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ComfortDelGro’s venture arm may need fuller autonomy if it is to live up to its potential

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Benjamin Cher

Benjamin Cher

Published Wed, Feb 1, 2023 · 05:50 AM
    • ComfortDelGro's venture arm has not made investments at a regular pace compared to its peers. Having a separate head and team running its US$100 million fund could help it reach its potential.
    • ComfortDelGro's venture arm has not made investments at a regular pace compared to its peers. Having a separate head and team running its US$100 million fund could help it reach its potential. PHOTO: BT FILE

    THE investment last week by transport operator ComfortDelGro Corporation (Comfort) into teleoperation company Ottopia marks the first by Comfort’s venture capital arm ComfortDelGro Ventures (CDG Ventures) in nearly four years. Investors may be wondering why it had taken the company this long to find another suitable target.

    The answer may lie in CDG Ventures’ structure.

    CDG Ventures was set up in 2019 with US$100 million. Since then, it has announced three other investments: in logistics startup Haulio, on-demand mobility startup Swat, and autonomous vehicle safety startup Foretellix. It has also put S$30 million towards an Autonomous Vehicle Centre of Excellence, and invested four million euros (S$5.7 million) into sustainable mobility venture capital fund Shift4Good.

    ComfortDelGroCorporate venture

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