Singapore-based human resource software provider BrioHR has announced raising S$8.7 million (about $6.7 million) in a Series A funding round led by Southeast Asian venture capital firm Openspace Ventures.
The round, which was also backed by Taiwania Hive Ventures, will help fuel BrioHR’s expansion across Southeast Asia’s fragmented payroll and compliance market, per the announcement.
“This investment validates our vision of making HR seamless and accessible to every business in ASEAN,” said Benjamin Croc, CEO and co-founder of BrioHR.
The two‑year‑old startup serves more than 1,000 small and mid‑sized companies in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and elsewhere through a cloud platform that combines payroll, leave management, and employee engagement tools.
Croc said the fresh capital will bankroll artificial intelligence features and a hiring push in Singapore, where the government is promoting digitalisation under its Economy 2030 blueprint. It also plans to deepen local integrations to help businesses meet fast‑moving labour regulations.
Proptech startup Citics bags $2.1m funding
Citics, a Vietnamese real estate technology platform, has secured $2.1 million in a pre-Series A funding round to expand its digital platform, according to an announcement.
The round, which comes at a time when Vietnam’s startup ecosystem is facing significant headwinds, was backed by Thien Viet Securities (TVS) and Ai Vietn Ventures. Existing investors Vulpes Ventures and Vietnam Investments Group also participated.
The pre‑Series A round was led by TVS and Ai Viet Ventures, with follow‑on capital from existing backers Vulpes Ventures and Vietnam Investments Group.
Citics built Vietnam’s first automated valuation model, used by 32 banks to price collateral in seconds. That data backbone—covering 33 million properties across 38 provinces—supports Citics Mortgages, a marketplace that aggregates loan offers and now channels monthly disbursements exceeding 1 trillion dong ($39 million).
Chief executive officer Tran Minh Long said the fresh funds will bankroll artificial intelligence features and widen an agent network of more than 4,000 brokers.
SOUTHEAST ASIA DEAL MONITOR
DealStreetAsia has put together a table listing prominent venture capital transactions in Southeast Asia for fortnight starting May 5, 2024.
| Startup name | Headquarters | Investment Size | Investment Stage | Lead investor(s) | Other Investor(s) | Industry / Verticals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VFlowTech | Singapore | 20,500,000 | Undisclosed | Granite Asia | Antares Ventures, EDBI, MOL PLUS, PSA Ventures, Inci Holding, UntroD Capital, Pappas Capital, Wavemaker Partners, SEEDS Capital, Entrepreneur First. | Clean Energy |
| BrioHR | Singapore | $6,700,000 | Series A | Openspace Ventures | Taiwania Hive Ventures | HRtech |
| Citics | Vietnam | $2,100,000 | Undisclosed | TVS, AI Viet Ventures, Vulpes Ventures, Vietnam Investments Group | Proptech | |
| One% Nutition | Indonesia | Undisclosed | Pre-Seed | Init 6 | First Move | Health / Wellness |
| Krenovator | Malaysia | Undisclosed | Seed | Ignite Asia | HRTech | |
| Co-Axis | Singapore | $925,000 | Undiscloed | Richardson Family, Catalytic Capital for Climate Health | Marketplace | |
| Seedflex | Singapore | $3,200,000 | Seed | Z Venture Capital, Iterative | 500 Global | Fintech |
| Arysun | Indonesia | $575,000 | Pre-Seed | Wavemaker Impact | First Move Fund | Climate Tech |
