INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Southeast Asia venture capital space is booming right now
OpenspaceVentures just announced the close of its newest $135 million fund, Golden Gate Ventures hit the first close on its upcoming $100
million vehicle, and a third Singapore-based fund is also raising big right now: Qualgro.
Unlike others, Qualgro has operated relatively
under the radar to date.
That been very deliberate, according to managing partnerHeang Chhor, who started the firm after leaving McKinsey
following a 26-year stint that spanned Europe and Asia
Cambodian by birth, Chhor grew up in France and he rose to become a member of theMcKinsey Global Board, whilst also leading the business in
Japan.
Prior to McKinsey,Chhor started a number of businesses — of which he says he got a modest exit but plenty of experience — and now
he is turning his attention to Southeast Asia, where growing internet access among a cumulative base of 650 million consumers is opening up
new opportunities for tech and internet businesses
The region digital economy is forecast to pass $200 billion by 2020, up from an estimated $50 billion in 2017, according to a much-cited
report from Temasek and Google.
Qualgro — which stands for ‘quality& and ‘growth,& in case you wondered — opened its doors in 2015
with a maiden $50 million fund
Alongside Chhor isJason Edwards, formerly with PE firm Clearwater Capital and Peter Huynh, who joined from the Singtel Innov8 VC arm
To date, Qualgro has made 19 investments, which include IP and data firm Patsnap, e-commerce startup Shopback, and lending platform Funding
Societies.
The aim is to super-size that with this new fund, which this week completed a first close of $60 million
The total target is $100 million
Qualgro didn''t comment on the identity of its LPs, but it said the increased capital will see it further its efforts on Series B deals.
The
firm has focused on Series A and B deals in Southeast Asia so far with a primary interest in b2b businesses, and those that use data, AI,
enterprise and Sass models
Beyond that b2b specialism, the firm looks to distinguish itself by offering international growth opportunities to its portfolio
That to say that Chhor uses his networks across the world to help Southeast Asia-based companies expand into new geographical markets —
especially on issues like setting up offices and hiring — whilst also tapping his connections within the enterprise and business
worlds.
As a Southeast Asia-based VC, we are looking for talented people that are able to grow their company regionally and potentially
become a real global player
It a little bit difficult because as a Southeast Asian entrepreneur you need to have certain skills and be on the right business model to
access the global world and compete successfully [but] we invest in this type of talent irrespective of their country in Southeast Asia,&
Chhor told TechCrunch.
[Left to right] Heang Chhor, Qualgro founder and managing partner, Jason Edwards, co-founder and partner, and Peter
Huynh, co-founder and partnerThat been most visible with its efforts in Australia to date
For example, Qualgro has worked closely with Shopback to expand its service into the country
While Patsnap, too, has leveraged its investor to expand into Europe, where it has a sizeable operation in addition to its Singapore HQ.
But
the strategic deals also flow the other way.
Qualgro is looking to back companies that seek the opportunities to move into Southeast Asia
To date that has seen it get active in the Australian market, where it has done more deals that other Southeast Asian VC firm
Those includeData Republic, which has expandedto Singapore with plans to go beyond that, too.
Chhor explained that, beyond its current scope
on Southeast Asia and Australia, the firm is open to pursuing deals with companies in markets like Europe and Japan when there are
opportunities for Qualgro to come in as a strategic investor help grow businesses and expand networks across Asia.
Indeed, Qualgro focus on
international is reflected in its team which consists of six people in Singapore with one in Australia and an advisor in Europe.
