Velocity hits first close on Southeast Asia travel fund
Velocity Ventures, a Singapore-based VC firm focused on travel and hospitality, has reached a first close on its debut fund. Commitments stand at 40% of the $20 million target.
LPs include high net worth individuals, family offices, and other institutional capital, the firm said in a statement. It added that support for the fund validates investor belief in a long term, strong recovery for the hospitality and travel industry.
Velocity is pursuing a COVID-19 themed investment mandate, focusing on supporting distressed and disrupting seed and early growth stage start-ups in Southeast Asia. The first close coincides with the closing of two deals: food and beverage software-as-a-service (SaaS) business Aigens and hotel management platform Zuzu Hospitality, which are based in Hong Kong and Singapore, respectively.
The firm was founded in 2019 by Patrick Imbardelli, ex-CEO of the Pan Pacific Hotels and InterContinental Hotels Group, and Nicholas Cocks, CEO of Singapore-based investor ReadyVentures. It has established partnerships with strategic players within travel and hospitality, including the digitization unit of German carrier Lufthansa Group.
“We believe the pandemic will deliver a period of unparalleled innovation and opportunity in the hospitality and travel space as the industry transforms and adapts post-COVID-19. This, coupled with the adjustment to valuations driven by the extreme distress in the sector, provides an unprecedented opportunity to invest, support the industry and earn outsized returns,” said Cocks.
On launching the fund last December, Velocity predicted that it would take three years for travel and hospitality to return to pre-COVID levels of 5.5% growth. Food and beverage (F&B) was described as being in the recovery phase, with air and business travel expected to take longer.
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