Funding secured by startups in Southeast Asia in the first nine months of 2024 declined 59 per cent to US$2.3 billion from the US$5.7 billion raised in the same period last year, revealed a Tracxn report. The decline is a staggering 80 per cent compared to 2022.
According to Geo YTD Report: SEA Tech 9 M 2024, the ongoing funding winter, geopolitical headwinds, and global economic challenges impacted investment deals in the current year.
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Eearly-stage investments dropped 30 per cent to US$1.2 billion in 2024 year to date compared to the same period in 2023. Late-stage funding dropped 79 per cent to US$721 million, while seed-stage investments fell 39 per cent to US$341 million.
Only two US$100 million+ rounds (Ascend Money’s US$195 million and ANEXT Bank’s US$148 million) were recorded in 2024 compared to nine in 2023.
Fintech and enterprise applications were the top-performing sectors in 2024 so far. The fintech sector secured total funding of US$1.34 billion, an 11 per cent drop from US$1.51 billion raised in the same period in 2023. The enterprise applications segment raised US$606 million in funding, a 30 per cent decline from 2023.
The number of acquisitions observed in the region was 58 in the first nine months of 2024, similar to 57 recorded in 9M 2023 but far lower than 79 in 9M 2022.
Four IPOs were recorded in 2024 so far, as against ten and two in the first nine months of 2023 and 2022, respectively. GoHub, MaNaDr, RYDE, and Topindoku are the four companies from this space that have gone public in 2024.
Singapore retained its top position in terms of city-wise funding, attracting US$1.4 billion in 2024. Tech startups based in Jakarta and Bangkok raised US$313 million and US$265 million, respectively.
Also Read: Insurtech shines amidst overall funding decline in Indonesia in H1
East Ventures, 500 Global, and Wavemaker Partners are the all-time top investors. While Antler, 500 Global, and East Ventures led seed-stage rounds, SEEDS Capital, Peak XV Partners, and Gobi Partners were the most active early-stage investors.
Southeast Asia’s tech startup landscape has raised more than US$85 billion to date and is home to 44 active unicorns.
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