Dato’ Chevy Beh founded a Malaysian healthcare platform called BookDoc with the intention of improving the ease of access to immediate healthcare. Available on both the App Store and Play Store, it’s a platform that users can use to access specialists from a various range of medical fields, and in so doing access timely healthcare as and when necessary.
The platform unites patients from any given time and from any given location to healthcare professionals by providing them with timely access, resource optimization, and by enabling them to make informed choices. In essence, it links up those in need with those who can assist by optimizing time for both parties, and it gives patients an opportunity to reap the benefits of early access to healthcare.
Having launched officially in October 2015, they’ve grown rapidly and within a short period of time they’ve fostered strategic partnerships with prominent specialised hospitals.
They recently partnered with Subang Jaya Medical Center (SJMC), a leading tertiary healthcare provider, among other big names like Institut Jantung Negara (National Heart Institute), the largest private hospital in Malaysia in terms of revenue and bed size; Sime Darby Ramsay Healthcare, the largest conglomerate in Malaysia and the largest hospital group in Australia; Tun Hussein Onn National Eye Hospital; along with numerous corporate clients. Collectively, these strategic partnerships with hospitals and corporations have a market capitialisation of USD$15 billion.
The platform also claims to have achieved the highest pre-seed and seed funding valuations in the tech startup history of Asia. They also recently concluded their seed round led by Prince Abdul Qawi, a member of the Brunei Royal family and the 8th successor to the throne of Brunei. This also happens to be the first time the Brunei Royal family is publicly investing in a technology platform in Malaysia.
The latest funding round is really a shot in the arm. “The record valuation of the seed round is a resounding endorsement of the execution track record of the team and will spur us on to strive forward with more innovative partnerships while perfecting our solutions,” Dato’ Chevy Beh said. “Moreover, we have greater financial flexibility now to seek out long-term strategic investors which could complement our future business growth.”
This round of funding will go towards expanding its workforce, funding the second phase of its technological development and strengthening the infrastructure to support regional growth. BookDoc recently started to venture into Singapore and Hong Kong, and they’re also planning on rolling out the service to Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines in the next couple of months.
BookDoc also teamed up with GrabTaxi in Malaysia to further improve access to healthcare. Users can now seamlessly move from booking appointments on BookDoc to hailing a ride from GrabTaxi. Also, to further improve the overall state of healthcare and to ensure that their services comply with ethical standards, they established an Advisory Group with respected healthcare leaders initially from Malaysia to advise them on strategic areas related to content, medical ethics, regulatory matters and issues of interest to the public and medical communities.