2020

2020 Apr 17

Venture capital firm Quest Ventures on target to raise US$50m for its second start-up fund

The Straits Times

Pavilion Capital, a subsidiary of Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, and Kazakhstan sovereign wealth fund QazTech Ventures have already invested in the Asia Fund II, said Quest Ventures on Thursday (April 16).

The Asia Fund II will back 40 to 60 start-ups in South-east Asia and emerging Asia markets, with investments of between US$500,000 to US$1 million.

The venture firm said it will continue to back driven founders with disruptive business models that can create sustainable value for customers.

Quest Ventures has previously invested in a range of start-ups, including cashback platform ShopBack, property search portal 99.co and online marketplace operator Carousell.

Quest Ventures managing partner James Tan said: “As the digital economy matures across the world, the venture capital industry in Asia is now poised to play a mainstream role to bring the public and private markets closer.”

2020 Apr 17

Quest Ventures raises USD 50 million for investments in Southeast and Central Asia

KrASIA

Quest Ventures said this is its first institutionally backed fund, with the notable participation of two anchor LPs—Singapore’s Pavilion Capital and the Kazakhstan sovereign wealth fund, QazTech Ventures.

With this new funding, Quest Ventures will specifically seek out portfolio companies that are in the post-seed and Series A stages, while expanding its footprint in fast-growing Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines. It will also launch an accelerator in Kazakhstan to jump-start the region’s digital economy.

“We are encouraged that numerous C-suites and Asian family businesses have joined us as investors for both financial and business transformation returns in an increasingly complex and turbulent business world,” said Jeffrey Seah, a partner at Quest Ventures, in a media statement.

Speaking to KrASIA, Seah said startups should not hibernate during the COVID-19 crisis. He emphasized that this could be a good time for direct-to-customer and SaaS businesses to raise funds.

“The founders’ mettle will be severely tested, so will the dexterity and fortitude of their investors. Whether these startup businesses have been built on investment trends or actual customer benefit, the market will now do the due diligence on their business—in real time,” Seah added.

Founded in 2011, Quest Ventures has a track record of being an early investor of startups that have become households names, including Carousell, Shopback, 99.c0, and Carro. Last year, Carousell merged with 701Search to cement its dominant position in the Southeast Asian online classifieds market, taking the company’s valuation to more than USD 850 million. In March, Shopback notched USD 75 million in an extended fundraising round.

2020 Apr 17

Singapore’s Quest Ventures Closes First Round of US$50M Fund

Jumpstart Magazine

Singapore-based venture capital firm Quest Ventures has announced the first close of its new US$50 million VC fund named Asia Fund II, in a company statement today. The new fund is backed by Singapore’s Pavilion Capital and QazTech Ventures from Kazakhstan, along with support from entrepreneurs, C-Suite executives, Asia family business founders, family offices, and institutional investors across more than a dozen industries and nationalities.

Already present in fast-growing economies such as Vietnam, the fund will strengthen and expand its footprint in other Southeast Asian nations such as Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines, according to the statement.

The fund’s investment thesis lies in backing emerging South Asian startups that have scalability and replicability in large Internet communities. According to the official report, the fund will invest in startups at the post-Seed and Series A stages, and back driven founders with disruptive business models that can create new sustainable value to the end customer.

“Coming from the original disruption industry of the advertising and marketing communications world, I have witnessed how established businesses and startups view each other differently. This operational chasm between established businesses and start-ups was more perceived than real. At Quest Ventures, we encourage established businesses to partner with startups beyond proofs-of-concept. Although the starting points may be different, the common objective is survivability, and sustainable business models that can scale,” said Quest Ventures Partner Jeffrey Seah.

According to a Quest analyst Michelle Quek, the fund will be focus on investing in the digital economy including sectors like ecommerce, data, deep tech, entertainment, esports, fintech, foodtech, retail tech, and others.

Although the new fund is called Quest Ventures Asia Fund II, it is Quest’s first institutionally-backed fund since the first fund was invested out of the personal capital of its Managing Partner James Tan.

According to The Straits Times, the fund will reach its target of $50 million by April 2021 and will back 40 to 60 startups in Southeast Asia and emerging Asian markets, with investments between $500,000 and $1 million.

Quest Ventures Fund I has invested in a range of startups, including cashback platform ShopBack, property search portal 99.co and online marketplace for secondhand goods Carousell, which is valued at $850 million. The first fund has returned over 40% so far, Seah told Bloomberg.

Moreover, Kazakhstan’s national economic initiatives have seen increased business activities between Central Asia and Southeast Asia. For Qaztech, Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund, this is the first investment in a VC fund in Asia. It is aiming to tap into Quest Ventures’ experience in emerging Asia and in developing innovation ecosystems.

“The cooperation of Kazakhstan with Singapore’s leading venture fund is an important step in bringing together the innovative ecosystems of Southeast Asia and Central Asia. This partnership with Quest Ventures and Pavilion Capital will enable Kazakhstani start-ups to secure important investments, improve competencies, and gain access to global markets,” said Mr Adil Nurgozhin, Chairman of the Board of Directors at QazTech Ventures.

Additionally, Quest is also set to launch an accelerator program in Kazakhstan to provide a head start to the country’s digital economy.

“As the digital economy matures across the world, the venture capital industry in Asia is now poised to play a mainstream role to bring the public and private markets closer. Besides robust financial returns, investors look for value creation derived from business models built on strong fundamentals. Our approach has been validated by more than 50 portfolio companies in the first fund. We are humbled by the belief that our investors have in us,” said Tan.

2020 Apr 17

Quest Ventures announces first close of new fund anchored by two institutional investors

Bangkok Post

Quest Ventures, a top-ranked venture capital firm in Asia, announced the first close completion for its $50 million venture capital fund.

Quest Ventures Fund I investments include Carousell, ShopBack, 99.co, Carro, StyleTheory, SGAG/ MGAG/ PGAG, Glife, Xfers, and others. The performance of Fund I is in the top decile when compared against publicly available rankings for venture capital funds.

With Fund II, Quest Ventures now has the support of entrepreneurs, C-suite executives, Asia family business founders, family offices, and institutional investors across more than a dozen industries and nationalities.

Two notable institutional investors participated in the fund – Pavilion Capital from Singapore, and QazTech Ventures from Kazakhstan. Pavilion Capital is a Singapore-based investment firm that has backed funds in North Asia and Southeast Asia.

“We believe that opportunities in Southeast Asia are growing, and we aim to play an important role in the venture capital ecosystem here (working with Quest Ventures),” said Mr Tow Heng Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Pavilion Capital.

Kazakhstan’s national economic initiatives have seen increased business activities between Central Asia and Southeast Asia. This is its sovereign wealth fund’s first investment in a venture capital fund in Asia, and is widely seen to be tapping into Quest Ventures’ experience in emerging Asia and in developing innovation ecosystems.

2020 Apr 17

Le Kazakhstan envisage des start-ups asiatiques alors que le coronavirus frappe le prix du pétrole

Urban Fusions

Le gouvernement du Kazakhstan investira dans des start-ups en Asie du Sud-Est dans le cadre des efforts visant à diversifier la plus grande économie d’Asie centrale loin du pétrole et du gaz, où les prix ont été réduits par la pandémie de coronavirus.

Le fonds de richesse d’État du pays, Baiterek National Managing Holdings, sera l’investisseur phare dans un véhicule géré par Quest Ventures, basé à Singapour. Le fonds est également soutenu par Temasek Holdings, la société d’investissement publique de Singapour.

À 50 millions de dollars, le fonds est petit mais il s’inscrit dans un effort plus large pour créer un couloir économique entre l’Asie centrale et l’Asie du Sud-Est. Adil Nurgozhin, président de la filiale de Baiterek, QazTech Ventures, a qualifié l’accord de «pas important» dans la connexion des économies des régions.

Le Kazakhstan, pris entre les puissances régionales de la Chine et de la Russie, cherche à diversifier ses investissements de portefeuille dans différentes parties du monde, selon des personnes familières avec la situation.

La transition vers le capital-risque intervient alors que les économies riches en pétrole, telles que celles du Moyen-Orient, ont cherché à élargir leurs sources de revenus dans un contexte de prix volatils du brut et d’un abandon plus large des combustibles fossiles.

Le pétrole et les industries connexes représentent environ 40% du produit intérieur brut du Kazakhstan et son économie a été frappée par la récente chute des prix du brut et l’épidémie de coronavirus.

Le gouvernement du Kazakhstan était auparavant lié à un investissement dans le deuxième Fonds Vision du conglomérat japonais SoftBank, qui aurait pu donner au pays une exposition aux start-ups technologiques du monde entier. Cependant, ce véhicule a été définitivement gelé cette semaine après que SoftBank a averti d’une perte de 16,7 milliards de dollars pour son premier Fonds Vision.

Le Kazakhstan a également eu des entretiens sur un investissement dans le véhicule de type hedge fund de plusieurs milliards de dollars prévu par SoftBank.

«La transformation numérique a été considérablement accélérée par l’épidémie de Covid-19»

Les malheurs de SoftBank, couplés à une baisse des évaluations des start-ups suite à l’échec de l’introduction en bourse de la société de partage de bureaux WeWork l’année dernière, ont incité certains gros investisseurs à se tourner vers d’autres acteurs du capital-risque. «Après WeWork, les investisseurs se tournent vers des opérateurs expérimentés pour identifier et guider les start-ups», a déclaré Jeffrey Seah, partenaire de Quest Ventures.

Le fonds Quest Ventures investira dans des start-ups dans des pays comme le Vietnam, l’Indonésie et les Philippines. «Il s’agira de bâtir une entreprise de qualité plutôt que [attracting] valorisations élevées », a-t-il ajouté.

M. Seah a déclaré que c’était le «bon moment» pour investir dans des start-ups dans la région, étant donné que beaucoup étaient contraints de renforcer leurs offres en ligne en raison des mesures de maintien à la maison des coronavirus.

« La transformation numérique des entreprises a été considérablement accélérée par l’épidémie de Covid-19 – lorsque le virus aura disparu, ces nouvelles habitudes resteront », a-t-il ajouté.

Les actifs de Baiterek représentaient environ 15 milliards de dollars, soit 8% du PIB du Kazakhstan en 2018, selon Fitch Ratings.

Le fonds a officiellement lancé son bras de capital-risque, QazTech Ventures, en décembre avec un accord pour soutenir V Global Fund, un fonds de capital-risque créé par l’investisseur américain 500 Startups.

2020 Apr 17

Kazakhstan eyes Asia start-ups as coronavirus hits oil price

Financial Times

Kazakhstan’s government will invest in start-ups across south-east Asia as part of efforts to diversify central Asia’s largest economy away from oil and gas, where prices have been slammed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The country’s state wealth fund, Baiterek National Managing Holdings, will be the anchor investor in a vehicle run by Singapore-based Quest Ventures. The fund has also been backed by Temasek Holdings, Singapore’s state investment company.

At $50m, the fund is small but it forms part of a broader push to create an economic corridor between central and south-east Asia. Adil Nurgozhin, chairman of Baiterek subsidiary QazTech Ventures, called the deal an “important step” in connecting the regions’ economies.

Kazakhstan, sandwiched between regional powers China and Russia, is looking to diversify its portfolio investments into different parts of the world, according to people familiar with the situation.

The move into venture capital comes as oil-rich economies, such as those in the Middle East, have sought to broaden their revenue sources against a backdrop of volatile crude prices and a broader shift away from fossil fuels.

Oil and related industries make up about 40 per cent of Kazakhstan’s gross domestic product and its economy has been hit by a recent slump in crude prices and the coronavirus outbreak.

SoftBank’s woes, coupled with a fall in start-up valuations following the failed initial public offering of office sharing company WeWork last year, have prompted some big investors to turn to alternative venture capital players. “Post WeWork, investors are turning to experienced operators to identify and guide start-ups,” said Quest Ventures partner Jeffrey Seah.

The Quest Ventures fund will invest in start-ups in countries including Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. “It will be about building a quality business rather than [attracting] high valuations,” he added.

2020 Apr 17

Singapore VC firm Quest Ventures hits first close of $50m Asia fund

Tech in Asia

Singapore-based VC firm Quest Ventures has announced the first close of its new US$50 million fund, anchored by two institutional investors, Pavilion Capital and Kazakhstan sovereign wealth fund QazTech Ventures.

Quest Ventures said it plans to look for post-seed and series A opportunities across Southeast Asia and emerging Asia for its Asia Fund II. Already present in Vietnam, the company also plans to expand its footprint to other countries in the region, including Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines.

Although it’s called Asia Fund II, the vehicle is Quest Ventures’ first institutionally backed fund. Its prior fund was invested out of the personal capital of its managing partner James Tan, according to a statement. Some of its notable investments include Carousell, ShopBack, 99.co, Carro, StyleTheory, Glife, and Xfers, among others.

Quest Ventures said that the deal marks QazTech’s first investment in an Asian VC fund as it looks to tap into the increased business activities between Central Asia and Southeast Asia.

2020 Apr 17

部分风险创投基金疫情期间找到估值低潜能大投资项目

联合早报

受到2019冠状病毒疾病冲击，本地风险创投界的投资情绪转弱，不少创投基金在募集资金方面面临巨大挑战。

然而，危机同时也是商机，一些存有较充裕弹药的风险创投基金，在市场低迷时期反而找到许多估值偏低，或因疫情而具有巨大潜能的新领域如医疗、网上教育和视讯软件等投资项目。

总部设于新加坡的求索创投（Quest Ventures）宣布，吸引到淡马锡控股子公司兰亭投资国际（Pavilion Capital）和哈萨克斯坦主权财富基金旗下的QazTech Ventures加入投资。这是后者首次投资亚洲的风险投资基金。

求索创投宣布，求索创投亚洲基金II筹集了5000万美元，计划投资东南亚和新兴亚洲的起步公司，主要参与种子融资之后阶段和A轮投资。这是公司旗下首个获得机构投资者参与的基金。

索创投合伙人余庭瀚说，冠病疫情考验了每一家起步公司的产品、人才和商业基础，也考验了起步公司投资者的坚韧性和灵活性。

2020 Apr 17

新浪财经部分风险创投基金疫情期间找到估值低潜能大投资项目

新浪财经

受到2019冠状病毒疾病冲击，本地风险创投界的投资情绪转弱，不少创投基金在募集资金方面面临巨大挑战。

根据创投信息平台DealStreetAsia整理数据显示，目前东南亚有至少19个风险创投企业正为新基金筹集资本，集资规模从1500万美元到1亿5000万美元（2143万至2亿143万新元））不等。一些基金固然面临集资挑战，但也一些基金成功募集部分资金，并开始进行投资运作。

索创投合伙人余庭瀚说，冠病疫情考验了每一家起步公司的产品、人才和商业基础，也考验了起步公司投资者的坚韧性和灵活性。

2020 Apr 17

Singapore’s Quest Closes First Round of $50 Million Venture Fund

Bloomberg

Quest Ventures, a Singapore venture capital firm, said it completed the first close of a planned $50 million fund.

Quest, founded by James Tan, raised the money from investors including Pavilion Capital of Singapore and QazTech Ventures of Kazakhstan. It’s the firm’s second venture fund and its first time tapping institutional investors, after Tan financed the first fund with his own money.

Quest plans to use the new financing to make early-stage investments in startups in Southeast Asia, a sprawling region with more than 620 million people and a fast-growing internet economy. The firm sees opportunity in financing businesses that are helping consumers and companies go digital, although the coronavirus outbreak is creating substantial challenges.

“The Covid-19 virus is testing the foundations of many startups,” said Jeffrey Seah, a partner at Quest. “Those with senior leadership that is dexterous, who can adjust to market changes fast, will survive.”

The firm’s previous investments include e-commerce startups ShopBack, Style Theory and Carousell, and online marketplace for second-hand goods valued at $850 million. Its first fund has returned more than 40% (in IRR) so far, Seah said.