Startups can speed up growth with aid from Accelerating Asia

Singapore

STARTUPS around Asia are set to springboard their businesses through Accelerating Asia's (AA) accelerator programme.

Accelerating Asia, an independent startup accelerator headquartered in Singapore, unveiled the first 10 firms participating in its accelerator programme, starting in October 2019.

The programme seeks to identify and speed up the development of seed-stage startups in Asia. Participating firms hail from countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia.

Funded by its pre-seed VC fund valued at US$5 million, participants will receive S$100,000 in funding, an office space in downtown Singapore, and other perks.

Prior to being accepted, startups attended a boot camp where they were introduced to the accelerator's team. Albert Christian Go, co-founder and senior vice-president at Philippines-based startup BeamandGo said Accelerating Asia connected to subject matter experts who could provide solutions to move the firm forward.

"We also appreciate the transparency during the one-to-one sessions and weekly standup. There's a lot of emphasis on sharing of ideas to better achieve our targets," added Mr Go.

For local startups Panalyt and TalentTribe, Accelerating Asia's programme helps speed up their business process by offering the firms access to potential clients within the relevant ecosystems they operate in. Panalyt is preparing to launch a seed round later this year.

Al-Farooque Shubho, founder and chief executive officer at Zantrik, a Bangladesh-based automotive service and resource platform that ensures a seamless maintenance experience for vehicles, said that Singapore's status as a financial hub attracted Zantrik to the programme.

"We looked over their (AA) previous track records and success stories, and we were easily convinced to join here, believing that they would be able to help us grow in the right direction," Mr Shubho explained.

Occurring in two stages, the programme kicks off in Oct 3 this year. Firms participate in a three-month programme period, followed by a one-month final period inclusive of a Startup Mastery Program in San Francisco and Silicon Valley.

In the final month, founders pitch their startups to an audience including investors, multinationals and other important players.

Amra Naidoo, co-founder and partnerships and operations director at Accelerating Asia, said that the accelerator's model ensures long-term sustainability of the programme.

"We are breaking the typical accelerator model that relies on one source of funding and the competing interests that can arise, better aligning our outcomes with the startups we work with and ensuring that our founders will always be our priority from day one," Ms Naidoo said.