Singapore-based VC firm Quest Ventures has announced the first close of its second fund at US$50 million.
As per a press note, this represents more than half of Quest’s fund target for the second fund, called Quest Ventures Asia Fund II.
Two institutional investors, which participated in this investment, are Pavilion Capital from Singapore and QazTech Ventures from Kazakhstan.
The fund II will invest in startups across Southeast Asia and emerging Asia at the post-seed and Series A stages.
Additionally, Quest Ventures said it will expand its footprint to countries, such as Indonesia, Myanmar and the Philippines. It already has a presence in fast-growing economies such as Vietnam.
“We were deliberate in selecting our investors as we value both financial and operational contributions. As operators ourselves before becoming investors, we appreciate what a diverse team can bring to the table. With this fund, we hope to bring different skill sets, domain experience and connections to help our companies,” said Goh Yiping, Partner 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. 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, Partner at Quest Ventures.
In addition to this announcement, Quest also said it will launch an accelerator in Kazakhstan to jumpstart the region’s digital economy.
Kazakhstan’s national economic initiatives have seen increased business activities between Central Asia and Southeast Asia. This is its sovereign wealth fund Qaztech’s first investment in a VC fund in Asia, and is widely seen to be tapping into Quest’s 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 and Pavilion will enable Kazakhstani startups to secure important investments, improve competencies, and gain access to global markets,” said Adil Nurgozhin, Chairman of the Board of Directors at QazTech Ventures.
Quest is an active VC fir which has to date invested in 50-plus companies, including Carousell, ShopBack, 99.co, Carro, StyleTheory, SGAG/ MGAG/PGAG, Glife, and Xfers.
The VC firm’s first fund was invested out of the personal capital of its Managing Partner James Tan.
“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.
QazTech Ventures Joint Stock Company is a development institution owned by Baiterek National Managing Holding. The core mission of QazTech Ventures is the promotion of technological entrepreneurship realised through the development of venture capital funding, business incubation and technological consulting services.
Pavilion Capital, a subsidiary of Temasek, has backed funds in North Asia and Southeast Asia.
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Image Credit Quest Ventures
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