MDI Ventures, Finch Capital join hands to launch new US$40M fund Arise to plug ASEAN’s pre-Series A gap

MDI Ventures, the VC arm of Indonesia’s Telkom Group, announced today it has partnered with European VC firm Finch Capital to launch a new early-stage investment fund.

As per a press note, the Arise fund will be run under a joint venture and invest in Indonesia-focused tech startups in Southeast Asia.

The newly-launched fund has a target of US$40 million in assets under management and aims to support the next generation of regional founders to emerge from the current economic crisis.

The average investment ticket size will be US$250,000 to US$3 million for startups in the post-seed to Series A range.

Arise claims it differentiates itself from other funds by actively working with portfolio companies to achieve product-market fit. Leveraging on both firms’ global portfolio, the fund claims it would be able to advise companies with effective go-to-market strategies.

The fund seeks to provide portfolio companies with a clear roadmap to validate, grow, scale, and eventually exit.

The launch of the fund generates optimism for early-stage tech companies in ASEAN. As the pandemic has roiled markets worldwide, tech startups in the region have experienced a tangible funding drought.