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NSI Ventures targets US$125 million second fund for consumer apps

Bloomberg Published on Wed, Dec 13, 2017 / 7:15 AM GMT+8

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(Dec 13): NSI Ventures, an early backer of Indonesian ride-hailing giant Go-Jek, is targeting a US$125 million ($169 million) second fund to continue investing in consumer apps as well as startups in health care, financial services and education.

The NSI Ventures II fund raised US$60 million at first close, with a commitment for a further US$15 million from existing investors, according to co-founder and partner Shane Chesson. The Singapore-based firm counts Temasek Holdings among its existing investors and plans to close the fund in the first half of 2018.

The new fund is capitalising on an influx of money into the region’s venture firms as investors seek opportunities beyond the US and China, the primary focus for Asia deals in recent years. Southeast Asia is the world’s fastest growing internet region, where the number of web users is expected to reach 480 million by 2020, according to a 2016 report by Google and Temasek.