Singapore-based Asia Partners Fund Management announced Tuesday that it has closed its Southeast Asia second tech fund at $474 million.
Asia Partners said in a statement that the investment is showing investors’ interest in the region even amid a global slowdown in initial public offerings and venture-capital fundraising.
Including the $384 million close of its debut fund in 2021, Asia Partners now has $1 billion in assets under management.
The firm typically targets investments in the range of $20 million to $100 million, aiming to capitalize on economic growth in a populous region with fast-growing digital connectivity.
More than 9 percent of the fund’s capital is from the company’s employees and advisory board members.
Its limited partners include family offices along with institutional and individual investors across six continents.
“This decade will be a ‘golden age of entrepreneurship and innovation for Southeast Asia’,” the firm’s Cofounder and partner Oliver Rippel said.
Rippel was previously chief executive of business-to-consumer e-commerce at South African media and internet giant Naspers, and before that, an executive working on Southeast Asia strategy for eBay.
According to the statement, the close comes amid a challenging environment for IPOs given volatile stock markets, the poor performance of many companies that have listed, and high interest rates offering investors attractive alternatives with less risk.
Venture markets are also down, while private equity is seeing its toughest period for fundraising since the 2007-09 financial crisis.
Cited a November report from Google, Singapore state-investment company Temasek Holdings and consulting firm Bain & Co., it said that in Southeast Asia, private funding of companies has also sunk in recent years.
Still, it said the region that is home to more than 600 million people is seeing its digital economy expand as consumers increasingly transact online.
It noted that Southeast Asia—spanning Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam—notched $100 billion in revenue across various digital-economy sectors last year, which was eight times the 2016 level.
Cited the report, it said there remains significant headroom in Southeast Asia, underpinned by favorable demographics, growing wealth and an increasingly urbanized population.
However, it said that the region isn’t without challenges. It is highly diverse, with languages, consumer preferences and regulations varying across countries, it added.
In 2022, Asia Partners led an $80 million round of investment in Singapore-based shopping and rewards platform ShopBack, and participated in a $38.8 million round of investment in Southeast Asia-focused telemedicine provider Doctor Anywhere.
Asia Partners closes its inaugural fund for Southeast Asia startups at $384M