Southeast Asian tech startups defied the pandemic and attracted similar levels of investment in 2020 because the 12 months before, outperforming most other emerging markets.
Cento Ventures research showed that tech startups within the region raised $8.2 billion, down 3.5% from 2019. By comparison, the decline is 31% in India and 38% in Africa, based on a Singapore-based enterprise capital firm.
The region of around 650 million people is growing rapidly online, with countries resembling Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam using e-commerce, fintech and transportation applications. Still, Southeast Asia overtook the United States and the European Union, whose tech startups saw record investments last 12 months and grew 13% and 15% respectively, Cento said. Startups in China obtained 6% more funds than a 12 months earlier.
“2020 presents a serious reason to re-evaluate how technology can be used to maintain key functions of society,” said Dmitry Levit, partner at Cento, an early-stage investor that has backed startups including 2C2P, iPrice Group and Pomelo. “Investment in the digital transformation of retail, food, financial services and logistics has increased accordingly, and in 2021 and 2022 we will see more industries respond similarly.”
Nearly half of the funds raised went to unicorn foundations including Grab Holdings Inc., Gojek, Bukalapak.com and Traveloka. Deals value greater than $100 million accounted for 57% of total investments, while deals value $50 million to $100 million reached a record $1.1 billion, up 26% from the previous 12 months.
According to the report, Indonesian startups accounted for 70% of the capital invested in Southeast Asia, with startups from Indonesia and Singapore together accounting for 64% of the whole deal volume. Despite fewer resources, more unicorns are being listed within the region. In total, there are 17 unicorns in Southeast Asia, with Singapore dominating valuations and Indonesia lagging behind.
(From various sources)
