Despite global fundraising headwinds, Malaysia’s venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) segments grew at a rapid pace, with total cumulative VC/PE committed funds under management recording a 21 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2020 and 2025, the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) said Monday.
The SC said in its Capital Market Masterplan 2026–2030 (CMP4) that this rapid growth was supported by regulatory clarity, sovereign fund of funds initiatives and rising investor interest in high-growth sectors like technology, semiconductor and fintech.
According to the report, total committed funds reached MYR 30.1 billion ($7.59 billion) in 2025, with MYR 2.8 billion ($710 million) deployed across 117 deals during the year.
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s financing ecosystem was further strengthened with the entry of new peer to peer (P2P) operators approved in 2023, focusing on servicing mid-tier companies (MTCs) seeking to raise funds through the Recognized Market Operator (RMO) platforms.
This development provides a viable path for businesses to raise capital from the public, said SC.
Over the period from 2020 to 2025, equity crowdfunding (ECF) and P2P platforms collectively channeled more than MYR 11.5 billion ($2.9 billion) in financing to over 20,000 businesses across various stages of growth.
P2P financing expanded steadily over the period, reaching a cumulative total of MYR 10.7 billion ($2.7 billion).
Of this amount, MYR 2.83 billion ($710 million) was raised in 2025 alone, representing a five-fold increase compared with 2020.
While ECF activity moderated in the preceding years, the market recorded an uptick in 2025, with funds raised amounting to MYR 139 million ($35.03 million).
This growth was supported by broader issuer participation, including from key productive sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing, reflecting the continued role of ECF in facilitating access to market-based financing.
Cumulative funds raised from 2020 to 2025 through ECF reached MYR 854 million ($215.25 million).
Meanwhile, the Malaysia Co-Investment Fund (MyCIF), set up under Belanjawan 2019 by the the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and SC to co-invest in micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and social enterprises via ECF and P2P platforms, continued to play a catalytic role by co-investing alongside private investors.
As of end 2025, MyCIF had mobilized MYR 1.5 billion ($380 million), attracting MYR4.13 ($1.04) of private capital for every ringgit invested. This demonstrates how public–private collaboration can expand access to market-based financing.
It is noted that to further diversify digital fundraising channels, the SC introduced Initial Exchange Offerings (IEO) in 2023.
Two IEO platforms were registered, providing a regulated avenue for eligible companies to raise capital by issuing digital tokens on distributed-ledger technology (DLT).
This initiative marks an important step towards the digitalization of capital formation, combining the accessibility of crowdfunding with the transparency and traceability of DLT-based transactions.
Over time, IEOs are expected to complement ECF and P2P platforms by expanding fundraising options and engaging a new generation of digital investors, said SC.
The expansion of alternative fundraising channels has been accompanied by a parallel transformation in Malaysia’s investment landscape, where technology and innovation are reshaping how investors access, manage and grow their capital, it added.