PatSnap: a B2B SaaS playbook for surviving Southeast Asia

Consumer startups catch the eye, but newly-christened unicorn PatSnap—which specialises in IP management—is showing the value of B2B SaaS in Southeast Asia. It is one of a handful of breakout companies that could inspire others in Singapore

B2B SaaS startups haven’t garnered as much interest as their consumer-facing peers in Southeast Asia

Newly minted unicorns PatSnap and Trax, though, are early indicators that this trend could be changing

Both had to strike out overseas as they waited for the Southeast Asian market to mature, and have impressive client lists and technology

Their long journeys to success, pitfalls and all, have paved a path for newer B2B SaaS startups in the region to find success faster than they did

Consumer internet services, such as e-commerce, tend to dominate the landscape in Southeast Asia. The last year, however, has seen business-to-business (B2B) players rise to the fore, using different monetisation models, such as software-as-a-service (SaaS) billing.

The pandemic era has seen notable deals in the B2B space. These include TradeGecko’s sale to global leader Intuit, seller services company Stamped.io being snapped by WooCommerce, and even a new unicorn, as intellectual property intelligence startup PatSnap raked in a US$300 million round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund II.

B2B success stories have, to date, been anomalies in Southeast Asia.

AUTHOR

Benjamin Cher

Based in Singapore, Ben covers news and stories from the hub of Southeast Asia. He covers the intersection of technology and business, and how it affects Singapore and Southeast Asia. Ben was previously a reporter at The Edge Singapore.

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