Chinaccelerator Daily Digest 4/11/2019

Overseas:

1. Uber Aims for Public Valuation of as Much as $100 Billion

2. Amazon, Microsoft chosen to compete for Pentagon cloud computing contract worth estimated $10 billion

3. Japan’s Richest 2019: Rakuten’s Mikitani Bets $5.5 Billion To Shake Up Telecom Industry

4. Google launches new security tools for G Suite users

5. GoDaddy acquires Sellbrite to launch cross-marketplace tools

6. Amazon buys warehouse robotics startup Canvas Technology

7. Pearson is committing $50M to fund next-gen edtech startups

8. KeyMe raises $50 million for AI-powered kiosks that duplicate keys in seconds

9. Online used car startup Shift adds another $40M, snags COO in road to IPO

10. CleverTap lands $26M for its mobile-focused customer marketing service

11. Restaurant website builder BentoBox raises $16.4M in Series B funding

12. Streetwear marketplace Bump raises $7.5M in Series A funding

China:

1. China Mobile, CICT Open Country’s First Smart 5G Production Line

2. JD.com reportedly planning to lay off as many as 12,000 employees 

3. Bytedance gets $1.3 billion big bank loan from the Wall Street banks

4. Xiaomi reached 1.93 billion yuan and sold 703,000 AIoT smart equipment from its all-day sales event 米粉节

5. Kunlun Wanwei 昆仑万维 plans to invest $50 million in unmanned technology company Pony

6. Jingdong Digital Branch 京东数科 to take over the P2P platform

Cross-border:

1. Cathay Innovation and AfricInvest to raise $168M Africa VC fund

2. Southeast Asia’s Carousell snags $56M from Naspers-owned OLX

3. ShopBack, a cashback startup in Asia Pacific, raises $45M from Rakuten and others

4. US mobile marketing platform Clevertap bags $26m from Sequoia India, others

5. Sequoia Capital China backs $16m round for US-based biotech company Cullgen

Blockchain:

1. Coinbase launches a debit card in the UK to make it easier to pay with cryptocurrencies

2. Bittrex virtual currency license rejected by New York financial regulator

Mobile:

1. March mobile phone shipments to China fall 6 percent as economy slows

2. Foldable phones to remain a niche product by 2023 – market research firm Gartner

Emerging Market:

1. SME-targeted P2B lending platform based in Singapore Validus Capital enters Indonesia under the name Batumbu

2. AirTrunk banks $332 million financing for Singapore data center

3. Hong Kong’s supply chain compliance platform International Compliance Workshop (ICW) bags $2.5m from MindWorks

4. Indonesian job portal Ekrut raises pre-series A funding from Venturra Discovery, others

Cover picture credits to TechCrunch.