Today, Singapore is a favorite destination for the technology startups across Asia. The venture capitalists are mostly attracted towards technological innovations and advancements and this has proved a boon for the entrepreneurs associated with the sector.
Apart from the venture capitalists, there are angel investors and private equity funds also looking for suitable entrepreneurs around the country. The seed stage startups mostly approach the angel investors as these groups are more into encouraging the startups to grow successful although the capital they offer is much less than what the VCs offer.
The venture capital industry, although still in its early stage in Singapore, are more powerful than any other investor. Their growth story started ever since the Techno pruner ship Investment Fund was established in 1999 which gave a significant boost to the VC industry in Singapore. The fund was created to attract more and more VCs from the overseas to open there investment operations in Singapore.
They mainly aim at profit making and are very particular while selecting the portfolio company. Typically, these investors prefer to invest in the second or third round of financing just to make sure that the company has reached a considerably safer position. However, they can also choose a seed-stage startup provided they consider it unique and highly-potential.
The unique market of Singapore is another great reason behind the success of the venture capital industry. The country enjoys a stable financial, political and social environment which frequently attracts entrepreneurs from around the world to establish their startups in the county and serve the potential customers. Needless to say, this in turn motivates the VCs to target the market as there are numerous lucrative opportunities.
An entrepreneur looking for a suitable Venture Capital firm in Singapore has to have a unique business plan (to some extent supported by his personal savings), a great management team, a unique business model, a sizable market and a strong value proposition to convince the investors.
Here are a few of the most popular venture capital firms in Singapore:
Jungle Ventures, Intel capital, Siquoia Capital, Singtel Innov8, Vertex Venture, Walden International, Golden Gate Ventures, Rebright Partners, Gobi Partners, Extream ventures, JFDI.Asia, JAFCO Asia, Infocomm Investments, Adam Street Partners, TIF Group and many others. These investors have their own preferential sectors based on which they select their portfolio companies. They usually prefer to invest in the sector they are familiar with. Apart from offering capital, they also offer other value added-services like mentorship and guidance, exit facilities and a strong network.
While investing, these investors evaluate various factors regarding the startup such as, the team and other investors behind the company, the market opportunity and trends, financial status of the firm, how much they want to raise and how they will utilize the fund and most importantly their managerial and financial knowledge.
The most important thing that the VCs focus on is the management and what entrepreneurs should focus on is a realistic valuation of their business. If everything falls in place, it won’t be that tough for a startup to find a suitable venture capital firm in Singapore.
For information on venture capital in Singapore, feel free to get in touch with us at http://mergeralpha.com/
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