Report card on S'pore start-ups
Singapore can strengthen its position as an Asean start-up hub if the Government moves from funding new firms to using the technologies they develop, said Mr James Giancotti, co-founder of research firm Oddup.
He said local firms could get a boost if the Government uses their technology, as it would provide them with a useful track record when they expand.
Helping these firms list on the share market would create liquidity for venture capital firms and investors. Otherwise it would take too long to get a return on investment, he added.
A new Oddup report on the local start-up ecosystem said these were two areas where Singapore should improve if it aims to entrench itself as the region's hub for new firms.
Oddup's report ranked Singapore at 60.5 out of 100 points on factors like start-up valuation, investor returns, competitive advantage and availability of talent.
The research firm also identified eight local start-ups as among the best in Asia. They include car rental site iCarsClub, film portal Viddsee, human resource service Glints, real estate firm 99.co and e-commerce player RedMart.
One-stop guide and site for sale of used phones
If you have a used phone to sell, try local e-commerce website Andios (andios.sg). Since it ran a pilot programme last November, it has attracted around 3,000 members with sales of about 1,000 phones worth over $500,000.
Chief executive Ben Tan said that with 100 million smartphones sold in Southeast-Asia annually, it also means that there are many people with used phones but few know how to offload them.
Andios offers a one-stop guide where people can get a price estimate on used phones. It also offers a data wipe of content before a phone is sold and certifies it is in working condition.
Audience data start-up Eyeota raises $9.8m
Singapore start-up Eyeota has raised US$7 million (S$9.8 million) from investors, bringing the total investment in the start-up to US$10 million. Eyeota, which provides audience data to marketers, will use the funds to hire new people, including more developers and engineers, and expand overseas.
Founded in 2010, it has 1.5 billion profiles gathered from publishers in the Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas.
Ex-Tata Group chief pours funds into Teabox
Indian mogul Ratan Tata, former chief of Tata Group, has invested an undisclosed sum in local start-up Teabox to fuel the firm's global expansion. Teabox aims to disrupt the US$40 billion (S$56 billion) tea industry by bringing the freshest tea to market.
It sources tea leaves directly from over 200 growers in India and Nepal.
Since its founding in 2012, it has delivered the equivalent of 30 million cups of tea.
Grace Chng
•Send news on start-up developments to chngkeg@sph.com.sg
