Post-rebranding, Granite Asia’s veteran partners dig in for the long haul

THE decision to rebrand the Asia unit of Granite Global Ventures Capital (GGV Capital) as Granite Asia was a deliberate one, given that senior managing partners Jenny Lee and Foo Jixun wanted a connection with what they had built.

“It helps because so much of it was us,” Lee told The Business Times, in a reference to the work that she and Foo put in as members of the founding team of GGV from 2000.

While Granite Asia might be thought of as a throwback to GGV Capital, it has been refashioned, as it were – from Mar 30, 2024, Granite Asia took a different path from GGV Capital by making the Asia-Pacific region its focus. It also expanded its asset classes, moving beyond providing venture capital to funding and supporting founders and their ideas.

The multi-asset platform is also looking to launch a credit product to complement its existing equity financing strength, so it will combine the power of equity and debt to aid founders on their journey.

“If you look at an entrepreneurial journey, you will see that the type of financing and support needed is actually multifaceted,” said Foo.

Granite Asia will invest in themes such as consumer growth and transformation, enterprise workflow and supply chain, food systems and sustainability, health innovation and wellness, as well energy transition and automation.

Granite Asia is looking to invest into a new infrastructure for a world adapting to shifting geopolitics. Where GGV Capital used to cover South-east Asia, China and India, Granite Asia is pivoting to the Asia-Pacific, where Lee and Foo believe they have an edge in operating.

Lee said: “It’s even more important to have investors and board members who can help connect the dots on a global basis. Entrepreneurs and companies that can do that and navigate this complex world will do better.”

The lessons that the pair of partners will take from GGV Capital to Granite Asia include both strategic and tactical considerations, from investment structure to positioning brands. To be effective, Granite Asia will draw on its advisors for their inputs so that plans are made with longer time horizons, said Lee.

In their time in the venture-investing game, both partners helped build 48 unicorns. They have also seen how companies scale their businesses, a complex undertaking in the Asia-Pacific, a fragmented region where a one-size-fits-all strategy will not work.

“We are building a platform with key members from across the region, so we are able to help our portfolio companies navigate,” said Foo.

Managing Granite Asia’s current portfolio companies is keeping the pair busy. They help founders navigate today’s challenging macro environment, including fundraising to restructuring or even deciding where to list.

The expanded list of asset classes will also take up time.

“We have to continue to add to our team the right expertise, and to extend our strategy aggressively, but also cautiously, with the right partners in the region,” said Lee.

Granite Asia is also looking to reaffirm its pool of global investors, who remain limited partners following the rebranding. Lee stressed the need to keep communications with these investors open as the firm continues to do the work.

Lee and Foo, ever aware that companies are successful only because of the team at the table, working together to help company founders along, also want to work at making more friends and maintaining existing relationships.

“In Asia, it’s not just the private sector. It is also the ability to not just connect the dots globally, but also to do so among public, private and entrepreneurs,” said Lee.