When we at DealStreetAsia were brainstorming a new destination for our 2027 summits, following the success of our inaugural summit in Hong Kong this year, Malaysia was our first port of call. There was no second choice.
This week, we officially announced the Malaysia Capital & Growth Summit 2027, to be held in Kuala Lumpur, on January 28, bringing our conversations on private capital to the country.
The timing is apt: Malaysia’s startup ecosystem was second only to Singapore in terms private capital raised in the first half of 2026. Funding tripled to $203 million in the period compared to the previous six months, according to the Southeast Asia Startup Funding: Half Year 2026 report we produced along with Kickstart Ventures.
The country is stepping up its ambitions in semiconductors, technology, and advanced manufacturing, backed by fresh commitments from state investors and a push to move up the value chain. Malaysia’s Budget 2027 has earmarked billions of ringgit for startups, chipmakers, and corporate expansion.
But as our reporting this week explores, attracting capital is only the first step. The bigger test is whether these investments can build competitive businesses, generate sustainable returns and create credible exits. Our weekly private equity newsletter Beyond the Buyout examined whether Malaysia’s technology buildout can avert a funding cliff, while our wider coverage looks at how the country is positioning itself as an investment destination.
These are among the questions we will take up on January 28. Under the theme ‘Malaysia & SE Asia’s Industrial Reset: From Capital Inflows to Lasting Value’, we will bring investors, companies and capital allocators together to examine what it will take to turn the current investment cycle into lasting value. Be sure to reserve your seat.
Moving on to the other top headlines of the week.
Interviews and analysis
This week, Abhishek Yadav, managing director at healthcare-focused investor Quadria Capital spoke to us about, among other things, his approach towards exits. India’s public markets are currently attractive for Indian healthcare. Yet, Quadria doesn’t see an IPO as the exit itself. “If a business is ready for the public markets, and the public market is the best home for it, we will list it. But we don’t build a business simply to take it public,” he said. He cited the case of the recently listed dialysis chain NephroPlus, in which Quadria sold a part of its stake but retained a 30% holding.
As lending markets mature, secondaries in private credit are expected to follow the same growth trajectory as private equity, and investors have a reason to be bullish, said Joaquín Ardit, lead portfolio manager of Allianz Private Debt Secondaries in a separate interview. Ardit expects the strategy to continue growing organically, despite recent bouts of stress in the private credit market.
Dr. Shaojie Shen, founder and CEO of the Chinese autonomous driving and mobile physical AI unicorn Zhuoyu Technology spoke at DealStreetAsia’s Asia PE-VC Summit 2026 in Singapore last month, where he shared how his vision for a mobility physical AI future is accelerating the push towards fully autonomous driving across global markets. ZYT is also preparing for its next major capital markets milestone: a potential IPO in Hong Kong. A summary of the fireside chat can be read here.
Our monthly climate-focused newsletter GreenStreet looked at how new sources of energy are powering demand in fast-growing markets, with a particular focus on nuclear fusion. The edition also examined how SE Asia’s energy investment activity, which surpassed $100 billion in 2025, still accounts for only 3-4% of global energy investments.
Data-led stories
This week, we released our monthly tracker of startup funding trends in Greater China and Southeast Asia.
Chinese startups raised over $7.2 billion across 256 deals in September, which was roughly flat compared with August’s $7.3 billion, while deal volume inched up 2%. The year-on-year comparison presented a better picture as funding value more than doubled from nearly $3.6 billion in September 2025, while deal count increased 15.3%. Funding was primarily driven by sustained, robust capital flows into frontier hard-tech sectors led by semiconductors, aerospace, embodied intelligence and medical innovation.
Startups in Southeast Asia, meanwhile, secured just over $112 million across 32 equity deals in September, plunging 91.6% from the $1.34 billion raised across 30 transactions in the previous month, even as total deal volume edged up 6.7%. The drop was mainly on account of the absence of megadeals.
Scoops and funding news
India-based Prashanth Fertility Research Centre Hospital has initiated talks with a host of private equity firms and strategic players as it seeks to raise funds to expand its operations. The talks surface at a time when fertility services in India are attracting investor interest, driven by rising demand for assisted reproductive treatments.
Southeast Asia-focused private equity firm Navis Capital Partners is looking to exit its investment in Dan-D Foods Group, a global producer of nuts and snacks headquartered in Canada, with core sourcing and processing operations in Vietnam.
Singapore-based NEU Battery Materials raised $7.6 million in an oversubscribed funding round co-led by venture capital firm Shift4Good and government-backed deep-tech investor SGInnovate to scale its lithium iron phosphate battery recycling operations.
Thai fintech platform Salary Hero is expanding into Malaysia after raising $7.6 million in a Series A round anchored by Cento Ventures. Malaysia-based Kairous Capital and M Venture Partners also participated in the equity round.
Singapore-based circular economy investment management firm Circulate Capital invested in Indonesian plastic recycler Bumi Baru Plastic (BBP), marking its sixth investment in the archipelago.
LP-GP news
Malaysian VC firm Vynn Capital secured the final close of its second fund early this year and plans to continue deploying capital into 2027, targeting a portfolio of about 13-14 companies. Chua did not disclose the final size of the Mobility and Supply Chain Fund, which focuses on the mobility and supply-chain sectors in ASEAN, but it was reported to be targeting $30 million.
Shastra VC, which is focused on deep tech and frontier technologies, is nearing the final close of its $100-million third fund as it looks to ramp up early-stage investments. India’s deeptech ecosystem is at an interesting juncture, with advances in science and engineering opening up opportunities for startups to tackle complex problems across sectors.
DEG has proposed to invest $20 million in Lakeshore Capital III, a private equity fund managed by Bangkok-based Lakeshore Capital Asia. The move is intended to support the expansion of businesses in Thailand and the Greater Mekong Region and improve their access to long-term financing.
Singapore-based Antares Ventures has secured more than $50 million in commitments—nearly half of the target—for its debut deeptech venture capital fund Antares Ventures I. The firm said it has already deployed about $27 million across nine companies through the fund.
The IFC has proposed an equity investment of up to $25 million in the latest India sustainability fund of private equity firm Eversource Capital. IFC expects the proposed investment to help improve access to growth capital for mid-market Indian companies in sectors linked to sustainability.
Singapore-based PE firm Affirma Capital, which has a significant presence in India, has cashed out of travel technology platform TBO Tek, generating a 12x multiple on invested capital (MOIC) and a 49% IRR in US dollar terms.
And that’s the week that was. We will continue to explore where the region’s capital and growth story goes.
