subscribe