Indonesia-focused early-stage VC firm Alpha JWC Ventures has closed its second fund at US$123 million, which was oversubscribed with investments from entities in Southeast Asia, Korea, China, Japan, and Europe.
The Alpha JWC Ventures team / Photo credit: Alpha JWC Ventures
In June, Alpha JWC announced that Japanese information services company NS Solutions Corporation invested an undisclosed amount in its second fund.
The Jakarta-based company has already backed 14 startups through the new fund, which was launched in 2018. Its biggest one yet is its US$8 million investment in tech-driven coffee brand Kopi Kenangan, according to a statement.
Chandra Tjan, co-founder and managing partner of Alpha JWC, said that the company can be more active and support startups from more sectors and regions with the new fund, while staying careful amid Southeast Asia’s ever-changing digital landscape.
“We insist that our founders have a clear understanding of unit economics and maintain their financial accountability from day one. We believe such approach is vital to startups’ sustainability in the long run,” Tjan said.
The company now plans to turn its focus to the broader Southeast Asian region. It has set up an office in Singapore and is planning to build a significant presence in Vietnam while continuing its focus on its home country.
In addition, Alpha JWC also promoted Erika Dianasari to serve as a partner of the firm and appointed two additional partners: Alan Hellawell, former chief strategy officer of internet giant Sea, and Eko Kurniadi, former vice president of investment at private equity firm Creador.
Will Ongkowidjaja has stepped down as managing partner to start his own fintech firm Honestbank, but will remain with Alpha JWC as a founding partner, according to a statement.
Alpha JWC launched its first fund in 2016 at US$50 million. It has backed 23 early-stage startups, mostly Indonesian, such as automotive online marketplace Carro, peer-to-peer lending firm Funding Societies, and alternative lending platform Kredivo. The firm claims it has seen a 3.2x increase in the net asset value of its first fund.
Read: Carro, the ‘Alibaba for cars,’ is growing fast and near breakeven
Some of the company’s most recent investments include those in sharia-compliant social commerce startup Evermos and fashion rental subscription platform Style Theory. It also invested US$5 million in local food and beverage brand Goola earlier this year.
Editing by Charmaine de Lazo
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