BRI Ventures and Fundnel to Form a 727 Billion Rupiah Fund

BRI Ventures (BVI) and Fundnel Group (Fundnel) signed an agreement to establish a new fund named the Fundnel Secondaries Fund. This managed fund will support the acceleration of startup growth in Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia.

In an official statement, BVI and Fundnel are to collect $50 million or equivalent to Rp727 billion in this managed fund. Meanwhile, the MoU signing between both entities took place on Monday (09/5).

BRI Ventures' CEO, Nicko Widjaja revealed that the "exit" trend is very difficult to follow these days due to various macro factors. Therefore, BRI Ventures is very enthusiastic about investing in late-stage startups by helping to provide liquidity in the market. "This collaboration will be a refreshing entry point for foreign investors who want to invest heavily in Indonesia's developing startups," he said.

Meanwhile, Fundnel's Co-Founder and CEO, Kelvin Lee said, this collaboration can create access to a global network of investors to invest in high-growth startups in Indonesia. With BVI and Fundnel track records, he believes to be able to form a strong investment deal.

"We are optimistic that we can achieve the desired growth potential, this also marks our commitment to provide access and liquidity to the startup ecosystem in Indonesia," Kevin said.

In the e-Conomy SEA report by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company, the value of the digital economy in Indonesia is projected to grow by 18.9% from $44 billion in 2020 to $124 billion in 2025. This growth is also driven by increased penetration of the internet, smartphones, and internet. and telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas.

In fact, the Fund targets a portfolio with high growth through non-traditional investment channels that are considered to be able to support shareholders, both early backers, founders, and employees.

This strategy is also considered to increase the enthusiasm of investors to develop startups. Meanwhile, existing investors can reinvest their capital into new business opportunities.

Expanding liquidity

On a general note, Fundnel Group is the largest alternative asset marketplace in Southeast Asia. In the last three years, the company has managed more than $12 billion in secondary deals (conditions in which an investor buys stock from an seed investor, founder, or employee in a company).

With Fundnel's license and involvement in the fundraising ecosystem in Southeast Asia, they are in a strong position to open access and exert greater price influence in regionally acquiring unicorn shares.

Along with its mission, Fundnel is exploring tokenization options for Funds on the Hg Exchange (HGX) to provide liquidity for investors. This option can allow new investors to take advantage of the liquidity in HGX as well as invest in high growth companies with a ticket size of at least $10,000.

Through HGX, Fundnel Group can also support tokenization and digital ownership of alternative assets, such as private security, managed funds, and asset-backed security (ABS) as an end-to-end solution to trade them in small quantities at lower prices so that they can accommodate liquidity needs in the private market.

–Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian