AirAsia sets up venture capital fund
Malaysia’s AirAsia has launched a venture capital fund in partnership with US-based 500 Startups that will focus on digital Southeast Asian businesses in travel, logistics and financial technology.
RedBeat Capital, a VC arm set up by AirAsia last year, will manage the fund, which is said to have a corpus of $60 million. RedBeat will have access to 2,210 companies backed by 500 Startups and will look to co-invest in select companies in this portfolio. Deal targeting will also include a focus on underlying technologies, including artificial intelligence, internet-of-things, and cybersecurity.
“Talent is both universal and abundant in all corners of the world, especially in Southeast Asia” Christine Tsai, CEO of 500 Startups, said in a statement. “Moreover, this region has more internet users than the US, which presents a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs. To have an industry titan like AirAsia building a bridge with Silicon Valley through its partnership with 500 is exciting for our start-ups, many of which have ambitions for global scale.”
RedBeat’s portfolio consists of several AirAsia lifestyle brands such as the customer rewards business AirAsia BIG Loyalty, an online tourism publication called Travel360, and the airline’s logistics platform RedCargo. In 2017, AirAsia invested Touristly, an activities booking agent that is now a portfolio company of RedBeat known as Vidi. Last year, RedBeat partnered with Plug And Play Tech Center, a US-based accelerator focused on the global travel sector.
The fund launch follows closely on a similar move by Japan Airlines, which has provided $70 million for a VC fund that will target transportation technology start-ups globally in partnership with US-based TransLink Capital. In 2016, Singapore’s Leonie Hill Capital backed a $200 million venture fund for the aviation industry alongside US-based Starburst Accelerator, a partner of Panasonic Avionics, Boeing, and Air France that claims to be the world’s first aerospace accelerator.
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