Also in the news is InnoVen’s Q2 achievement of closing deals worth US$26 million across different sectors including online travel, logistics and SaaS

SparkLabs launches US$100M VC and cryptocurrency fund

Global venture capital and accelerator network, SparkLabs Global Ventures, has launched SparkChain Capital, a new US$100 million cryptocurrency fund.

While the majority of the capital will be used to make equity investments in promising startups in the blockchain space, a portion will be used to buy cryptocurrency, including digital tokens issued by companies as part of their initial coin offerings (ICOs).

In August this year, SparkLabs launched a US$50 million fund called SparkLab Ventures

Chinese e-commerce firm Meituan-Dianping raises US$4B

Meituan-Dianping, a service-focused e-commerce platform in China, has raised US$4 billion in Series C financing round, led by Tencent. The Priceline Group, Sequoia Capital, GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Trustbridge Partners, Coatue Management, IDG Capital, Tiger Global Management, and China-UAE Investment Cooperation Fund, also participated.

With this funding, Meituan-Dianping will further strengthen its four business groups: In-Store Dining, Lifestyle & Entertainment, On-Demand Delivery, and Travel & Leisure.

Meituan-Dianping is a one-stop services platform dedicated to meeting consumers’ evolving needs and empower merchants and brands through online and offline integration. Using innovative technology, the firm connects more than 280 million annual active buying consumers with more than five million annual active local merchants across China.

InnoVen India closes deals worth US$26M in Q2FY18

InnoVen Capital, a venture debt and specialty lending business, recently released its quarterly performance report for Q2FY18.

In the last quarter, InnoVen closed deals worth US$26 million across different sectors including online travel, logistics and SaaS.

Some of the prominent deals include INR 50 crore (US$7.7 million) funded to Blackbuck, a marketplace in the highly-fragmented logistics space in India, which helps clients with effective fleet management. InnoVen also extended an on-shore/off-shore funding of INR 100 crore (US$15 million) to NASDAQ-listed Indian travel services provider Yatra.com. A similar on-shore/off-shore funding was extended to Ace Turtle which acts as omni-channel partner for brands and retailers in India and South-east Asia.

InnoVen Capital also launched its operations in China this year aiming to offer multiple debt solutions across geographies. As of end of September, 2017, InnoVen has cumulatively funded venture debt worth over US$270 million in more than 125 innovative tech startups across India and South-east Asia.

The post Captain’s Log, Oct. 19: SparkLabs launches US$100M cryptocurrency fund; Meituan-Dianping raises US$4B appeared first on e27.