Singaporean state-owned venture capital fund manager Vertex Ventures has closed its Vertex Master Fund at $730m with corporate backing, Vertex Holdings chief executive Chua Kee Lock told DealStreetAsia today.
Vertex oversees regional firms in the US, China and Israel as well as its initial Southeast Asia and India-focused vehicle and specialist VC fund called Vertex Ventures Healthcare which operates out of the US and Singapore.
Government-owned investment firm Temasek remains Vertex’s anchor investor and supplied about 75% of the capital for Vertex Master Fund but the vehicle has attracted several Japan-based corporate limited partners.
The LPs in question include NEC Capital Solutions, the leasing services subsidiary of IT services firm NEC Corporation, and trading group Marubeni, each of which provided $50m for the fund. Financial services firms Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Aozora Bank each put up $20m.
Consulting firm ABeam Consulting, investment bank Risa Partners and Development Bank of Japan have also contributed capital.
Describing the Japanese LPs’ interest in the fund, Chua told DealStreetAsia: “[It] was not so much about the money. We wanted the right kind of people we could work with as well.
“Japanese corporations have a lot of interest in technology, and (we felt) this would give our portfolio companies a good opportunity to access Japanese expertise and markets.”
Vertex raised $290m from LPs including electronic components producer Elan Microelectronics in September this year for a growth fund that will invest up to $15m per round.
