SE Asia Deals Barometer Report: Startup funding nearly halves in June on megadeal drought

Southeast Asia’s startup funding activity slumped in June, with both equity deal volume and investment value falling sharply from the previous month and a year earlier, dragged by the absence of big-ticket late-stage transactions.

Startups in the region raised $349.7 million across 38 equity deals in June, down 46.7% from $656.3 million across 47 such deals in May. Compared with a year earlier, total funding fell 42.7% from $610 million across 49 deals, according to proprietary data from DealStreetAsia.

Notably, June recorded no megadeals, defined as transactions worth $100 million or more.

In comparison, May had seen one megadeal—Malaysia’s Ashita Group, a B2B2C, e-commerce, and social commerce player, raised a private equity investment of up to $155 million from CPFam-LDA Asia Growth Fund and AEI Capital Group ahead of its upcoming public listing.

The absence of such large-ticket deals in June contributed significantly to the sharp drop in total capital raised. The strong rebound in May was also driven by outsized private equity and corporate investments.

The amount raised in June brings the 12-month average monthly funding in Southeast Asia to $367 million, with funding peaking at $692.2 million in December. So far this year, May has recorded the highest deal value and volume.

Geopolitical tensions and shifting trade policies remain a source of short-term uncertainty for investors, said Catrina Magsadia, vice president for Investments at Foxmont Capital Partners, a Philippines-based early-stage venture capital investor. “Nevertheless, this also presents a significant opportunity, and we are actively evaluating a strong pipeline of deals with resilient leaders and strong business models,” Magsadia told DealStreetAsia.

The biggest deal in June was signed by Singapore digital investment platform Syfe, which announced the successful close of its Series C funding round, including $53 million in equity.

Timah Partners, a Singapore-based permanent holding company focused on acquiring and operating essential businesses, raised $50 million in a Series A funding round to buy and operate recurring revenue-generating SMEs across Southeast Asia. The deal was the second biggest in the month.

Another Singapore-based startup, insurtech unicorn bolttech, raised an additional $47 million in its Series C financing, bringing the total raised in the round to $147 million. The round valued the company at $2.1 billion, up from $1.6 billion in May 2023.

Top Deals of June 2025

Out of the 38 deals publicly announced in June, nine did not disclose funding size. The average deal size, calculated based on transactions with disclosed figures, stood at $12.1 million, down from $21.1 million the previous month.

The tally includes venture capital and corporate rounds. Debt deals were excluded from the monthly scorecard.

Singapore continues perch on top

Singapore remained the region’s top fundraising hub in June, accounting for $303.5 million in deal value, or nearly 87% of the total funds raised, from 25 transactions. In May, the city-state accounted for $358.8 million across 23 deals.

Four of the top five deals during the month were signed in Singapore, led by the $53 million that robo advisor and investment platform operator Syfe raised.

This was followed by Timah Partners’ $50 million Series A funding, which drew participation from a notable group of backers, including influential founders and investors behind long-term holding companies and private equity firms.

Two deals in the Philippines raised a total of $28 million, placing the country in second spot in terms of deal value in June, DealStreetAsia’s compilation showed.

Salmon, a consumer financial technology startup based in the Philippines, raised $28 million in new equity led by US venture capital firm Spice Expeditions. The equity funding was part of the $88 million that the firm raised in June.

“While volatility has dampened late-stage activity in parts of Southeast Asia, we are still seeing steady investments in the Philippines,” Foxmont’s Magsadia said.

In Vietnam, four deals raised a combined $10 million in funding, led by edtech startup Galaxy Education, which secured the funding from East Ventures and other investors. The other three deals did not disclose financial details.

Indonesian startups closed three deals worth a combined $5 million, while Malaysian startups secured four transactions totaling $3.2 million.

Fintech most active in June

Across sectors in June, fintech was the most active with 12 deals that raised nearly $168 million in total, with Syfe and bolttech taking the lead with $53 million and $47 million, respectively.

Regtech and healthtech followed with four deals each, while consumer products logged three transactions.

In the regtech space, Multiplier Holdings, a Singapore-based tech company building AI-native professional services firms, raised the most amount at $27.5 million.

ABM Respiratory, a company focused on developing and globally commercializing novel airway clearance and ventilation solutions, raised $14.8 million in its Series B funding round, leading the deals in the region’s healthtech sector.

The rest of the sectors each recorded one to two deals.

Early -stage rounds dominate

DealStreetAsia’s monthly compilation showed that early-stage rounds dominated in June in terms of volume.

Eight Series A deals raised $104.8 million in total, led by Timah Partners’ $50 million fundraise. There were seven Seed deals that secured $20.2 million in aggregate funding, while six deals in pre-Seed stage raised about $1.2 million in total.

Series B and Pre-Series A recorded three deals each, while Series C saw just two transactions. There was only one corporate round logged for the month. Eight deals did not disclose funding stage.

In contrast to May’s heavy reliance on late-stage and private equity rounds, June’s slowdown highlighted a return to smaller-ticket early-stage transactions.

Debt rounds

There were five debt deals in the region in June that were not include in the monthly deal scorecard. Among the notable deals, Philippine fintech startup Cashalo and Atome secured $75 million in financing each from Community Investment Management and Ryde Technologies, respectively.

Consumer fintech startup Salmon, meanwhile, secured $60 million drawdown under a three-year $150 million Nordic bond framework agreement. Salmon, which operates a licensed bank in the Philippines, was founded in July 2022 by Fedorov, George Chesakov, and Raffy Montemayor.

Indonesian solar energy startup Xurya secured a 350-billion-rupiah ($21.4 million) green loan from UOB Indonesia last month to support the expansion of its solar energy project across the country.

Altervim, the renewable arm of Charoen Pokphand Group, also secured a green loan from Malayan Banking (Maybank) to fund rooftop solar installations at 28 Lotus’ Malaysia stores.