MANILA - Four Philippine-based firms were listed among companies in the inaugural Forbes Asia 100 to Watch List.
Forbes said the list "spotlights notable small companies and startups on the rise across the Asia-Pacific region."
Companies were chosen based on their "growth path" despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Forbes said.
Here's the list of Philippine companies listed under Forbes Asia 100 to Watch List:
CHATGENIE
E-commerce and retail company ChatGenie, founded in 2020, combines online shopping platforms and Grab's payment and delivery features into the Facebook Messenger interface to allow customers to shop via direct message.
CLOUDEATS
Founded in 2019, Cloudeats operates cloud kitchens which help restaurant companies operate while saving costs.
CloudEats also develops its own brands and "tailers recipes and concepts" based on customer feedback, Forbes said.
So far, it has raised $1.8 million in funding, it added.
KALIBRR
The AI-powered recruitment portal, which serves customers in the Philippines and in Indonesia, made it to list by making the hiring process "simpler, faster and better for companies and applicants," Forbes said.
Kalibrr said it has raised $7.5 million from Omidyar Network, Wavemaker and Kickstart Ventures.
PAYMONGO PHILIPPINES
Financial platform PayMongo allows merchants to accept all types of online payments, mostly micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and other firms pivoting to e-commerce.
Forbes said PayMongo is backed by Y Combinator and that it has raised $14.7 million in funding.
The list included 17 countries and territories with biotechnology and healthcare, e-commerce and retail, food and hospitality, and education and recruitment as the top categories.
India has 22 startups listed, 19 companies were from Singapore, 10 each for Hong Kong and Indonesia and mainland China with 4 firms.
In the Philippines, major firms have accelerated their digital offerings to reach consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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