Khazanah seeks to lure fund managers into Malaysia in VC push

MALAYSIA’S sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional is launching initiatives to support local venture capital funds and attract international managers, in a boost to its efforts to become a venture capital hub by 2030.

The wealth fund is setting up an initiative to attract established international fund managers to expand into Malaysia and facilitate the redomiciling of global companies, according to a statement on Tuesday (Oct 15). 

Khazanah is also launching a programme in November open to local general partners, with a focus on venture capital fund managers raising their first, second or third fund. The programme will be funded by a Khazanah’s fund-of-funds that invest in startups, according to the statement.

Both programmes mark the latest in the country’s push to transform the local startup ecosystem to be among the top 20 hubs globally. Khazanah acquired two state-backed venture capitals in July to create the national fund-of-funds, which has an initial allocation of 1 billion ringgit (S$303.6 million). BLOOMBERG