SOUTHEAST ASIAN cloud restaurant company听听raised $5 million from a Series A round led by Singapore-based investment management firm Vulpes Investment Management, and the Malaysia-based venture capital firm Gobi Partners鈥 Gobi-Core Philippine Fund.听

CloudEats, which was launched in the Philippines in June 2019, plans to use the funds to scale its smart kitchen technology and open cloud kitchens in more markets in the region, the latest of which will be Vietnam in November. It also aims to develop new champion brands like Burger Beast, an emerging burger brand in the Philippines.听听

鈥淭he food delivery market in Southeast Asia continues to experience explosive growth, allowing digitally native brands such as ours to carve their own space and win in the market,鈥 said Kimberly Yao, co-founder of听CloudEats, in a press release. 鈥淲e aim to become the largest online food group in the region by building persona-driven, highly innovative cloud restaurants with delicious food that our consumers love and value.鈥澨听

Other notable investors involved in the round include Alibaba-backed听BAce听Capital, Intera Investments Limited, and GMA Ventures. Benny Chen,听BAce听Capital鈥檚 founding partner, will also join听CloudEats鈥 board of directors.听听

Meanwhile, Gobi Partners鈥 founding partner Thomas G. Tsao praised听CloudEats鈥櫶齝o-founder Ms. Yao: 鈥淏orn and raised in the Philippines, Kimberly has been recognized by the Forbes 100 To Watch and听TechNode鈥檚听Top 50 Rising Women in Southeast Asia. Now she鈥檚 just raised the largest round ever by a Filipina-led startup in the Philippines!鈥澨听

The cloud kitchen company was also featured in听Forbes Asia鈥檚 鈥溾澨齦ist听in August, along with听three听other Philippine-led start-ups. The inaugural list puts the spotlight on 鈥渘otable small companies and startups on the rise across the Asia-Pacific region.鈥澨听

Since its launch,听CloudEats听has prepared on-demand meals for numerous brands and worked with various delivery services. Its kitchens are located in non-retail, cost-efficient spaces with operations and layouts designed specifically for food delivery.听听听听

鈥淭he team at听CloudEats听is one of the strongest founding teams we have seen in Southeast Asia and their unique approach to providing next generation cloud kitchens is a perfect fit for the young and digital savvy populations of Southeast Asia,鈥 said Field Pickering, Vulpes Investment Management鈥檚 head of venture investing.听

鈥淲e couldn鈥檛 be more excited about being part of the听CloudEats听journey,鈥 he added.听— Bronte H. Lacsamana听

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