Daily Briefing: Blockchain startup that decentralises data raises US$1.5m; Strong SGD mutes foreign demand for homes

And here's how Oakwood Studios caters to expats in Singapore.

From e27.co:

Singapore-based blockchain startup Bluzelle has raised US$1.5 million in a Series A round participated by Global Brain, LUN Partners Capital and True Global Ventures.

Bluzelle will use the newly-raised financing to scale up the company’s enterprise business, develop its decentralised database platform, and build its initial developer community, said an official press release.

The startup is led by two Canadians: CEO and Co-founder Pavel Bains, and CTO and Co-founder Neeraj Murarka.

Read more here. 

From ProperyGuru:

With the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) and strengthening Singapore dollar, foreign demand for homes in Singapore remained muted even as private home sales soared 50 percent year-on-year during the first seven months of 2017, reported TODAYonline.

Data from Cushman & Wakefield showed that the proportion of foreign buyers dropped to a four-year low last year and remains at that level.

In H1 2017, just six percent of total purchases came from foreign buyers, down from nine percent in 2013, when house prices started to fall following the introduction of the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework.

Read more here. 

From Human Resources Online:

Oakwood Studios Singapore, the world’s first Oakwood Studios, has embarked on its latest initiative catering to expatriates in Singapore, named Day & Night Curation. In an endeavour to create a more immersive stay for guests, this will take the form of day and night versions of three elements – curators’ uniforms, signature scents and music in the common areas.

Read more here.