Indonesia's Agaeti, Convergence merge to form AC Ventures

The new GP will involve partners from both Agaeti and Convergence and seek to launch a new fund in the coming months. Previous funds launched by Agaeti and Convergence have been fully deployed and the investments will continue to be managed by the existing partners. According to a release announcing the merger, the existing focus on seed and Series A investment opportunities in Indonesia will be retained.

Founded in 2018, Agaeti was led by Pandu Sjahrir, the managing director of Singapore-based Indies Capital Partners, an alternative asset manager, and Michael Soerijadji, an executive at a local coal producer. It raised a $10 million debut fund in 2018 that it subsequently invested in 10 companies, according to AVCJ Research. Sjahrir is currently on the board of ride-hailing player Gojek and Singaporean e-commerce platform Shopee.

Convergence, founded in 2013, has been investing a $30 million investment vehicle that was closed in 2016. Two years later, it was said to be targeting $50 million for a successor vehicle. The firm was led by Adrian Li, a former entrepreneur and director of a local incubator launched by Rocket Internet, and Donald Wihardja, a veteran IT executive. 

The merger is expected to enhance operational support for portfolio companies and reduce competition for the same type of deals. Further, Li told e27 that AC Ventures would look more closely at start-ups that serve micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in Indonesia due to heightened interest in consumer-facing start-ups in recent years.

“AC Ventures’ close partnership with Indies Capital, a leading alternative asset manager focusing on private credit and equity in Southeast Asia, enables support for the portfolio with later stage capital as the companies scale,” Li said, according to the statement. 

According to AVCJ Records, other early-stage VC investors active in the country in recent years include Singapore-headquartered firms East Ventures, Insignia Ventures, and Golden Gate Ventures. They are joined by local players such as Alpha JWC Ventures, Skystar Capital, and Sinar Mas Digital Ventures – the corporate venture arm of a local conglomerate. Several Chinese VC firms are also making investments in Indonesia.

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• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Venture
• Technology
• GPs
• Indonesia
• Convergence Ventures
• Agaeti Ventures
• AC Ventures
• TMT