500 Startups Prepare 500 Billion Rupiah "650 Durians II" Funds to Invest in Southeast Asia

Investment company 500 startups again announced the availability of a second fund, named 500 Durians II, for $50 million (around Rp. 650 billion). This fresh fund will be used to invest in Southeast Asia, with a focus on countries such as Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia. The main funding focus is on round seed funding for around 200 startups with funding values ​​ranging from $50 thousand to $150 thousand.

The 500 Durians Fund was first launched in 2013 with availability reaching $10 million which then increased to over $20 million. Some of the startups in Southeast Asia that tasted the first 500 Durians include Grab, Carousell, and Bukalapak. Now, 500 Startups, which are in Southeast Asia led Khailee Ng, raised funds for 500 Durians II with a funding target of $50 million.

Like the first 500 Durians, the 500 Durians II fund is backed by the same number of investors. Malaysia Venture Capital Management (MAVCAP) is one of the investors revealed with several other investors, said Khailee from China, Korea, the Middle East and Singapore.

Stay focused on funding seed

In the Southeast Asia region, several startups starting from the "seed stage" have started to mature and receive Series A funding and above. Even so, in an interview with Mr TechCrunch, Khailee mentioned that this new Durians fund will keep its focus on funding seed funding (seed/early stage) despite having more funds in his pocket.

Khailee said, “What we have done is proven to work and we don't want to [get] greedy. […] Pre-Series A, Series A, and Series B are new sources of money coming in at the moment, [but] none of them really fill up in the early stages. […] We will continue to 'feed' the ecosystem [with seed funding]. "

500 Startups alone planned to invest available funds for 100-200 initial funding. Meanwhile, the amount of funding provided will start from $50 thousand to $150 thousand with a broader industry focus.

Impact for Indonesian startups

The availability of fresh funds means that there will be more initial funds that can be obtained for the Southeast Asia region, including Indonesia. New startup players can try to get it, if they feel the solution built is a sustainable business. If it succeed, benefits Another thing that will be felt is adding and expanding networking business.

Several investment portfolios from 500 Startups from Indonesia have so far been able to survive and run their business well. Gradually, they also began to become more mature. These include Bukalapak, HijUp, Brodo, Qraved, and also Tees.