Nicko Widjaja
Indonesia-based BRI Ventures has announced the launch of an independent venture fund, called Sembrani Nusantara, to help local tech startups survive and grow amid COVID-19, according to a press statement.
The new fund, which is targeting an Rp300 billion (US$21.2 million) first close from third-party Limited Partners, will primarily invest in startups in the education, agro-maritime, retail, transportation, and healthcare sectors.
Sembrani Nusantara, which means ‘unicorn archipelago’, has already obtained the required licence from the country’s financial regulator OJK.
The venture fund is currently on the lookout for institutional and other types of investors to back the fund.
BRI said Sembrani Nusantara aims to take a more hyper-localised stance by focusing on a single company with the investment philosophy of ‘value over valuation’.
According to BRI, as the tech landscape in the archipelago continues to mature coinciding with the aftermath of the pandemic, the industry’s focus has shifted towards companies that can survive in times of crisis.
“We can see that the industry is shifting dramatically. Until recently, the priority for local startups has been to grow at all costs. Now, the name of the game is to simply survive and reach sustainable growth,” said Nicko Widjaja, CEO of BRI Ventures.
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“The concept of the ‘unicorn’ itself is a word adopted straight from Silicon Valley. It’s a concept that we think is beginning to lose its alignment with Indonesia’s digital ecosystem. We feel that we need our symbol, one that can inspire local startups to rise from the ground and fly high. This is what the Sembrani represents,” he added.
BRI Venture has over US$250 million in assets under management and is owned by state-owned Bank BRI. The VC firm recently signed a strategic MoU to create new joint initiative with ride-hailing giant Grab to create unique growth opportunities for new-age Indonesian startups.
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Image Credit: BRI Ventures
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