Singapore-headquartered venture capital firm Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India (VVSEAI) has announced the promotions of Pui Yan Leung and Kanika Mayar, to Partners.

Based in Singapore, Pui Yan joined VVSEAI two years ago and has strong expertise in the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) fields, as well as a track record of leading deals across the enterprise software, blockchain, creator economy and consumer sectors.

Based in India, Kanika has been with VVSEAI since 2020 and is one of the few senior female investment professionals in the country across more than 500 venture capital funds. She has led deals across sectors such as agritech, business-to-business (B2B), consumer and health tech.

“Both Pui Yan and Kanika are purpose-driven investment professionals with extensive experience in investing and working with start-up founders. They have made significant contributions to VVSEAI and have constantly provided valuable insights and perspectives to our deal decisions,” said Joo Hock Chua, Managing Partner at VVSEAI, said in a statement on Wednesday.

“I am happy to note that half of our investment team comprises female colleagues. We have always been gender-neutral in hiring as we believe in bringing in the best talent to build an enduring organization. We provide opportunities for them to grow and become future generation leaders to lead VVSEAI. The promotion of Pui Yan and Kanika to Partners is a testament to that,” Joo Hock added.

VVSEAI is an early stage VC firm that invests across Southeast Asia and India. VVSEAI has a strong record of working closely with start-ups to build global champions including Grab, Patsnap, Nium, Licious, FirstCry and others. Headquartered in Singapore, the VC firm has local investment teams in Bangalore, Jakarta and Bangkok.

Some of its recent investments include Aruna, SCB Abacus, Ayu Health, Kapiva, Dedoco, Tiptip, DailyBox, Signzy and others.

VVSEAI fund is part of Vertex Holdings’ network of global funds.

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