INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
One of the fascinating things about watching an emerging startup ecosystem is that it isn''t just companies that are scaling, the very VC
firms that feed them are growing themselves, too
That perhaps best embodied byGolden Gate Ventures, a Singapore-based firm founded by three Silicon Valley entrepreneurs in 2011 which is
about to close a huge new fund for Southeast Asia.
Golden Gate started out with a small seed investment fund before raising a second worth
Now it is in the closes stages of finalizing a new $100 million fund, which has completed a first close of over $65 million in commitments,
a source with knowledge of discussions told TechCrunch.
A filing lodged with the SEC in June first showed the firm intent to raise $100
The source told TechCrunch that a number of LPs from Golden Gate previous funds have already signed up, including Naver, while Mistletoe,
the firm run by SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son brother Taizo, is among the new backers joining.
Golden Gate existing LP base also includes
Singapore sovereign fund Temasek, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, and South Korea Hanwha.
A full close for the fund is expected before
the end of the year.
The firm has made over 40 investments to date and its portfolio includes mobile classifieds service Carousell,
automotive sales startup Carro, real estate site 99.co, and payment gateway Omise
TechCrunch understands that the firm investment thesis will remain the same with this new fund
When it raised its second fund, founding partner Vinnie Lauria told us that Golden Gate had found its match at early-stage investing and it
will remain lean and nimble like the companies it backs.
One significant change internally, however, sees Justin Hall promoted topartner at
He joins Lauria, fellow founding partner Jeffrey Paine, and Michael Lints at partner level.
Hall first joined Golden Gate in 2012 as an
intern while still a student, before signing on full-time in 2013
His rise through the ranks exemplifies the growth and development within Southeast Asia startup scene over that period — it isn''t just
limited to startups themselves.
The Golden Gate Ventures team circa 2016 — it has since added new members
With the advent of unicorns
such as ride-sharing firms Grab and Go-Jek, travel startup Traveloka, and e-commerce companies like Tokopedia, Southeast Asia has begun to
show potential for homegrown tech companies in a market that includes over 650 million consumers and more than 300 million internet users
The emergence of these companies has spiked investor interest, which provides the capital that is the lifeblood for VCs and their
funds.
Golden Gate is the only one raising big
Openspace, formerly NSI Ventures, is raising $125 million for its second fund, Jungle Ventures is said to be planning a $150 million fund,
and Singapore Golden Equator and Korea Investment Partners have a joint $88 million fund,while Temasek-linked Vertex closed a record $210
million fund last year.
Growth potential is leading the charge but at the same time funds are beginning to focus on realizing returns for
LPs through exits, which is challenging since there have been few acquisitions of meaningful size or public listings out of Southeast Asia
But, for smaller funds, the results are already promising.
Data from Prequin, which tracks investment money worldwide, shows that Golden
Gate first fund has already returned a multiple of over 4X, while its second is at 1.3 despite a final close in 2016.
Beyond any secondary
sales — it is not uncommon for early-stage backers to sell a minority portion of equity as more investment capital pours in — Golden
Gate exits have included the sale of Redmart to Lazada (although not a blockbuster), Priceline acquisition of Woomoo, Line acquisition of
Temanjalanand the sale ofMapan (formerly Ruma) to Go-Jek.
