SE Asia Deals Barometer Report: Startup funding nosedives to record low of $227m in April

Southeast Asian startups continued to see a subdued funding environment in April, as the total private capital raised during the month plunged to $227 million, the lowest this year and down 54% month on month, according to proprietary data collated by DealStreetAsia.

The funding decline was starker on a year-on-year basis, dropping by about 69% from April 2023, when startups secured approximately $750 million from 78 transactions. The data includes venture capital, private equity, debt and corporate deals.

The April 2024 figure was also the lowest in the last 12 months.

Funding in each month in 2024 has continued to fall significantly short of the psychologically important $1 billion mark (see chart below), with March posting the highest amount at just about $500 million.

The fall in fundraising came as April’s deal count also dropped to 56 — the lowest this year and 12% lower than March’s 63 transactions. The funding raised in 19 of these transactions was not disclosed.

In the first quarter of this year, deal volume in Southeast Asia recovered slightly, with at least 180 transactions, surpassing the previous quarter’s 164 deals. However, the total private capital raised plummeted to its lowest level in five years, according to the SE Asia Deal Review: Q1 2024 report.

The report added that the decline reflects the ongoing global liquidity crunch, which has mainly dampened late-stage funding.

The average deal size, based on the transactions with disclosed funding sizes, stood at $6.1 million in April 2024, down from $11.3 million in the previous month.

The latest fundraising data continues to highlight the cautious approach of big-ticket investors. Large cheques remained scarce, and in a sign that investors remain wary of loosening their purse strings, no mega deal – defined as a transaction worth $100 million or more – was registered in the month.

Carlo Chen-Delantar, partner at Gobi Partners and its Philippines-focused fund, Gobi-Core Philippine Fund, told DealStreetAsia that a shift has taken hold in the private markets since late 2022, with a slowdown in deal flow and a focus on profitability.

“For VCs, the era of easy money and boundless growth is under question. Instead, resilient founders and adaptable business models that cater to market needs will lead the next wave of growth,” he said.

Mature Southeast Asian markets such as Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia have demonstrated resilience. Meanwhile, the emerging markets of the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand are well-positioned for further growth, Chen-Delantar added.

Top deals in Southeast Asia in April 2024

Company Name	Headquarters	Amount Raised	Funding Stage	Lead Investor/s	Verticals
Berkeley Energy Commercial Industrial Solutions (BECIS)	Singapore	$50,000,000	Debt Financing	British International Investment, FMO	Renewable energy
Salmon	Philippines	$25,000,000	Series A	International Finance Corporation	Fintech lending
Ubit	Singapore	$20,000,000	Venture – Series Unknown		Wealthtech
Allies of Skin	Singapore	$20,000,000	Venture – Series Unknown	Meaningful Partners	Cosmetics
FlexM	Singapore	$12,500,000	Corporate Round	6G Digital Sweden	Fintech solutions

The biggest deal in April was the $50 million financing that Singapore-based BECIS, an energy-as-a-service (EaaS) provider, secured from British International Investment and FMO. BECIS offers services such as rooftop solar, bioenergy, and energy efficiency solutions.

In the second-largest deal of the month, Manila-based financial services company Salmon raised $25 million in a Series A1 funding round from International Finance Corporation, Northstar Group, and other investors.

So far this year, only one mega deal has been registered – the $100 million debt financing secured by Indonesian fintech company Akulaku from London-based HSBC in March.

In 2023, Southeast Asian startups had raised about $7.72 billion in funding from 716 equity deals, with Lazada alone raising $1.9 billion from parent Alibaba Group. There were also 41 debt deals that raised a combined $836 million during the year.

Singapore corners most funding

Singapore continued to be the destination of choice for investors in the region. Data compiled by DealStreetAsia showed that the city-state saw 30 transactions in April that collectively raised over $170.7 million. The performance marked a 23% decline in deal volume and a 19% drop in deal value from March.

The average deal size in Singapore, based on disclosed funding sizes, stood at $7.1 million, down from about $7.9 million a month ago.

Singapore’s largest deal in April was the $50 million financing that BECIS secured. Other top fundraisers were wealthtech firm Ubit and consumer product startup Allies of Skin, which raised $20 million each.

The Philippines took the second spot, as its startups raised $30.1 million from six deals. Besides Salmon, local consumer finance company BillEase was the other major fundraiser, raising $5 million from Saison International’s offshore lending arm.

Vietnamese startups signed eight deals to raise $10.3 million in funding in April. The country’s largest deal in the month was inked by edtech startup Prep, which secured $7 million in fresh equity funding.

In Indonesia, eight transactions raised a total of $6.1 million in funding, led by mobile cafe company Jago’s $6 million Series A round. Thailand saw three deals worth $7.9 million, while a single deal in Malaysia raised $2.1 million.

Fintech remains investors’ favourite

The financial technology (fintech) sector continued to attract the most funding in the region in April, with 18 deals bagging a combined $85.1 million, accounting for about 38% of the month’s total deal value.

In March, too, fintech was the top sector, attracting $262.4 million across 16 deals.

Philippines-based Salmon’s $25-million Series A+ funding was the top deal in the space. The company said the fresh funds will enable it to develop new products and lifestyle banking offerings.

Singaporean startup Ubit’s $20-million round was the second-largest fintech deal last month. The company intends to use the funds to develop its platform and consolidate its position in the Web3 trading platform domain.

Startups in the healthtech and healthcare sectors also saw notable activity during the month, raising $16.6 million from nine deals, while e-commerce saw five deals raise $6.2 million in total to take the third spot in deal volume.

Four greentech deals brought in $52 million during the month, led by BECIS’s $50 million debt financing.

Seed rounds continue to dominate

Early-stage deals, especially seed funding rounds, continued to dominate the regional startup funding landscape in April. The most deals – 20 – were signed at the seed stage as investors continued to place their bets on nascent startups.

The biggest seed round last month was inked by YieldNest, a Singapore-based company that provides a liquid restaking protocol. It raised $5.2 million to expand its operations and development efforts.

In addition to the 20 seed rounds, April saw five pre-seed and pre-Series A deals, six Series A, four corporate rounds, two debt deals, one Series C, and one private equity deal. Twelve transactions did not disclose funding stages.