Southeast Asia’s e-commerce story is usually told through consumer platforms such as Shopee, Lazada and TikTok Shop. However, the region’s continued digital growth also depends on less visible companies building payment, procurement, distribution, inventory and omnichannel retail infrastructure.

These businesses help merchants participate in e-commerce without replacing their existing operations. From digitising neighbourhood stores to automating enterprise procurement, the following six startups are building the systems that keep Southeast Asia’s digital commerce economy moving.

We examine the hidden imbalance behind Southeast Asia’s e-commerce boom

Qashier, Singapore

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across Southeast Asia often have separate systems for payments, inventory recording and customer rewards. This can create administrative complications and make it harder for merchants to track business performance across various outlets. Singapore-based Qashier seeks to plug this gap, integrating these various functions on one platform. Founded in 2019, its flagship payment terminal and software platform combines point-of-sale tools with payment acceptance, inventory tracking, customer loyalty programmes and even marketing features. This simplifies tasks for merchants, allowing them to manage both transactions and customer relationships through one cohesive platform. 

Qashier’s selling point is its focus on the entire merchant operation, not just digital payments. On top of supporting more than 20 regional payment methods, its system also helps businesses track stock, recognise returning customers and even manage cross-border settlements. 

Its relevance to the Southeast Asian e-commerce market is seen in how the company reportedly processed US$ 1 billion of annualised payment volume for more than 20,000 merchants across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines as of June 2026. They also recently raised US$ 6.125 million in Series A+ funding, which will allow the company to better integrate the latest artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and enhance their platform. 

Qashier’s success suggests that point-of-sale systems are becoming broader business management platforms. By capitalising on the popularity of digital payments, Qashier allows companies to use this transaction data to improve stock control, customer retention and daily decision-making.

Baskit, Indonesia

Indonesia-based Baskit gained prominence for digitising distribution networks in Indonesia’s traditionally offline retail economy. Rather than building another consumer marketplace, Baskit provides tools for brands, distributors and retailers to manage ordering, inventory and payment across the existing supply chain. 

Baskit effectively supports brands and distributors looking to scale in the e-commerce space by offering a combination of business software and financial support. Distributors can use the platform to manage orders and customers while gaining better visibility over products moving through their network. For brands, the Baskit Cash Flow program provides upfront payment, allowing them to fund their purchase of stock even if buyers choose delayed payment options. This addresses a hurdle faced by many businesses operating on narrow margins. 

In April 2026, Baskit announced the first close of a US$4.4 million Series A round and secured a US$3 million revolving credit facility from HSBC Innovation Banking. This move will test if Baskit can adapt its model to digitise another fragmented retail system where independent stores play an important role. 

Eezee, Singapore

On first glance, enterprise procurement may appear distant from e-commerce. Nonetheless, businesses have to constantly purchase equipment, tools and operating supplies. These purchases are often sourced through scouring the internet and managed through emails, spreadsheets and manual approval processes. 

In response, Singapore-based Eezee provides a digital procurement platform for these purchases. Its platform connects businesses to suppliers, allowing them to request quotations, compare options and manage approvals through one central system. Eezee targets smaller, frequent purchases that large procurement systems often handle poorly. While these transactions may not be valuable individually, they can still be time-consuming for businesses when put together and difficult to monitor across departments. Leveraging AI software through their RFQBot and ProcureFlow tools, Eezee allows businesses to automate quotation requests and purchasing tasks, streamlining the often arduous procurement process. 

Eezee operates across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines and announced its expansion into Thailand in February 2026. Its businesses in Malaysia and Indonesia have reached operational profitability. Eezee demonstrates how e-commerce infrastructure is moving into the procurement process. The same principles that once guided e-commerce marketplaces, such as simplified consumer shopping, price comparison and quick ordering, are now similarly modernising enterprise procurement. 

GrowSari, Philippines 

The Philippines is populated by more than a million sari-sari stores. These are small neighbourhood retailers integral to local communities, providing everyday products and services. Although these stores account for a significant share of consumer spending, many have traditionally relied on manual ordering and informal supply networks. 

GrowSari targets this overlooked sector, connecting these stores with a network of manufacturers and distributors through a digital platform. Store owners are able to tap into the platform to order goods, access a wider product range and arrange deliveries without the aid of traditional sales agents. More than supporting wholesale ordering, GrowSari enables stores to provide bill payment services and mobile airtime products for customers as well as digital payments. Sari-sari store owners are thus provided with additional sources of income while turning their shops into local service hubs for the neighbourhood. The platform also grants large consumer brands a more organised and accessible way to reach thousands of small merchants, which would otherwise be expensive to serve individually. 

GrowSari’s model shows how e-commerce infrastructure can be used to strengthen existing businesses rather than replace them. Through digitising access for these small localised merchants, it aids them to remain competitive and relevant amidst Southeast Asia’s e-commerce boom. 

OneShop, Vietnam 

In a similar vein, OneShop is a platform digitising backend retail operations for numerous household businesses across Vietnam. The platform seeks to target a similar pain point for small traditional retailers struggling to adapt to the increasingly digital market where procurement is handled in the online space.

The platform allows merchants to order products from distributors, manage sales and inventory as well as monitor revenue through a mobile application. It also includes point-of-sale functions, electronic invoicing and support for tax declarations. One of its most practical tools is the voice-based order entry, made predominantly for merchants who are less comfortable with complex digital tools. By leveraging AI and big data analytics to forecast market demand, OneShop aids business owners in making more cost-effective procurement and inventory decisions. 

OneShop currently connects small businesses with over 10,000 products and 500 domestic and international suppliers supported by its established warehouse and transportation system. It aims to connect some 5.2 million small businesses all across Vietnam into one centralised digital ecosystem in the near future. OneShop thus addresses a key e-commerce infrastructure gap through helping fragmented offline merchants remain competitive without needing to build their own costly digital systems. 

SiteGiant, Malaysia 

Malaysia-based SiteGiant is an omnichannel management platform for SMEs in the region. Established in 2013, its greatest appeal lies in the breadth of tools offered to merchants with a six-in-one integrated platform covering web stores, marketplace management, inventory, warehouses, physical retail and social commerce. 

SiteGiant seeks to support SMEs in upscaling and selling across various digital channels such as Shopee, Lazada and TikTok Shop. Moreover, its Online-Merge-Offline tool connects digital and physical retail, allowing merchants to synchronise product orders and inventory management across various digital platforms as well as physical stores. Beyond this, the platform also aids merchants in building their own web stores, warehouse management tools and customer loyalty tracking, automating e-commerce operations. 

SiteGiant provides a powerful platform for Malaysian SMEs seeking to move towards a broader omnichannel retail model in the e-commerce landscape. To date, the platform has supported more than 20,000 merchants and has processed more than RM 10 billion in annual gross merchandise value. 

Merchant infrastructure may be the next e-commerce winner

The next phase of Southeast Asia’s e-commerce boom may reward the companies enabling transactions rather than those competing directly for consumers. As more merchants seek to enter the e-commerce space, they will need reliable systems for payment, procurement, distribution and customer management. This gives e-commerce infrastructure providers a growing role in almost every stage of the process. 

More importantly, these infrastructure providers can benefit from building more durable relationships than consumer platforms driven by traffic and promotions through embedding themselves in merchants’ daily operations. By positioning themselves as the essential underlayer of Southeast Asia’s e-commerce boom, the next major winners in the e-commerce space may thus be companies that power growth quietly from behind the scenes.