Wow, where did 2019 go and more importantly is that really the end of the decade? For all but the first two years of that decade I’ve been working with tech startups and VC funds in Southeast Asia. Fast forward to 2019 and the Kindrik Partners team have become permanent fixtures in the startup ecosystem.

A lot has changed. Back in 2010 ride hailing apps were still being dreamed up. Now we’re debating whether we really have super apps in the region. One thing for sure is that VC activity has exploded in Southeast Asia and we expect deal flow to increase as more VCs set up shop – intrigued by the growth opportunities that young digital economies like Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam offer.

2019 saw plenty of activity for the team.  Deals tended to take slightly longer to close reflecting the fact that some of our clients have grown fast and are now raising growth capital (series B and above). But we also saw plenty of seed financings for startups springing out from accelerators and the universities.

We tend to publish our transaction numbers in the new year, so for now just some brief highlights:

• launched our newly-designed website for Southeast Asian tech companies and startups

• advised on notable corporate deals including:
  • Alodokter on its USD33million series C
  • Lifetrack Medical Systems on its series A round led by UOB and Phillips
  • C88 Financial Technologies on its acquisitions of Optus and IDX
  • Bambu on their USD10million Series B round

• interviewed VCs and put out a successful ‘Ask a VC’ blog series – by the end we had VCs contacting us due to FOMO!

• spoken at startup events hosted by accelerators and incubators across the region, including Found8, Trive, CyLon, Block71 in Jakarta, and more

• exhibited at Echelon and Tech in Asia Jakarta, which we expect will be a regular thing going forwards

Best wishes for 2020. Here’s hoping we see lots of term sheets!