Malaysia-based shopping aggregator, iPrice has raised US$5 million in a round backed by Japan-based companies, Itochu Corporation and the KDDI Open Innovation Fund III.
KDDI Open Innovation Fund III, the venture capital fund of Japanese telecommunications operator, KDDI, was established in April 2018 and managed by Global Brain Corporation.
Background of iPrice
- iPrice was founded by David Chmelar and Heinrich Wendel in 2014.
- iPrice was set up to offer shoppers the widest selection of products and brands with comparison of product specifications, prices, and seller feedback.
- The online aggregator platform has online shoppers across 7 markets in Southeast Asia; Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Hong Kong.
- In 2020, the company raised US$10 million in funding and the funds were used to enhance the platform, thus increasing its visibility via search engines.
Key Highlights
- The fresh funds will be used to add consumer loan comparison to its services with the aim to tap into digital lending in the region as it is expected to hit US$92 billion in transaction value by 2025.
- Currently, its lending partners are Itochu's subsidiary, Payku, Home Credit, and Julo in Indonesia; Cashalo in the Philippines; SmartPay in Vietnam; Zip in Singapore (launching early 2022).
- The company has also launched Price Watch in Indonesia, a feature that alerts users regarding product price drop.
- The new feature will soon be available in Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines.
