Visualizing the rapid rise of Southeast Asia’s startup hubs

In many ways, 2020 was an unprecedented year. Despite the pessimism bred by Covid-19, however, Southeast Asia has remained optimistic.

Private equity firms like Asia Partners and the top brass at GoTo have heralded the beginning of a “golden age.” Our 2020 Tech in Asia Conference report echoed these sentiments. 2020 figures from Startup Genome, an American innovation policy advisory and research firm, also suggest that Southeast Asia’s golden age may have already begun.

In its 2020 annual report, Singapore was ranked 17th among the top 30 startup ecosystems, while Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Bangkok, and Ho Chi Minh City secured a spot in the next 100. Jakarta was also cited as the top emerging ecosystem in terms of funding.

This stands in stark contrast to realities a decade ago. In this visual story, Tech in Asia examines just how much Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystems have grown between 2010 to 2020. Data used in this analysis cover venture funding up to the series J stage.

At the heart of every startup ecosystem is the group of companies within it.

In the last decade, Southeast Asia has witnessed a surge in the number of new startups. Figures from Crunchbase suggest that more than 12,000 startups were founded in the region during this period.

Individual startup ecosystems in Southeast Asia, however, grew at uneven rates. Companies in Singapore, Bandung, and the Greater Jakarta region in Indonesia received the most funding, while Kuala Lumpur edged into third place in terms of the number of new startups founded.

Still, across Southeast Asian startup hubs, total venture funding up to the series J stage pales in comparison to more mature markets like the US and China.

In Southeast Asia, the ecommerce and fintech verticals are attracting the lion’s share of funding in the region, while sectors like edtech have recently seen a surge in new startups founded. At the same time, new entrants in once-burgeoning sectors like travel and tourism have slowed to a trickle.

Annual venture funding has also been on an uptrend since 2010, though 2019 saw a 32% year-on-year dip due to fewer rounds that raked in above US$100 million. Despite the onset of Covid-19 in early 2020, the region saw a 27% increase in total funding compared to 2019.