A deep dive into Khazanah’s tech investment journey

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Hello reader,

Over here in Singapore, some of us (including myself) like to jokingly refer to the government as ah gong, which roughly translates to “grandfather.” It speaks to the paternalistic view that many locals have of the government, so when we receive certain benefits from time to time I’ll just go: “Thank you ah gong.”

This can refer to any branch of the government too. Get cash handouts under the annual Budget from the Ministry of Finance? Thank you ah gong. Successfully secure housing from the Housing and Development Board? Thank you ah gong. Get a nicer meal while serving your National Service one day? You know what to say.

Looking at today’s story got me curious about how my neighbors up north casually refer to their government. Does it apply across all the agencies and statutory boards like us? Or do different ones have different colloquial terms?

More specifically, what would those in the tech scene call Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, whenever they receive an investment? We might not get the answer in today’s story, but it does take a closer look at what the fund has been up to in the country’s tech and startup sector.

Today we look at:

• Khazanah Nasional’s role in the Malaysian tech scene
• A strong jump in revenue for a Singaporean SaaS startup
• Other newsy highlights such as Orbit Connect India getting permission to operate its satellites and GoTo Group’s latest statement concerning potential layoffs.

Premium summary

Lots of fingers in lots of pies

Image credit: Timmy Loen

Khazanah Nasional has been around for some time, being founded in 1993. However its tech mandate was only established a little more recently – 2012, to be exact. Since then, the fund has been investing in both local and overseas tech firms. Let’s take a closer look at its journey.

• You’ve got a friend in me: Some of Khazanah’s earliest investments were into Chinese tech giants such as Alibaba and Ant Financial, as part of former prime minister Najib Razak’s efforts to foster greater ties with China.
• Speed bumps: The sovereign wealth fund has had some hiccups along the way, such as missing out on funding Grab and the closure of FashionValet, one of its portfolio companies.
• Parameters: Khazanah’s mandates are usually dictated by the prevailing government, and the prime minister has the right to veto decisions by its board. Additionally, it also has to fulfill a social mandate of investing in entities controlled or run by the country’s largest ethnic group, the Malays or “bumiputera.”

Read more: Mapping Khazanah’s role in Malaysia’s tech investments

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