There’s almost no better time to be a tech startup in South East Asia with VC and PE investment soaring to record levels. According to Bain & Company, 2017 saw a sharp spike of recorded venture capital deals which quadrupled from its 2012 amount.
Image Credit: Bain & Company
Technology companies attracted the bulk of new capital, rising to 40% of deal count in 2017 from 20% in 2014. The region also has produced its first set of unicorns.
Since 2012, 10 unicorns including Grab, Go-Jek and Traveloka have created a combined market value of $34 billion, ranking Southeast Asia No. 3 in the Asia-Pacific region, behind only China and India.
Image Credit: Bain & Company
The Bain & Company research seems to indicate that this momentum will continue to growth with the investment ecosystem having developed critical mass.
Between now and 2019, over 60% of investors from South East Asia cite that technology will be their main focus with fintech being the largest sub-sector ahead of buzz worthy technologies like blockchain and AI.
Image Credit: Bain & Company
Bain & Company pointed out that the pool of institutional investors have expanded significantly attributing it to the region’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals, the chance to invest in emerging regional champions and a deepening secondary market for deals of all sizes.
The report states that Singapore remains South East Asia investment hub. That would also imply that Singapore is in a strong position compared to its neigbouring countries since it is also recognised as a fintech hub by the global community.
Bain & Company did not dismiss other South East Asian markets despite Singapore strong position, it stated that vibrant startups are emerging across the region, citing Indonesia’s number of companies raising first round funding in 2017 rising by 300% as an example.
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