Granite Asia’s Jixun Foo teases a new fund strategy

Fresh off its US$250 million private credit fund launched in May, Singapore-based VC firm Granite Asia (formerly known as GGV Capital) is preparing to raise a new fund focused on a new asset class to invest in startups.

Jixun Foo, senior managing partner at the company, disclosed the plan to Tech in Asia on the sidelines of the Asia Economic Summit held in Jakarta last week. However, he neither specified the type of asset class the firm is targeting nor provided a timeline for the fund’s launch.

Granite Asia’s senior managing partners, Jenny Lee (left) and Jixun Foo / Photo credit: Granite Asia

“Even if you look at some of our peers in the US, they have gone into multi-asset [investments],” said Foo, who’s been leading the outfit since 2005. “So it’s just embracing the same transformation because we want to be the partner of choice for our entrepreneurs.”

This new asset class will be Granite Asia’s third investment instrument, alongside equity and private credit. It’s part of the firm’s multi-asset strategy, introduced after its split from GGV Capital in March 2024 to focus on the Asia-Pacific region.

Moving beyond traditional VC funding

Foo noted that global trends like decoupling and deglobalization have made capital more expensive, creating tougher conditions for the VC business not only in Southeast Asia but also in China and the US.

Several VC firms in the US have started pivoting from traditional equity-based strategies. For instance, Lightspeed Venture Partners became a registered investment advisor in May 2025, gaining eligibility to invest beyond direct startup equity and into public stocks and crypto assets.

See also: Trade wars force rewrite of Southeast Asia’s VC playbook

This shift follows moves by other major US-based VC firms such as Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and General Catalyst, which have all expanded beyond traditional VC investments amid limited exit opportunities and disappointing returns from tech startups.

Even Temasek launched a US$7.5 billion private-credit fund in December 2024. The Singapore state-owned investor has also cut its direct investments into early-stage startups as it found it hard for them to IPO.

However, Foo added that Granite Asia’s transformation won’t mirror those of the US-based companies, reaffirming the firm’s goal “to be the partner of choice for our entrepreneurs.”

According to Foo, Granite Asia’s private-credit fund aims to support entrepreneurs adapting to changes brought on by trade tensions. They include Chinese founders looking to restructure or relocate their businesses from China to other parts of Asia.

Without disclosing names, Granite Asia said it has already invested in two companies through the private-credit fund: an Indonesian hospitality company and a Thai firm specializing in optical transceivers or fiber optic devices that transmit and receive data.

Foo said Granite Asia is targeting companies that haven’t gone public yet, including those considering spin-offs or management-led buyouts. He also noted that the VC firm aims to support these firms using a different capital structure and investor base.