WHILE the concept of venture capital is well established as having provided early funding for startups that grew to become global giants, venture debt is less known. “Venture debt is a complementary source of financing for startups that usually raise funds through venture capital. Wan Kamaruzaman is the chairman of a newly founded and the country’s first venture debt fund called Iris Fund. It is managed by venture capital firms Iris Capital Partners Sdn Bhd and South Korea-based Hanwha Asset Management Co.Iris Fund is one of eight venture capital fund managers selected under the Dana Penjana Nasional programme through Penjana Kapital Sdn Bhd, which is owned by the Finance Ministry. PwC reckons that the venture debt market in South-East Asia could grow to US$490mil (RM2.05bil) to US$980mil (RM4.10bil) and that over the last 18 months, the region has seen an uptick in venture debt activity, driven by the Covid-19 pandemic.
