‍🎊 January

Silicon Box kicked off the year with a bang, becoming the first SEA unicorn of 2024 with a $200M Series B. The Singaporean chip designer and manufacturer got the coveted status in less than three years. Yes, they were founded in 2021! 

Meanwhile, The Parentinc also made big moves. The parenting app acquired Motherswork, a premium mother and baby retailer to expand their offline presence in SEA. 

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🛒 February

Hard launch of a new relationship?

In early February, GoTo’s Tokopedia and TikTok Shop Indonesia announced their union under the PT Tokopedia entity. They completed the integration around late March, and TikTok Shop Indonesia is now known as Shop Tokopedia. 

Philippines-based UnoAsia, parent firm to Uno Digital Bank, also raised a $32.1M Pre-Series B to bat for profitability. 

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🧃 March

F&B brands had a moment in March.

First, alternative meat startups Umami Bioworks and Shiok Meats announced their merger under the former’s brand. Then, Malaysian coffee startup Koppiku cashed in $2.5M. Healthy drink company Asia Beverages also raised a pre-seed. 

Basketball star Jeremy Lin took a shot in Indonesian edtech Binar Academy, which trains locals to develop their tech talent. InDrive also drove into the Philippine market with $150M.

Meanwhile, BackScoop published its first Scoop of Success newsletter this month, highlighting the inspiring origin story of Carsome — Malaysia’s first unicorn startup!

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🐟 April

In April, SEA startups reeled in more funding.

Philippines-based fintech Salmon caught a fresh funding of $25M in a Series A extension. They raised an additional $30M later in October. Shariah-compliant fintech Seedflex raised $$$ from 500 Global to help finance online MSME sellers. 

Oh, and Singaporean skincare brand Allies of Skin also raised $20M to scale in the US market! Talk about a hot girl summer. 

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🎨 May 

Let’s give it up for the creatives!

In May, Kasagi Labo raised a $12M Pre-Series A to build a global anime platform. They’ve previously collaborated with Netflix and Genco to release accessories based on the Pluto series.  

Oh, and speaking of animations, Lottiefiles also drew in strategic funding from design giants Figma and Webflow Ventures. The Malaysia and US-based platform offers a ready-to-use animation library for your presentations, social media posts, and more.

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💌 June

Another IPO in the works? 

Social commerce startup Evermos shared plans to IPO in the next two years, either in the US or Indonesia. The Indonesian startup previously raised a $39M Series C to capture markets in Tier 2 and 3 cities. 

Paywatch, a Malaysian earned-wage access startup also cashed in a $30M Pre-Series A to improve their offerings.

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Keep reading. Read the next part of our 2024 year-ender series here.