Weekly Roundup: Asian tech news and startup deals

Here are the technology news, startup, and VC deals we tracked across the Asian region this week:

• Conversational automation startup Uniphore raised $400 million. The funding round was led by foreign fund NEA, March Capital, and other existing and new investors at a valuation of $2.5 billion. With this round, the Chennai-headquartered company has raised a total of $610 million to date.
• Business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce platform ElasticRun closed a $330 million funding round. The round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Goldman Sachs Asset Management. The funds will be used for expanding into rural areas in several states and acquiring over one million kirana shop customers.
• Mobile-first content platform Glance is raising $200 million in its Series D round from Reliance-owned Jio Platforms in a strategic deal that could value the company close to $2 billion. The investment will help the company bring the internet to lock screens, globally and launch in several key international markets outside of Asia such as the USA, Brazil, Mexico, and Russia. The company previously raised $145 million in a round led by Google in December 2021, at a valuation of over $1 billion.
• Merchant commerce platform Pine Labs raised $150 million in a funding round from Alpha Wave Global at a valuation of $5 billion.
• Southeast Asia’s largest digital financing platform for small and medium-sized enterprises, Funding Societies raised $144 million in an oversubscribed Series C+ equity round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, with participation from new investors like VNG Corporation, Rapyd Ventures, EDBI, Indies Capital, K3 Ventures and Ascend Vietnam.
• Chinese corporate spend platform Fenbeitong raised $140 million in a Series C+ round led by DST Global, with participation from Hillhouse, Ribbit, Stau, Glade Brook, Bit Rock, D1 Capital Partners, WhaleRock, and others.
• Indonesian online lender Akulaku raised $100 million from one of Thailand’s biggest lenders, Siam Commercial Bank Plc to expand its business in Southeast Asia. The capital raised is a follow-on from the $125 million funding co-led by Hong Kong multi-asset investment firm Silverhorn Group in 2021.
• Software-as-a-service (SaaS) company Lummo (BukuKas) raised $80 million in fresh funding with participation from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, after it raised $80 million in a funding round led by Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital India last month.
• Healthtech startup Goqii raised $50 million in a funding round led by Sumeru Ventures. The company offers services including a wearable fitness tracker, an app, a health store, real-time coaching, and insurance services. It will use the funds to expand in insurance, digital therapeutics, and international markets.
• Social commerce grocery startup DealShare raised $45 million from a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) as part of a $210 million round which it first announced on January 28, valuing the company at over $1.7 billion.
• Singapore-based refurbished electronics marketplace Reebelo raised $20 million in a Series A round led by Cathay Innovation and June Fund, with participation from FJ Labs, Naver affiliate KREAM, Moore Strategic Ventures, French Partners, and Gandel Invest.
• Insurtech startup Kenko Health raised $12 million as part of its Series A round, led by Sequoia Capital India, with existing investors Beenext, Orios, 9Unicorns, and Waveform participating in the funding round.
• Business to business (B2B) platform for agri-inputs Agrim raised $10 million in a funding round led by Kalaari Capital. The round also saw participation from existing investors Omnivore, India Quotient, and Accion Venture Labs. The startup plans to use this funding for talent acquisition, embedded fintech product development, and scaling up operations.
• Hong Kong-based events management platform EventX raised an additional $8 million for its Series B, bringing the total amount of funding for its Series B round to $18 million. Led by GL Ventures, the early-stage investment arm of Hillhouse Capital, the startup plans to spend the funding on potential acquisitions, product development, recruitment, and expansion in Asia, particularly Taiwan and Southeast Asia.
• Singapore-based Appboxo raised $7 million in Series A funding led by RTP Global to continue to allow developers to turn their apps into super apps.
• Microlending startup SmartCoin raised $7 million in a Series B funding round from new and existing investors including Lightbox.
• Battery recycling technology company Ace Green Recycling raised over $7 million in a funding round led by Circulate Capital, with participation from Climate Angels and other angel investors.
• Thailand-based SaaS-powered recruitment platform provider Manatal raised $5.1 million in a seed round led by Sequoia India's Surge.
• AI-powered enterprise software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform Actyv.ai raised $5 million in a funding round from Dubai-based 1Digi Investment management firm.
• Singapore-based mental wellness startup MindFi closed an oversubscribed $2 million seed round, with participation from returning investors M Venture Partners and Global Founders Capital.
• Employee welfare insurtech startup HealthySure raised $1.2 million in a funding round from Campus Fund, Inflection Point Venture, WeFounder Circle, Dexter Angels, and HEM Angels.

The Draft provides a weekly roundup of the most important tech news across key emerging markets in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. Follow the rest of our coverage @techloy on Twitter.