Singapore venture funding hits S$5.9 billion as investors double down on AI, deep tech despite fewer deals: EY-Parthenon

[SINGAPORE] Singapore-based firms raised S$5.9 billion in 472 venture capital deals in 2025, with artificial intelligence and deep tech emerging as key growth drivers.

This was despite broader headwinds in the venture market, reflecting sustained investor confidence in technology-led sectors, the Singapore Venture Funding Landscape Report 2025 released on Thursday (May 28) showed.

The share of AI venture deals out of Singapore’s total came in at 30 per cent in 2025, nearly doubling year on year.

The value of such deals rose 28 per cent to US$1.4 billion, from US$1.1 billion in 2024, even as deal volume declined from 224 to 202 transactions.

EY-Parthenon, which published the report in partnership with Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG), attributed the decline in AI deal volume to “increased investor selectivity”.

The same trend was observed in deep-tech funding. The value of such deals in Singapore rose 16 per cent to US$1.13 billion in 2025, from US$980 million a year earlier, despite the number of transactions falling from 125 to 91.

“The sharper contraction in deal count relative to capital deployed indicates increasing selectivity,” said EY-Parthenon, adding that funding was “concentrated into a smaller cohort of higher-quality companies, demonstrating stronger technical differentiation and clearer commercialisation trajectories”.

Regional comparison

Commenting on the broader venture funding scene, EY-Parthenon said that South-east Asia “remained in a protracted downturn, with both deal value and deal volume across the Asean-6 falling to a four-year low” in 2025.

In a press release, EnterpriseSG said that Singapore’s venture funding landscape has “shown consistency amid global uncertainties, reflecting the resilience of its startup ecosystem”.

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Emily Liew, assistant managing director for innovation at EnterpriseSG, said that the “strong foundations” of Singapore’s ecosystem have “allowed us to weather challenges and continue to build capacity in priority emerging areas”.

She added that investments such as the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2030 research plan reaffirm the Republic’s “commitment to fostering an innovation-led economy through strong partnerships, talent development and deepening research capabilities”.

Among the Asean-6 economies, Singapore dominated regional venture funding activity in 2025, accounting for 72.5 per cent of total deal value.

Indonesia accounted for 15.1 per cent, followed by Vietnam at 5.5 per cent, Thailand at 2.9 per cent, then Malaysia and the Philippines at 2 per cent each.

Strong ecosystem supporting growth

Fintech remained Singapore’s largest sector by venture deal value, the report showed. This was supported by “strong regulatory clarity, well-established digital payments infrastructure and sustained ecosystem initiatives”.

The value of the Republic’s fintech deals in 2025 rose 34 per cent year on year to more than S$2.1 billion, accounting for 74 per cent of all fintech funding in Asean-6 economies during the year.

Liew noted that Singapore’s “position as a globally connected hub continues to attract founders and investors” even as global economic conditions evolve.

EY-Parthenon said that “consistent policy support, ecosystem maturity and a demonstrated long-term commitment to both general and deep-tech development” position the Republic as a “durable platform for venture capital deployment”.

“As global investors recalibrate portfolios and selectively re-engage with international markets, Singapore continues to stand out as a strategic gateway to South-east Asia,” it added.