Superbank, Genesis to provide $40m financing for Indonesian startups

Superbank president director Tigor Siahaan (left), and Genesis Alternative Ventures co-founder and managing partner Jeremy Loh / Photo credit: Superbank

Superbank, the Indonesia-based digital bank backed by Grab, Singtel, and Emtek Group, is partnering with Singapore-based Genesis Alternative Ventures to provide US$40 million worth of financing for Indonesian startups.

In a joint statement, the companies said that the financing will combine conventional bank credit and venture capital investment, while minimizing equity dilution for shareholders. They will also primarily target firms at the series B and series C stages.

Jeremy Loh, Genesis’ co-founder and managing partner, pointed out that there has been a significant decline in VC funding for startups in Asia – it decreased 60% in Q3 2022 compared to the same period the year before.

“Genesis and Superbank share the same commitment to developing the immense potential in this sector and supporting more startup founders in Indonesia,” said Loh.

This is the latest partnership for Superbank, which is led by Citi veteran Tigor Siahaan. The digital bank previously teamed up with peer-to-peer lending firm Amartha as well as with consumer finance firm Home Credit.

Meanwhile, Genesis was founded in 2019 by Loh along with Ben J Benjamin and Martin Tang. In 2021, the VC firm closed its US$80 million fund for Southeast Asia, which it said is the region’s first venture debt fund.

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