Overseas:
1. Chat-service firm Slack taps Goldman Sachs to lead IPO
2. SoftBank’s Vision Fund inches closer to $100B
3. Uber makes confidential filing for long-awaited IPO
4. Facebook to buy back additional $9 billion of shares
5 Apple buys Platoon, a start-up that helps indie musicians get discovered
6. Australian watchdog wants a regulator for Google, Facebook
8. Google’s AI-focused venture arm led a $7 million investment in Cambridge, Mass.-based Wise Systems
9. Essential acquires email startup CloudMagic
11. Alphabet cybersecurity group Chronicle is expanding to Spain with a growing team of virus hunters
12. Payment service Toss becomes Korea’s newest unicorn after raising $80M
13. Digital pharmacy company Alto closed $50 million in Series C financing
China:
1. China says rejecting physical cash is illegal amid e-payments popularity
2. Tencent-backed fleet manager G7 racks up $320M in funding
3. China’s ByteDance to raise about US$1.45 billion for its venture fund
5. Taiwan-based travel startup AsiaYo raises $7M Series B led by Alibaba Taiwan Entrepreneurs Fund
6. Xiaomi opened their first store in Mexico.
7. Video technology company Right Paddle 右划科技 just closed B round.
Emerging Market:
1. Grab invested $100 million in Indian hotel-reservations startup OYO.
5. Philippines-based livestream mobile app Kumu raises US$1.2M seed funding
6. Thailand’s fleet intelligence solutions startup DRVR close to raising US$450K funding
7. Singapore-based Property agent comparison platform Propseller secures US$1M seed funding
Cover picture credits from Yahoo Finance.