The startup’s investors, which include Temasek Holdings Pte and Sequoia Capital India, have started an investigation into the financial practices, the people said. Zilingo’s auditor raised questions about its accounting, they said. The concerns centre on the way that Zilingo, which regulators said had not filed annual financial statements since 2019, accounted for transactions and revenue across a platform spanning thousands of small merchants.
Zilingo Pte, one of Singapore’s highest-profile startups, has suspended Chief Executive Officer Ankiti Bose after an effort to raise new funding led to questions about the company’s accounting, according to people familiar with the matter.
The company, which supplies technology to apparel merchants and factories, had been trying to raise US$150 million ($203.4 million) to US$200 million with help from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. when investors began to question its finances as part of the due diligence process, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information is confidential. The talks, which could have boosted Zilingo’s valuation to more than US$1 billion, stalled, they said.
