ScaleUp Malaysia Partners Singapore’s Quest Ventures to Take M'sian Solutions Global

• Parties to jointly invest a fixed US$60,250 in up to 12 Malaysian firms
• Quest Ventures allocates US$1 mil for partnership, can invest directly as well

[Subheads edited for accuracy.]

Leading accelerator, ScaleUp Malaysia, today announced that it has entered into an exclusive partnership with Quest Ventures, a Singapore-based regional venture capital firm that has committed to invest US$1 million (RM4,150,000) into scaling the regional growth of up to 12 Malaysian startups.

To qualify for the programme, scaleups must be operating on business models that have the propensity to disrupt existing markets or have solutions that are able to navigate future challenges and take advantage of opportunities brought about by the current economic climate.

24 companies that have been shortlisted from the Cohort 2 applications will begin their accelerator journey in October before presenting their solutions in front of the Investment Committee at the end of the programme. As part of the partnership, ScaleUp Malaysia Cohort 2 powered by Quest Ventures will invest at least USD$60,250 (RM250,000) in up to 12 of these companies, an increase from Cohort 1 where 10 companies received an investment of US$48,000 (RM200,000) each. Quest Ventures can also choose to invest more, directly, into any company it sees fit.

[Ed: Para updated for accuracy.]

According to James Tan, Managing Partner of Quest Ventures, “Beyond the traditional investment role of VCs, we see it as our tech ecosystem duty to drive a speedier adoption of the Digital Economy. Our partnership with ScaleUp Malaysia will enable us to support the top tech talent teeming in Malaysia and provide necessary and timely support to power their disruptive businesses to break into the post-pandemic emerging Asia markets.”

Quest Ventures is a leading fund from Singapore with a portfolio of 50+ venture-backed companies operating in over 150 cities across Asia, with over 4,400 employees.

ScaleUp Malaysia launched its first cohort in December 2019 with 20 companies. 10 of them received an investment of USD$48,283 (RM200,000). The accelerator, through their Pegasus model, grooms startups in the growth and post product-market fit stage into scaleup businesses with high revenue growth and increased profitability rates that attract follow-on investments.

“In this second cohort, we want to empower solutions that tap into the buy-in of the digital economy and prime them through our rigorous syllabus designed to take companies to the global stage. Our partnership with Quest Ventures will enable our scaleups to accelerate their growth, access adjacent markets and unlock a wealth of economic possibilities through value creation, needed now more than ever with our slowing global economy brought about by Covid-19,” said Dr V. Sivapalan, senior partner of ScaleUp Malaysia.

Earlier this year, Quest Ventures announced the first close of its venture capital fund named Asia Fund II after clinching support from Singapore’s Pavilion Capital which is a subsidiary of Singapore state investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd and QazTech Ventures which is a subsidiary of Kazakhstan state investment institution, Baiterek National Managing Holding JSC.

The fund will be used to further expand and strengthen its presence within Southeast and Emerging Asia.

Applications for cohort 2 are officially open today (8 Sept) 2020. Participants must be registered as a Malaysian company and will be shortlisted based on four key criteria:

1) revenue generation;

2) ability to demonstrate product-market fit;

3) potential of highly scalable products or service with large gro wth potential; and

4) possibility of global expansion.

For more information on ScaleUp Malaysia and to register your interest for cohort 2, visit: https://www.scaleup.my/