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legal templates for startups in southeast asia

starting out? start here

Save time and money on legal fees with our free legal templates for routine legal paperwork, tailored to the Southeast Asian market.  

made for cash-strapped startups

Our aim is to empower startups to self-serve their legal basics. Browse our documents, download what you need, and save your legal spend for the things that really matter. 

available for template questions

If you need to talk, just get in touch and speak to one of our startup lawyers in Singapore.

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working with the hottest tech startups in southeast asia

using our templates

Our library of awesome free legal templates is available for use by business users, including legal services providers. You can download, use and modify the templates free of charge subject to our template terms of use. 

Click on any template below to access it.  You will be given the choice of downloading a PDF version of the template or an editable Word version.

get a lawyer to review your work

The templates are a guide only. You are welcome to use them, but because of their nature, we have had to make them generic.  They do not cater for every situation. 

Businesses using the templates will need to consult their lawyer to ensure that their use of these documents is appropriate to their situation.

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acqui-hire agreement

Word version PDF version

This agreement is for use when a company primarily wishes to bring in employees from a target company, rather than acquiring its business. Acqui-hires are common amongst well-funded startups looking to expand their teams by hiring talent from other startups. Often the employees are acqui-hired from businesses that are failing and are subsequently shut down.

This agreement covers the transfer of the employees and release of any existing restraints, together with a general assignment of intellectual property rights. It sets out the terms of payment of the acquisition amount – this is sometimes paid in tranches and adjusted if the transferring employees subsequently move on soon after completion of the acqui-hire.

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advisor share agreement

Word version PDF version

This is a simple agreement for the provision of advisory services to an early stage company (including where a company is establishing a formal advisory board).

This template is drafted on the basis that the advisor is to receive shares in the company as compensation for the services provided. It assumes no cash compensation will be paid. Some of the shares may be clawed back by the company if the advisor fails to make the expected contributions over the agreed period, which is usually one or two years.

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cap table – discounted debt conversion

Excel version

This template cap table is intended for use when considering a potential equity investment in a company (whether from existing shareholders, external investors, or both). The template works when the number of new shares to be issued is calculated:

  • based on a specific investment amount at a specific pre-money valuation of the company e.g. an aggregate investment of $500,000 at a pre-money valuation of $2m
  • on a fully diluted basis i.e. all unexercised options (if any) are treated as existing shares in the company for the purpose of calculating the number of new shares to be issued
  • no anti-dilution rights are triggered by the issue of the new shares
  • all shares issued in consideration for the conversion of debt to equity are issued at a discount to the price per share paid by the cash investors. If all of the debt is converting at the same price per share paid by the cash investors please use our template investment capitalisation table for debt converting without a discount
  • the investment is made on a fully diluted basis, i.e. if a new employee share option plan (ESOP) is established as part of the investment round, the dilutionary effect of the ESOP is borne entirely by the founders and any other existing shareholders, and not by the investors. This is the most common approach.

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cap table (no discounted debt conversion)

Excel version

This template cap table is intended for use when considering a potential equity investment in a company (whether from existing shareholders, external investors, or both). The template works when the number of new shares to be issued is calculated:

  • based on a specific investment amount at a specific pre-money valuation of the company e.g. an aggregate investment of $500,000 at a pre-money valuation of $2m
  • on a fully diluted basis i.e. all unexercised options (if any) are treated as existing shares in the company for the purpose of calculating the number of new shares to be issued
  • no anti-dilution rights are triggered by the issue of the new shares
  • all of the new shares are issued at the same price per share, including any new shares issued in consideration for the conversion of debt to equity. If all of the debt is converting at a discount to the price per share paid by the cash investors (e.g. under the terms of an existing convertible loan agreement) please use our template investment capitalisation table for debt converting at a discount.
  • the investment is made on a fully diluted basis, i.e. if a new employee share option plan (ESOP) is established as part of the investment round, the dilutionary effect of the ESOP is borne entirely by the founders and any other existing shareholders, and not by the investors. This is the most common approach.

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capital raising due diligence checklist

Word version PDF version

This Due Diligence Document List is a list of legal documents for review by potential investors. Investors are likely to request additional documents, depending on the nature of the company’s business, but this list is a good starting point.

We suggest that companies keep an electronic file of the documents in this list so that when requested, they can be provided quickly. In any event, once you begin to consider raising capital, an early task will be to gather the documents set out in this document list.

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completion checklist

Word version PDF version

This is a template checklist which sets out the steps typically required to take a series A investment transaction from signing to completion. The items included are examples only; when creating your own checklist you should always refer to the key transaction documents (typically a subscription agreement and shareholders’ agreement, and a new constitution reflecting the terms of the shareholders’ agreement) to determine what items need completing.

As this checklist covers only the most typical completion steps, it does not provide for the following items which are sometimes seen on investment transactions:

  • a rolling close, under which the company has a set amount of time after completion to find investment from other investors on the same terms
  • investment in tranches, i.e. more than one closing date
  • conversion of any debt or convertible notes on completion of the investment.

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convertible note (KISS terms)

Word version PDF version

what this is

This note is a convertible instrument that is intended to be used by a startup to document a seed investment from a third party investor or a bridge financing from existing shareholders.

The terms of the note are substantially based on the keep-it-simple-security created by 500 Startups and include some of the investor friendly provisions typically included in convertible seed investments in the US and as adopted for other global markets.

how it works

This note anticipates that the investment amount is drawn down in one lump sum and is unsecured. The investment amount:

  • automatically converts to equity on the date of a qualifying capital raise
  • is repayable (potentially at a multiple of the outstanding amount) or convertible at the investor’s discretion on the occurrence of a liquidity event
  • is repayable or convertible at the investor’s discretion at any time following maturity.

This note also anticipates that it may be one of a series of identical notes entered into as part of a seed investment round. In that case, some decisions that relate to the investment round as a whole are to be made by a majority of the investors, rather than by an individual investor.

related guides

you might also like

We also have another popular variation of the convertible note – our SAFE convertible note template.

The terms of the note are substantially based on the simple agreement for future equity created by the US accelerator, Y-Combinator.

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

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convertible note term sheet

Word version PDF version

 

This is a simple term sheet for a convertible instrument that is intended to be used by a startup to document a seed investment from a third party investor or a bridge financing from existing shareholders.

The terms of the note are substantially based on the keep-it-simple-security (KISS) created by 500 Startups and include some of the investor friendly provisions typically included in convertible seed investments in the US and as adopted for other global markets.This term sheet anticipates that the investment amount is drawn down in one lump sum and is unsecured. The investment amount:

  • automatically converts to equity on the date of a qualifying capital raise
  • is repayable (potentially at a multiple of the outstanding amount) or convertible at the investor’s discretion on the occurrence of a liquidity event
  • is repayable or convertible at the investor’s discretion at any time following maturity.

This term sheet also anticipates that it may be one of a series of identical notes entered into as part of a seed investment round. In that case, some decisions that relate to the investment round as a whole are to be made by a majority of the investors, rather than by an individual investor.

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disclosure letter

Word version PDF version

This is a template disclosure letter for disclosing against warranties provided in an M&A or capital raising transaction.

read our guide: tricky clauses: warranty disclosures (4 minute read)
read our guide: raising seed capital in southeast asia (8 minute read)

Typically under these transactions, a company (and, in some cases, its founders) provides statements to a purchaser or investor in the transaction documents. If any of these statements (known as warranties) turn out to be untrue, the purchaser or investor can bring a claim for a breach and potentially recover money from the parties that gave the warranties.

A disclosure letter protects warrantors, by allowing them to disclose any matters that are inconsistent with the warranties set out in the transaction documents. The purchaser or investor cannot bring a warranty claim in respect of matters which have been fairly disclosed. The disclosure letter is the document which formally records these disclosed exceptions to the warranties. It is therefore an integral part of the transaction documents and the earlier warrantors start preparing the document on any transaction, the better.

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founder agreement – long form

Word version PDF version

This document is intended for use by the founders of a new startup who wish to provide for some level of claw-back of a co-founder’s initial shareholding if he or she:

  • ceases to work for the company (whether as an employee or contractor); or
  • fails to make the contribution required of them to the business.

This type of arrangement is referred to in the startup and venture capital world as founder vesting.

The approach taken in this document is to provide for progressive vesting of a co-founder’s shares over a set period (e.g. 36 months). If the co-founder leaves the company or fails to make the required contribution to the business during that period, the company has the option to repurchase unvested shares for the price originally paid by the co-founder for those shares (which will usually be nil, if the shares were issued on incorporation of the company).

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

founder agreement – short form

Word version PDF version

This document is a short form co-founder agreement intended for use by the founders of a new startup who wish to provide for some level of claw-back of a co-founder’s initial shareholding if he or she ceases to work for the company (whether as an employee or contractor). In this document, the company’s right to purchase shares is limited to a situation where the co-founder ceases to work for the company, i.e. there is no expected contribution from the co-founder. If you would like the company to be able to repurchase shares for a failure by the co-founder to contribute to the company, use our southeast asia co-founder agreement – long form.

This type of arrangement is referred to in the startup and venture capital world as founder vesting.

The approach taken in this document is to provide for progressive vesting of a co-founder’s shares over a set period (e.g. 36 months). If the co-founder leaves the company during that period, the company has the option to repurchase unvested shares for the price originally paid by the co-founder for those shares (which will usually be nil, if the shares were issued on incorporation of the company).

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

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friends and family subscription agreement

Word version PDF version

This agreement is for use when a startup wishes to issue shares to a new investor as part of a friends and family investment round in Southeast Asia. It sets out the mechanics for the investment and the warranties to be given by the startup. It provides for investment for ordinary shares in the company in one tranche, with no conditions (other than those relating to corporate authorisations).

There are no standard terms that apply to investment by friends and family type investors – these types of investments can often be relatively informal and may not always include the investor protection provisions required by professional investors or formal investment groups, such as angel groups.

Your lawyer or company secretary will need to complete any necessary board and/or shareholder resolutions needed to implement this document.

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independent contractor agreement

Word version PDF version

This is a simple company friendly consultancy agreement for engaging independent contractors or consultants (e.g. individuals or sole operator companies) to work within a business.

This template includes a restraint on the independent contractor to ensure that the independent contractor does not jeopardise the company’s business (by competing or similar) during the term and for a set period after. To be enforceable, a restraint must be reasonable. This, in turn, will depend on the facts relating to the agreement. However, the longer the restraint and the broader the restrained area, the more likely that arguments could be raised about the enforceability of the restraint.

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intercompany loan agreement

Word version PDF version

Technology businesses in Southeast Asia often have group structures. For example, a business may have trading subsidiaries in Indonesia, Malaysia and/or the Philippines, and a holding company in Singapore. Loan arrangements within such group structures are relatively common.

This is a simple intercompany loan agreement that records an unsecured loan between group companies.

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IP assignment

Word version PDF version

This document is intended for use by the founders of a startup company to formally transfer intellectual property relevant to the business, products or services of the company, to that company.

Before completing this deed, we suggest that companies and their founders first work to identify and record the intellectual property that the company intends to use (or is already using) in its business, including details of who:

  • created the intellectual property, and on what basis (e.g. as a founder, employee or external consultant of the company)
  • owns that intellectual property and on what basis (i.e. if the company owns intellectual property because it was created by its employees in the course of their employment, this should be recorded)

This will help:

  • to identify intellectual property that needs to be transferred by a founder or consultant, etc. to the company (and to properly describe that intellectual property in a deed of assignment)
  • to prove ownership of the company’s intellectual property in the future, e.g. in a capital raising or M&A transaction.

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letter of intent (commercial)

Word version PDF version

This is a simple document to outline the main in principle terms of a proposed commercial relationship. The document is not legally binding (other than the confidentiality, termination, and governing law provisions in part D).

Other than the statement that the document is not intended to be binding and part D, there is no suggested content included – the document is simply a framework for the parties to record the in principle commercial terms that have been agreed, prior to preparing a formal agreement.

Although the letter of intent is non-binding, it can create moral or ethical obligations that are difficult to back away from. It is therefore important not to over-promise, and to set out relevant assumptions.

This document does not include an exclusivity provision – either party is free to enter into negotiations, or contract, with third parties for a similar or competing relationship.

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m&a due diligence checklist

Word version PDF version

This Due Diligence Document List is a list of legal documents for review by potential purchasers of the shares or assets of a target company in a private M&A transaction. In the course of the purchaser’s due diligence investigations, additional questions will inevitably arise, but this list is a good starting point.

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m&a term sheet

Word version PDF version

This is a template term sheet for use when one tech company is acquiring the shares of another tech company. It sets out the principal terms agreed between the acquiring company and the shareholders of the target company prior to preparing the formal sale and purchase agreement. The acquisition of a competing and/or complementary business in this manner is a common strategy of well-funded high growth technology companies.

This term sheet assumes that the transaction will be structured as a share sale (as is most common). It should not be used in connection with an acquisition of the business and assets of a target company. This term sheet is not legally binding (other than the confidentiality obligations in part B); it simply sets out the terms agreed in relation to the acquisition.

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mutual confidentiality agreement (nda)

Word version PDF version

This is a simple mutual (or two way) confidentiality agreement setting out the terms on which each party will keep confidential the other party’s information.

It has been drafted to be fair to both parties and to enable easy signing (without the need for lengthy negotiation). If the purpose for which the information is being exchanged is highly sensitive or has unique aspects, consider whether a more belts and braces agreement may be required.

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SAFE convertible note

Word version PDF version

what this is

This note is a convertible instrument that is intended to be used to document a seed investment from a third-party investor or a bridge financing from existing shareholders.

The terms of the note are substantially based on the simple agreement for future equity created by the US accelerator, Y-Combinator.

how it works

This agreement anticipates that the investment amount is drawn down in a lump sum on one date and is unsecured. The amount of the investment is not a loan, has no set maturity or repayment date and does not accrue interest. The investment amount remains outstanding until:

  • it is automatically converted to equity on the date of a qualifying equity financing
  • it is repaid or converted (at the election of the investor) on the occurrence of a liquidity event.

related guides

you might also like

We also have another popular variation of the convertible note – our KISS convertible note template.

The terms of the note are substantially based on the keep-it-simple-security created by 500 Startups.

using our templates

Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

seed investment term sheet

Word version PDF version

This is a simple term sheet for use when a startup is raising capital from seed investors in Southeast Asia. It sets out the terms agreed between the company and the investors prior to preparing the formal agreements. Generally in this type of capital raising the formal agreements will be a subscription agreement – see the template southeast asia seed subscription agreement – and a shareholders’ agreement – see the template southeast asia seed shareholders’ agreement. The term sheet is not legally binding (other than the confidentiality obligations in part B); it simply sets out the terms agreed in relation to an investment.

There are no standard terms that apply to investment by seed investors – these types of investments can often be relatively informal and may not always include the investor protection provisions required by professional investors on larger series A investment rounds. We recommend that you read our guides to raising seed capital in southeast asia.

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seed shareholders’ agreement

Word version PDF version

This is a simple shareholders’ agreement intended to be implemented by a startup at the time it closes a seed investment round in Southeast Asia.

This agreement deals with the management of the startup and the relationship between the founders, any other existing shareholders and the investors (e.g. rights to appoint directors, matters requiring the approval of any investor-appointed directors, the provision of financial information, confidentiality provisions, etc).

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seed subscription agreement

Word version PDF version

This agreement is for use when a startup wishes to issue shares to a new investor as part of a seed investment round in Southeast Asia. It sets out the mechanics for the investment and the warranties to be given by the startup. It provides for investment for ordinary shares in the company in one tranche, with no conditions (other than those relating to corporate authorisations).

There are no standard terms that apply to investment by seed investors – these types of investments can often be relatively informal and may not always include the investor protection provisions required by professional investors on larger series A investment rounds.

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

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series A investment term sheet

Word version PDF version

This is a term sheet for use when a startup based in Southeast Asia is raising capital from series A investors. It sets out the terms agreed between the startup and the investors prior to preparing the formal agreements. Generally in this type of capital raising the formal agreements will be a subscription agreement, a shareholders’ agreement and an updated constitution. The term sheet is not legally binding (other than the confidentiality and exclusivity obligations in part B); it simply sets out the terms agreed in relation to an investment.

There are no standard terms that apply to investment from series A investors in Southeast Asia. We recommend that you read our guides to raising series A capital in southeast asia.

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

share exchange agreement

Word version PDF version

This agreement is for use by Southeast Asian companies looking to redomicile or flip to Singapore. Our experience is that, with a few exceptions, most Southeast Asian tech startups wishing to raise capital from professional investors end up being domiciled in Singapore (either to attract investment or as a requirement of their investors).

Flipping to a new jurisdiction can be done in two ways: either by a transfer of shares or by a transfer of assets. Please see our guides to raising seed capital in southeast asia for more information on the different processes involved. This agreement is for the first option – where the shares in your existing company are transferred to a newly incorporated Singapore company. That new company then issues shares to the shareholders of the existing company in equal proportions. These are separate corporate transactions in two different jurisdictions requiring legal and tax advice in each of those jurisdictions.

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startup shareholders’ agreement

Word version PDF version

This is a simple startup shareholders’ agreement for use during the earliest stage of a company’s development, i.e. while the founders are the only shareholders and before the company receives funding.

This agreement is intended to cover matters that are often important to founders but that are not always covered in off-the-shelf company constitutions, specifically:

  • the composition of the board
  • pre-emptive rights on new share issues
  • rights of first refusal on transfers of existing shares
  • non-compete undertakings
  • assignment of intellectual property rights.

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Use of a template by business users is free of charge and is subject to you agreeing to our template terms of use.

top 10 legal templates for startups

From capital raisings to drafting governance contracts, we help startups every day with their legal needs. We’ve created a new guide to help founders find their feet: Top Ten Legal Templates for Startups: A guide for companies based in Southeast Asia.

This guide contains basic tips when putting this paperwork in place. Having these documents in order can help your startup further down the line, particularly when raising investment. With each template, we cover what it does, when a startup might need to use it, and essential points that founders should wrap their heads around.

All legal agreements we cover in the guide are also available for download free on our website. These templates include explanatory notes to help founders and non-lawyers complete the agreement.

Have questions about our guide or one of the templates? Feel free to get in touch with us if you’d like some help adapting one of the agreements we’ve recommended.

Access the guide by filling out your details below:

read our startup case studies

fave-simmonds-stewart-client

fave

Southeast Asia’s online-to-offline (O2O) space is hot. Platforms linking online customers with offline services are now part and parcel of daily life, from the likes of well-backed Go-Jek and Grab, to Fave – one of the region’s most exciting new O2O companies.

Fave started out in 2015 as a fitness sharing platform called KFit before stepping into multi-category local commerce with the launch of Fave. The company is connecting millions of customers with thousands of local service businesses including restaurants, cafes, salons, spas, hotels, gyms and more.

Founder and CEO, Joel Neoh, talked to us about their journey and how they have found working with Kindrik Partners.

the Fave story

Fave’s founders Joel Neoh and Yeoh Chen Chow are no strangers to O2O local commerce. Joel started Groupsmore, a daily deals site that was acquired by Groupon in 2011. Joel went on to head up Groupon’s business in APAC, alongside Chen Chow, who led Groupon’s regional operations.

Spotting an opportunity to disrupt the fitness business in APAC, Joel left Groupon to start KFit, the region’s first-ever fitness sharing platform, touted as an Uber style platform for gyms and fitness studios.

After a year of tremendous growth and raising a US$12m series A financing, the company set its sights beyond the fitness space and launched its multi-category platform. It went on to acquire Groupon’s businesses in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

According to Joel, the pivot to a broader O2O platform was a natural progression for the company, as multi-category local commerce presented a much larger business opportunity. Joel observed that apps with high-frequency use cases tend to succeed in a competitive landscape. Fave was launched with a focus on the food and drink category – a major part of life in Southeast Asia.

Whilst deals businesses have been around for a while, Fave is focused on merchant-first innovation via deeper product development and data science. All with a view to enhancing the customer experience with daily deals and rewards. Joel notes that the traditional deals model only brings in new customers to offline businesses and stops there. To truly add value to local businesses, Fave wants to create an ecosystem where businesses can acquire, retain and re-target customers in the online world.

working with kindrik partners

Lee Bagshaw started working with Joel from the set-up of what was the KFit business in 2015. As well as advising Fave on its VC financing rounds, Lee and Chris Wilson have helped Fave on the three M&A deals relating to the acquisitions of Groupon’s Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean businesses.

Joel says that Kindrik Partners provided insightful and comprehensive legal advice that played a key role in helping Fave reach some major milestones. He specifically notes Kindrik Partners team’s considerable expertise in VC and tech M&A, which helped the company efficiently navigate the documentation negotiating during its funding rounds and the Groupon transactions.

The future of O2O commerce in Asia looks bright in Southeast Asia as new generation of digitally savvy consumers come online. Kindrik Partners looks forward to helping Fave continue its rapid journey to become a leading O2O player in the region.

Explore Fave.

[Note: The firm’s name was changed to Kindrik Partners in July 2020 and references to the firm’s previous name have been updated.]

grain-simmonds-stewart-client

grain

Singapore based and venture backed food technology startup Grain has fed thousands of happy customers delicious and wholesome meals, delivered in a few simple clicks.

Yi Sung Yong, Co-founder and Head of Product, recently talked to Kindrik Partners about his company and how he has found working with Kindrik Partners on their first capital raise.

the grain story

With backgrounds in management consulting and previous experience in IT startups, the 4 founders of Grain (Sung, Rifeng Gao, Isaac Tam and Ernest Sim, all recently named in the Forbes Asia 30 under 30 list) wanted to start a new and ambitious business in 2014, so they settled on changing the future of food delivery.

Since its recent beginnings, Grain is now described as a restaurant in the cloud and Uber for food in Singapore. It provides a convenient web and app delivery service for affordable and tasty food that is also good for you, offering 4 different meals each day which rotate weekly. Customers in the busy Singapore areas don’t pay for delivery and have no minimum spend.

After securing significant Series A funding, they now have major plans to offer more meals, improve operational efficiency by adding mobile distribution hub vans, increase headcount namely on the developer side and eventually to expand the business into China, including Hong Kong, and also Indonesia.

challenges

Sung says that given the diversity of food and size of the global industry, competition in the food market is building but there is still plenty of opportunity in the market. Whilst food delivery giant Food Panda largely dominates the South East Asian food delivery scene, acting as a middleman between restaurants and hungry consumers, Grain differentiates itself by offering a complete full stack food service. The entire supply chain is produced and controlled by them from one Singapore site, from the website and app business to cooking and delivery.

He also notes that whilst establishing a business and raising funds can be stressful, post-funding, hiring, onboarding and ongoing people management is their biggest challenge as they continue to grow.

working with kindrik partners

Sung’s previous experience of lawyers was that they were slow moving and traditional type lawyers that did not understand the pace of startup life.

For their first capital raise, Grain were referred to Kindrik Partners partner Lee Bagshaw through 500 Startups managing partner Khailee Ng, along with another Singaporean law firm. The referral happened on a Thursday, Lee got in touch immediately via WhatsApp and the term sheet was ready to go on the Friday. Grain did not receive a response from the other firm until the following Monday at which point the deal was well and truly on its way.

Sung says that it was Kindrik Partners’s speed and execution, WhatsApp versus long emails, moving like a startup that impressed him the most.

Kindrik Partners went on to assist Grain implement several convertible notes to secure short term bridge financing and raise of SG$2,500,000 for their Series A funding round, including investment from NSI Ventures, 500 Startups, Digital Media Partners and Ivan Lee (who founded and sold Thai Express in Singapore).

In addition to maintaining the startup pace and charging extremely reasonable legal fees, Sung really appreciated that Kindrik Partners drafted the documents from a founder’s versus lawyer’s perspective, ensuring the documents reflected Grain’s commercial motives without overkill on the legal jargon; Lee just got everything we thought we required and also pointed out the things we didn’t know we needed.

summing up

Given Grain have already delivered over 100,000 meals to ravenous Singapore residents alone, it’s looking likely that this startup will continue to eat up the market. Kindrik Partners will certainly be ready to move at speed for what seems like an inevitable growth and success.

Explore Grain.

[Note: The firm’s name was changed to Kindrik Partners in July 2020 and references to the firm’s previous name have been updated.]

card-up-simmonds-stewart-client-case-study

cardup

Singapore company CardUp is an online platform that lets individuals and SMEs pay for expenses like taxes, rent, or even payroll, using their credit card – even if the recipient doesn’t accept cards.

Cardup raised a seed round lead by top tier venture firm Sequoia Capital in late 2017. We spoke to founder Nicki Ramsay about Cardup’s journey so far.

story

Nicki got the idea for CardUp while working at a major credit card provider in Singapore. She saw that a lot of big ticket items (like tax and rent) could not be paid for with a credit card, because the recipients were not willing to go through the hassle and fees associated with the setup process. This meant that card holders were not getting benefits from these big payments such as being able to access their credit facility or earn loyalty reward points. In addition, banks were losing out on the fees that would be linked to an increase in credit card spending.

CardUp solves this by flipping the existing card processing model, acting as the middleman between cardholders that want to use their card in more ways and recipients who don’t accept card payments. CardUp users benefit from using the credit line on their card to extend the payables period for these expenses, as well as earning credit card loyalty points and rewards. In addition, the recipient does not need to have a CardUp account to receive credit card payments.

Finding the initial capital and relevant expertise needed to get a company off the ground is a challenge for a lot of the founders that we work with. This is particularly common for solo founders like Nicki, as they are not able to draw on the financial resources and connections of their co-founders. In Nicki’s case, she decided to join The Finlab (United Overseas Bank’s Singapore fintech accelerator), which was a great way to access mentorship and exposure to a wide investor community.

While at The Finlab, Nicki spent a lot of time talking to financial institutions, to get them on board with cardholders using the platform. CardUp has since secured partnerships with many of Singapore’s major banks to promote CardUp’s services. The company also promoted the platform to individuals and SMEs through its online marketing content. The focus of this material was to educate users on the platform’s benefits and how the platform works.

the financing deal

As CardUp gained more users, the company needed to raise some money to further develop its platform.

Nicki pitched to a wide range of VCs in Southeast Asia. Sequoia was a natural fit as they are deep in the payments space, and CardUp is disrupting traditional payment processing models.

Other investors included SeedPlus, who were originally introduced to Cardup by The Finlab.

The company completed its ~US$1.7m seed round in late 2017. The investment has allowed the company to triple the size of its team in just a few months.

working with us

Nicki told us that Kindrik Partners’ depth of knowledge on VC deals in Southeast Asia was a massive help throughout the capital raising process:

Kindrik Partners added a lot of value for us during the negotiation with Sequoia as they have vast experience with startup and VC deals in the region and are very familiar with the different permutations of VC term sheets. Also, because they have acted for a lot of startups taking investment from Sequoia, they saved us time and cost by telling us which points Sequoia would likely be open to negotiating.

Overall, Nicki said that the Kindrik Partners team were extremely knowledgeable, and professional to deal with.

Having worked with Nicki, we are now certain that it won’t be long before everyone will be using their credit card for important payments, like their legal fees!

Explore CardUp.

[Note: The firm’s name was changed to Kindrik Partners in July 2020 and references to the firm’s previous name have been updated.]

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what our clients say

Kindrik Partners have vast experience with startup and VC deals in the region. Because they have acted for a lot of startups taking investment from Sequoia, they saved us time and cost by telling us which points Sequoia would likely be open to negotiating.
Nicki Ramsay
Founder and CEO, CardUp
We feel like we’re in safe hands with Kindrik Partners. The team is very easy to work with and their VC transaction experience is second to none.

Farouk Meralli
Founder and CEO, mClinica
I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to have a strong partner that not only knows the process inside and out, but will also go to war for you and represent you as if they are negotiating for their own company.

As entrepreneurs we pour our heart and soul (and blood and sweat) into our companies, and to have someone fighting for us as if it were their own – that’s just awesome!
Patrick Gentry
Founder, Sprout
Kindrik Partners were instrumental to a fast and favourable outcome on the round. As first-time founders, we relied on their partnership not only for support with the necessary documentation, but for advice on standard processes and critical regional context on terms.
Will Hanschell
Founder, Pencil

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