- Target size for Growth Opportunities Fund I is US$60M, with a hard cap of US$100M
Fund will invest primarily in growth rounds of existing Wavemaker portfolio companies - Together with Paul Santos, the founding partners of Wavemaker Growth include industry veterans Shiv Choudhury and Xue Koh, who bring decades of collective investment and operational experience
- With Wavemaker Growth, the firm will now be able to support entrepreneurs across multiple stages. Wavemaker Impact will continue to venture-build and co-found climate tech startups. The early-stage strategy will now be rebranded as Wavemaker Ventures, and Wavemaker Partners will now be the firm’s group name
SINGAPORE, 13 NOVEMBER 2024 — Wavemaker Partners, Southeast Asia’s leading venture capital firm, today announced the US$30 million first close of its inaugural Wavemaker Growth Opportunities Fund (“Wavemaker Growth”) raised from limited partners (LPs) such as QLA Investment and Cercano Management. The fund aims to support high-potential startups in the Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability sectors across Southeast Asia, focusing on Series B and beyond.
This announcement coincides with a strategic rebranding of the firm. Under the parent group, Wavemaker Partners, the organisation now encompasses three fund strategies: Wavemaker Ventures, Wavemaker Impact, and Wavemaker Growth. This unified structure enables the firm to provide comprehensive support to startups from co-founding to Series B and beyond, reinforcing its commitment to fostering innovation and growth in the region.
Bridging the Gap in Growth-Stage Funding
Leveraging the success of Wavemaker Ventures’ early-stage investments — which have seen around 20% of over 200 portfolio companies raise growth capital in the past five years — Wavemaker Growth seeks to bridge the operational and funding gaps startups encounter as they scale. Historically, many promising startups have struggled to secure Series B funding due to a lack of specialised support and capital in the region.
Paul Santos, Co-founder and Managing Partner of Wavemaker Partners and Founding Partner of Wavemaker Growth, said: “Our mission has always been to back exceptional founders from the start. With Wavemaker Growth, we’re extending that support to help them navigate the critical stages of scaling up. By unifying our efforts under Wavemaker Partners, we can provide comprehensive support to startups at every stage of their journey. We’re committed to our three core sectors — Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability — where we have deep expertise and can make the most impact.”
Investment Strategy and Initial Pipeline
Wavemaker Growth plans to invest in eight to 12 companies, with individual investments ranging from US$3 million to US$8 million as part of syndicate rounds in the region of US$20 million, which may include other equity and debt investors. The fund will primarily double down on the promising companies within the Wavemaker group’s portfolio.
Meet the Founding Partners
Joining Paul Santos as Founding Partners of Wavemaker Growth are industry veterans, Shiv Choudhury and Xue Koh, both bringing decades of collective investment and operational experience.
A Co-founder of Growsari, Choudhury previously served as Managing Director at The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) where he led its regional consumer and consumer tech practice and held multiple regional leadership roles at Procter & Gamble (P&G). He is an avid angel investor and is also a member of YPO and a 2X Endeavor Outlier.
Shiv Choudhury, Founding Partner of Wavemaker Growth, said, “I’m excited to join WMG and help fellow entrepreneurs make the jump from early stage to the next one. As a founder a lot changes in this phase – including your mindset, redesigning your GTM playbooks, how you build your team, and how you fundraise. We will leverage our experience to partner with them in this phase and help them be successful.”
Koh heads the investment team at Black Kite Capital, a Singapore-based single-family office. He honed his operational and investment acumen at Silver Lake, one of the largest technology-focused private equity firms, and at The Boston Consulting Group. With extensive experience investing in, and also operating, both early- and late-stage technology-focused companies, he brings valuable insights to help companies scale, strengthen corporate governance, and prepare for successful exits.
Xue Koh, Founding Partner of Wavemaker Growth, said, “Joining Wavemaker Growth presents a unique opportunity to leverage my experience in supporting high-growth companies. We aim to be more than investors; we want to be partners who contribute to the long-term success of startups in Southeast Asia’s dynamic tech ecosystem. By aligning closely with founders, we can provide the strategic support and network access they need to reach new heights.”
Rebranding and Unified Support Across All Stages
The rebranding under Wavemaker Partners brings together its various investment arms to create a cohesive platform that supports startups from pre-Seed to Series B and beyond.
- Wavemaker Ventures: Focuses on early-stage investments in Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability startups. Since 2012, it has backed more than 200 companies across the region, with over US$500 million in Assets Under Management (AUM) and exits generating over US$2 billion in enterprise value. Notable portfolio companies include eFishery, Growsari, Lhoopa, and Silent Eight.
- Wavemaker Impact: Launched in October 2021, Wavemaker Impact is a first-of-its-kind climate tech venture builder in Southeast Asia. It partners with proven entrepreneurs to co-found startups aiming to reduce the global carbon budget by a combined 10% by 2035. In December 2023, Wavemaker Impact announced the final close of its debut fund at US$60 million hard cap, surpassing its initial target by 2.5 times. Portfolio companies include Agros, WasteX, Helios, Rize, Bumibaru, RegenX, Refy, Elevate Foods, MetroElectro, Octayne, Numat, and HiFeed.
- Wavemaker Growth: The newly launched growth fund aims to support startups in scaling from Series B onwards, providing both capital and strategic guidance to navigate operational challenges and prepare for successful exits.
SINGAPORE, 20 NOVEMBER 2024 – Oneteam, a Singapore-based startup dedicated to transforming succession at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through employee ownership, has successfully closed its SGD 3.5 million Seed round. The round was led by Wavemaker Ventures, the early-stage fund of Wavemaker Partners, Southeast Asia’s leading VC group investing in Enterprise, Deep Tech, and […]
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MANILA, 5 NOVEMBER 2024 – Climate tech venture builder Wavemaker Impact has launched Numat, a new venture focused on transforming bamboo processing with sustainable practices. With a fresh investment of US$525,000, Numat is set to lead the way in the primary processing of bamboo, putting nature and community first. Numat’s mission is to transform raw bamboo into sustainable products, […]
Read morePrevious wins include eFishery’s Series C round in 2022 and Growsari’s Series B in 2021 MANILA & SINGAPORE, 27 SEPTEMBER 2024 – Wavemaker Partners, Southeast Asia’s leading venture capital firm investing in Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability startups, has won ‘VC Deal of the Year’ at the 32nd Annual Singapore Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (SVCA) […]
Read moreWavemaker Partners
Wavemaker Partners is Southeast Asia’s leading venture capital firm investing in and building solutions in Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability. Since 2012, it has backed over 200 companies across the region, with over US$600 million in assets under management (AUM) across multiple funds, including Wavemaker Impact, Wavemaker Ventures, and Wavemaker Growth. The firm has also generated over US$2 billion in enterprise value through successful exits. Its notable limited partners include Pavilion Capital, Temasek Holdings, the International Finance Corporation, DEG (investment arm of Germany’s state-owned development bank KfW), Cercano Management, the US International Development Finance Corporation, British International Investment, and Qarlbo Energy. Committed to trusted partnerships and sustainability, Wavemaker Partners empowers founders solving meaningful problems with unique, scalable, and defensible solutions. Today, 95% of the firm’s active portfolio startups in Southeast Asia contribute to at least one UN Sustainable Development Goal. For more information, visit wavemakerpartners.com.
Wavemaker Growth
Wavemaker Growth, the growth fund of Wavemaker Partners, will primarily double down on the promising companies within the group’s Venture and Impact portfolios. With a mission to bridge the operational gaps that startups encounter as they scale, Wavemaker Growth provides funding from Series B and beyond. The fund recently raised US$30 million for its first close, with a target of US$60 million. With decades of collective investment and late-stage operational experience, the Wavemaker Growth team aligns closely with founders, offering strategic support and access to an extensive network of industry partners. For more information, visit wavemaker-growth.com.
Wavemaker Ventures
Wavemaker Ventures is Southeast Asia’s leading venture capital firm specialising in early-stage investments in Enterprise, Deep Tech, and Sustainability. Since 2012, Wavemaker Ventures has invested in over 200 companies across the region, expanding its presence into South Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. As the early-stage fund of Wavemaker Partners, it has successfully raised four funds, surpassing US$500 million in assets under management (AUM), with exits generating over US$2 billion in enterprise value. Notable limited partners include Pavilion Capital, Temasek Holdings, the International Finance Corporation, DEG (the investment arm of German’s state-owned development bank KfW), and Cercano Management. Notable portfolio companies include eFishery in Indonesia (digital fishing cooperative), Growsari in the Philippines (B2B marketplace), Lhoopa in the Philippines (proptech for affordable housing), and Silent Eight in Singapore (AI for anti-money laundering). For more information, visit wavemaker.vc.
Wavemaker Impact
Wavemaker Impact is Southeast Asia’s leading climate-tech venture build fund, part of Wavemaker Partners. Launched in 2021, Wavemaker Impact co-founds sustainability startups with proven entrepreneurs, with the goal of building a portfolio of companies by 2035 that has the potential to reduce 10% of the global carbon budget. Every startup that Wavemaker Impact builds is a ‘100×100’ company — with the potential to abate 100 million metric tonnes of CO2e and generate US$100 million revenue per year. Wavemaker Impact focuses on building ventures that target the biggest drivers of emissions such as agriculture, energy, industrial processes, built environment, and transport. Its US$60 million debut fund focuses primarily on Southeast Asia and includes limited partners such as the United States International Development Finance Corporation, British International Investment, Triple Jump, JG Summit, and Qarlbo Energy. For more information, visit wavemakerimpact.com.
