Singapore-based online shopping rewards app ShopBack adds $80M to its Series F from Temasek’s 65 Equity, making the round $160M, source says at a ~$1B valuation (Olivia Poh/Bloomberg)

Olivia Poh / Bloomberg:
Google, Temasek, and Bain report: Southeast Asia online spending will rise ~20% in 2022 to $200B, down from 38% in 2021, as digital adoption growth normalizes  —  Growth in Southeast Asia’s internet economy is slowing after years of expansion, showing that even emerging digital markets aren’t immune to economic headwinds.

Evelyn Cheng / CNBC:
China-based Well-Link Technologies, which is building a real-time cloud rendering technology for video games, has raised a $40M Series B2 led by Temasek  —  – Singapore state investment firm Temasek has led a $40 million funding round in Chinese startup Well-Link Technologies, according to an announcement Monday.

Ofir Dor / Globes Online:
Israel-based Vesttoo, an AI-powered risk transfer marketplace connecting insurers and investors, has raised an $80M Series C at a $1B post-money valuation  —  The company’s emergence as a unicorn is surprising when taking into account the slowdown in fund raising and that it had a valuation of just $22 million last year.

Kaya Yurieff / The Information:
Pinterest says it is ending the creator rewards program that it launched in 2021, which offered cash bonuses when creators completed certain goals  —  Pinterest is ending its creator rewards program, which offered cash bonuses when creators completed goals such as hitting certain engagement metrics, The Information is first to report.

Lucy Harley-McKeown / The Block:
Web3 gaming and VC firm Animoca Brands raised $110M via convertible notes led by Temasek, Boyu Capital, and GGV, after raising $434M in 2022  —  – Animoca Brands confirmed earlier reports it had raised a fresh funding round of $110 million.  — Temasek, Boyu Capital and CGV Capital are now backing the firm.

Oliver Knight / CoinDesk:
Chicago-based Strike, a bitcoin payment service that uses the Lightning network for faster transactions, raised an $80M Series B led by Ten31  —  Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Wyoming were among the investors in the Series B funding round.