Indonesian agritech startup Lokatani has secured pre-seed funding from AsiaPay Capital and Jakarta Ventura (Jakvent), while MENA-based payroll and employee data platform Cercli has collected $4 million in a seed round led by Silicon Valley-based Afore Capital.
Lokatani secures pre-seed funding
Lokatani, an Indonesian-based agritech startup specialising in hydroponic vegetables, has announced raising pre-seed funding from AsiaPay Capital and Jakarta Ventura (Jakvent). The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The fresh funds will be allocated to increasing production capacity, developing internet-based agricultural technology, expanding distribution networks, marketing & promotion, and human resource development.
Founded in 2019, Lokatani leverages IoT, inventory management systems, and hydroponic methods to produce premium vegetables. The company employs a demand-driven production strategy, fine-tuning its cultivation process to align with customer orders, thus increasing farmers’ production efficiency.
Lokatani’s main approach is its “schedule planting” system, which ensures a consistent supply in quality and quantity, supported by IoT technology for automated vegetable maintenance.
The company offers four products: Loka Fresh, an on-demand platform for selling high-quality hydroponic vegetables under the “Sayuran Pagi” brand; Loka Grow, empowering farmer communities through a co-farming scheme; Loka Tech, an IoT-integrated application that facilitates automated monitoring of agricultural processes and inventory management; and Hydro Estate, or services for constructing and maintaining hydroponic farms, including greenhouse operations.
AsiaPay Capital is the investment arm of AsiaPay Group, a Hong Kong-based digital payment services company, while Jakarta Ventura is a regional VC backed by Bahana Artha Ventura (BAV), a subsidiary of the state-controlled investment and insurance holding company PT Bahana Pembinaan Usaha Indonesia (Persero).
MENA payroll platform Cercli raises $4m
Cercli, a payroll and employee data platform catering to clients in the MENA region, has raised $4 million in a seed funding round led by Silicon Valley-based Afore Capital. The deal marks Afore Capital’s debut in the MENA region from its $150 million Fund III.
COTU Ventures, Y Combinator, Rebel Fund, and notable angel investors, also participated in the round.
The startup was founded in early 2024 by Akeed Azmi and Ravid Reche, former executives from unicorns Careem and Kitopi. It aims to address the $2 billion market opportunity for payroll management in MENA by targeting mid-market enterprises with two to 500 employees.
Cercli’s platform consolidates traditionally fragmented systems into a unified modern payroll and employee data solution, allowing businesses to manage local payroll, remote contractors, HR, onboarding, and more. The platform is tailored to comply with market-specific regulations and labour laws, with integrations across HR, Finance, Accounting, Legal, and IT software.
The company plans to use the latest funds to accelerate growth, expand its team, and further develop the platform’s capabilities in streamlining workforce management for businesses in the MENA region, said co-founder of Cercli David Reche in a statement reported by Edge Middle East.
