VENTURE CAPITAL POST

China's Prime Minister Li Keqiang proposed a friendship treaty with Southeast Asian countries and offered $20 billion in loans on Thursday but held firm on the line that Beijing will only settle South China Sea disputes directly with other claimants.

Tajikistan made the greatest strides in business-friendly reforms in the past year, part of an overall trend of improving business regulations across Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the World Bank said in a report released on Tuesday.

India's diversified Aditya Birla Group has submitted a bid for the Brazilian and the Philippine assets of cement industry leaders Lafarge (LAFP.PA) and Holcim (HOLN.VX), two persons directly involved in the transaction said.

Seasonal rains are set to disrupt nickel mining in the Philippines for the next four months or so, crimping exports to top buyer China and stoking a shortfall in the global supply of ore.

Indophil Resources NL said on Tuesday Philippine-based conglomerate Alsons Group has offered to fully acquire the Australian company for $0.30 a share in an all-cash deal.

A proposed Indonesia-style ban on exports of unprocessed metal ores from the Philippines may not be implemented for about seven years, the proponent of a bill before Congress said on Tuesday, potentially easing pressure on nickel prices.

The euro zone's struggle to avoid another recession will take center stage in the coming week in the absence of major U.S. data, as investors mull whether the ECB's new asset-buying plan is a prelude to even more radical steps.

The territorial dispute between China and Japan has caused the latter to pull out its investments from the country and redirecting its focus to other South East Asian countries where it has already funded companies with USD22.8 billion last year.

Online video platform Viddsee launched its new site Viddsee BUZZ to promote independent films from Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, and the Philippines on social media and help them go viral.

Philippine consortium LT Group Inc (LTG) increased its stake in Negros Occidental-based integrated sugar mill and refinery Victorias Milling Company Inc (VMC) from 7.4% to 14.8% for an undisclosed amount.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia-based taxi app GrabTaxi closed its Series A round with more than $1 million from Singaporean state-owned investment firm Vertex Ventures to conquer Southeast Asia.

Bangkok, Thailand-based digital publication platform Ookbee landed $7 million in a Series B funding led by Japanese outsourcing firm Transcosmos to fuel its Southeast Asian expansion.

Singaporean President Tony Tan Keng Yam said his country is conducting trade missions to its neighboring country, the Philippines, where seven companies are interested in investing in the infrastructure, transport, consumer services, and logistics sectors.

Billionaire and shopping mall mogul Henry Sy would expand his foothold in China with new shopping malls in Yangzhou and Changzhou, reported Bloomberg.

Philippines-based crowdfunding site Medifund turned non-profit to help students in developing countries pay for the cost of their schooling and to encourage more women to enter the medical profession.