Singapore’s Ninja Van has raised $279 million from backers including France’s GeoPost SA and ride-hailing giant Grab Holdings Inc., scoring one of Southeast Asia’s largest startup investments since Covid-19 was declared a pandemic.
Over the last few weeks, we have seen and will continue to see who will be the survival of the fittest. At MHV, we’ve started breaking down companies into three buckets.
The economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 outbreak could be a "reset button" for lofty startup valuations in Southeast Asia, while presenting an opportunity for venture capitalists to invest in fundamentally sound companies at a cheaper price.
The world is a radically different place from where it was early this year. In early February, COVID-19 still felt like a faraway problem to many investors – something that people read about but did not expect to encounter firsthand.
2019 was a good year for Vietnam’s startups. More still was expected from 2020. But the coronavirus outbreak and the looming cash crunch mean the current prognosis is rendered in much more sombre tones.
As we saw the coronavirus situation unfolding in China and then snowballing throughout Southeast Asia, we knew from experience as investors and former operators in the region that, for some of our founders and CEOs, there would be difficult times ahead and they would need to start acting quickly and decisively.
There’s a great scene in HBO’s Silicon Valley that takes place at TechCrunch Disrupt where each Founder is pitching their big idea at Demo Day. We see each Founder going up to the stage one by one where they start with “We’re making the world a better place by [insert super technical business proposition].
There has never been a better time than now to be a tech investor in Southeast Asia. Tech companies are transforming traditional industries today. An exciting phenomenon is powering the rise of such transformational tech companies today: technification.
Southeast Asia’s healthcare system is struggling to meet the changing needs of its increasingly affluent population. Going forward, technology will play a key role in delivering cost-effective, high quality and convenient treatments.
At Monk’s Hill Ventures, we receive dozens of pitch decks every day. I personally look at hundreds of pitch decks every year. As a venture investor, it comes with the territory.
The coming generation of technology companies, which I call the ‘Third Generation’, mark a significant improvement on ‘Second Generation’ businesses that simply looked at one part of the customer journey i.e. from an offline on to an online platform.
In a vibrant region like Southeast Asia, expanding your business beyond the borders of your original market holds tremendous opportunities. A larger audience is only the beginning.
More and more investors and LPs are becoming interested in Southeast Asia. This is no surprise, given the region’s strong long-term track record of economic growth.
Scaling in SEA can be a challenge. It is one of the most diverse regions of the Asian continent, divided by politics, language and culture. But for startups, there are ways to overcome these challenges and turn this diversity into an opportunity as you expand your business across the region.
Existing regulations are difficult to navigate, while the implementation of new ones can sink entire business models. To add to that complexity, regulations tend to vary widely from country to country within a region. However, to be blunt: that’s simply no excuse.
