Gree Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of Japan-based digital media company Gree, has formed a startup accelerator in Indonesia called Skala in partnership with conglomerate Salim Group’s Innovation Factory.
Skala will provide $30,000 of funding per startup in return for a 5% stake, once they have completed the three-month scheme, which starts in early October 2018, after applications close on September 14.
Gree Ventures principal Nikhil Kapur and investment manager Samir Chaibi have taken operating partner positions at Skala alongside Innovation Factory director Adrian Lim and Budiman Wikarsa, head of Amazon Web Services’ Indonesian startup ecosystem.
Kapur told technology news platform Tech In Asia: “We have invested in companies that have been backed by [US-based accelerator] Y Combinator and have learned the fundamental change that can take place by curating and guiding a handful of companies in the proper manner.
“We looked around and did not see any other program doing it in Indonesia, and so we have decided to collaborate on our own project.”