Will Danantara take risks with startups?

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Hello reader,

It’s easy to get caught up in the hype when it comes to investing.

I’m sure everyone reading this has either bought cryptocurrency at some point or wished they had when the prices surged.

But any financial adviser will tell you that investing in boring things like bonds, index funds, blue-chip stocks, and pooled mortgage funds is the way to go with your personal finances. Or at least for those of us who don’t have seven-figure bank accounts.

Institutional investors tend to take a different approach to investing compared to the average retail investor. While individuals may chase trends, sovereign wealth funds (SWF) focus on long-term stability.

Danantara, Indonesia’s new SWF, fund might follow this playbook. However, local later stage startups might still get a slice of the pie, as today’s featured story explores.

Today we look at:

• Danantara’s cautious approach to investing
• Indonesia’s investigation into alleged fraud involving Crowde
• Other newsy highlights such as AI courses’ rollout in Beijing and the acceleration of Grab’s autonomous vehicle efforts

Premium summary

Danantara’s startup dilemma

Image credit: Timmy Loen

To invest in startups or not – that is the question for Indonesia’s new SWF, Danantara.

The fund is prioritizing investments in other sectors for now. However, it has just hired one of Indonesian tech’s most prominent power players, Pandu Sjahrir, as its chief investment officer.

• Slow and steady: Sjahrir, who’s a founding partner at AC Ventures, told Reuters in a previous interview that Danantara would be “deliberate, slow, and most likely be boring” in its investment activities.
• War chest: If later stage Indonesian startups could draw Danantara’s attention, it could alleviate the funding shortage they currently face.
• Exits, wherefore art thou?: Scandals involving firms like eFishery and Investree could make investing in local startups a risky proposition, as could the lack of viable exit opportunities.

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