Deals of the week: Trax attracts Softbank; Flash Coffee hot on Asia-Pacific

1. GIC-backed Trax secures US$640m in Series E round

Retail analytics firm Trax has raised US$640 million in a Series E round led by Softbank Vision Fund 2 and existing investor BlackRock Inc.

Trax specialises in cloud technology and artificial intelligence to help consumer-packaged goods companies and grocery retailers to digitalise their operations. Fresh funds will be used to scale its retail business as well as drive the next stages of growth and innovation.

2. Flash Coffee raises US$15m; plans 10 openings per week

Rocket Internet-backed coffee chain Flash Coffee has raised US$15 million in Series A funding led by global tech investment firm White Star Capital to expand the brand in 10 markets across the Asia-Pacific.

Launched in January 2020, Flash coffee operates 50 locations across Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. The company plans to increase its store launches from three to 10 per week in order to open 300 additional stores across the region by the end of this year.

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3. Deeptech startup Atomionics raises S$2.5m to develop quantum sensors

Deeptech startup Atomionics has raised S$2.5 million in seed funding led by Wavemaker Partners, in partnership with SGInnovate and Cap Vista. It aims to create a universal positioning system that works everywhere – underground, underwater, and even in space -- enabling navigation without GPS.

Fresh funds will be used to build the product and take it to market. Other investors include 500 Startups’ South-east Asia-focused 500 Durians fund and Entrepreneur First.

4. Glints raises US$22.5m in Series C round Talent-recruitment and career-development platform Glints has raised US$22.5 million in a Series C round led by Tokyo-listed human resources group Persol Holdings.

Existing investors that participated in the round include Monk's Hill Ventures and Wavemaker Partners. New funds will go into building more features and solutions on its full-stack talent platform, deepen the company's footprint in Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Taiwan, and expand its product and engineering teams.