Health startups are pulling in money in Southeast Asia. A week after wellness-focused insurance brokerage CXA drew $25 million from investors, fellow..
Health startups are pulling in money in Southeast Asia. A week after wellness-focused insurance brokerage CXA drew $25 million from investors , fellow Singapore-based startup mClinica has announced a $6.3 million Series A raise.
mClinica was founded in 2012 and its mission is to provide healthcare data in Southeast Asia, much like Nielsen and other traditional analyst houses, through an alliance with pharmaceutical stores on the ground.
Founder and CEO Farouk Meralli explained in an interview that the region’s currently lacks data because it is dominated by small ‘mom and pop’ style stores. That, he said, leaves pharma companies wanting to know more about their business, supply chain and the competitive landscape, while governments and NGOs are deprived of important data that can shape policy or detect outbreaks.
“In U. S. or UK, the consumer healthcare space is dominated by chains like Walgreens or Boots, but here it is thousands of independent pharmacies, it’s crazy,” Meralli told TechCrunch, explaining that this severely inhibits market understanding.
Mobile devices and the internet present an opportunity to change things. Meralli is aiming to make a difference by helping track how medicines are being used in Southeast Asia with more clarity than ever. Today, the mClinica service is present in three countries — the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam — where it offers a platform for local pharmacies to help them make sense of their business. In that respect, it feels a lot like blend between Practo, the Indian startup that connects doctors with patients and is backed by Tencent , and shopping loyalty service Snapcart in Indonesia.
First and foremost, mClinica tracks what medicines are being prescribed, dispensed and bought in small stories, which Meralli said account for 97 percent of all pharmacies in Indonesia, for example.
