Led · Series A · May 2017

Soft Space, founded in 2012 and headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, offers Fasstap, a terminal‑less NFC touch payment service that enables NFC acceptance via a tablet or smartphone app. The company also provides mobile contactless payment solutions and white‑label e‑wallet products, serving over 30 global markets and more than 90 financial institutions and partners. Soft Space leverages patented mobile contactless payment expertise to enable card issuers and banks to expand digital payment adoption. In the announced partnership, Soft Space intends to strengthen its payment platform and increase its presence in Japan. The company plans to use the partnership and incoming funds to broaden adoption across public transport, hotels, restaurants and other retail segments. CEO Joel Tay says the deal will accelerate non‑contact payment promotion in Japan through collaboration with GMO Financial Gate. Soft Space builds white‑labeled mobile payment solutions for enterprise customers—primarily banks—covering point-of-sale and other parts of the payment process. The Kuala Lumpur–based startup is currently active in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Taiwan and works with large enterprise partners to customize deployments. It has 76 employees across three offices and recorded take‑home revenues of 27.8 million MYR (~$6.5M) over the last year, having reached break‑even. Soft Space closed a $5M Series A provided entirely by Japanese firm Transcosmos, which also brings strategic expansion support and ties to Japanese companies. With Transcosmos backing and existing partners such as Sumitomo Mitsui Card Corporation, Soft Space is assessing potential expansion into Japan and assisting Japanese firms to enter Southeast Asia. The company plans to pursue requisite financial licenses in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia to operate independently, and says its near‑term priority is scale and development rather than immediate profitability.

Led · Equity · Mar 2014

Luxola operates an online beauty-products marketplace and content platform, offering products via Luxola.com and editorial content on Lxedit.com. The company partners with more than 105 brands to stock its platform. Led by founder and CEO Alexis Horowitz-Burdick, Luxola focuses on expanding product selection and improving the customer experience through platform and mobile enhancements. The business raised $10M in funding to support growth initiatives. Management plans to use the proceeds to increase regional warehouse and operational capacity and broaden product assortment. The company targets continued regional expansion across Southeast Asia. Luxola operates an online beauty marketplace launched in September 2012 that sells cosmetics and beauty products from roughly 60 brands. The company ships to countries in Southeast Asia, including Singapore and Malaysia, and currently fulfills orders from a warehouse in Singapore. Average basket price on the site is about US$44. Luxola employs a staff of ten, split across engineering, creative/design, and marketing roles. The startup has hired Christine Ng, formerly of PopSugar and Sephora, as chief marketing officer. Management says the new funding will be used to continue regional expansion and set up warehouses to simplify fulfillment.