BEDB introduces investment funding for high-tech startups and early stage companies

Bandar Seri Begawan, Monday 11th May 2009.

By consent of His Majesty The Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the BEDB (The Brunei Economic Development Board) today marked another significant milestone in its effort to stimulate and promote the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Brunei with the introduction of a venture capital fund for promising high-tech startups and early stage companies.

This funding initiative was announced during the briefing and signing ceremony to mark the BEDB’s investment and participation in Accel-X Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based venture capital fund. Brunei’s contribution will be reserved for Brunei-based high-tech companies, particularly in the areas of ICT, interactive digital media and engineering.

The ceremony, which took place at the Empire Hotel & Country Club, began with welcome remarks by Dato Paduka Timothy Ong, Acting Chairman of the BEDB, followed by a briefing on Accel-X Venture Capital Fund delivered by Mr Vincent Cheong, Chief Executive Officer of the BEDB and Mr Edmund Yong, Managing Partner of Accel-X.

The signing of the agreement saw the BEDB investing a total of $5 million in the Fund in its effort to bridge the funding gap to support the development and growth of startup to early stage, innovative companies by providing them with access to equity capital, extensive overseas networks as well as mentorship s. Signing on behalf of the BEDB was Mr Vincent Cheong, and to witness was Dr Manaf Metussin, Assistant Chief Executive Officer and Head of BEDB’s Stakeholder Relations. Meanwhile, signing on behalf of Accel-X Pte Ltd was Mr Edmund Yong, and witnessed by Mr Hui Kwok Leong, General Manager of KR Consulting Pte Ltd.

In his briefing, Mr Cheong emphasized the importance of SMEs to the well-being of the economy, saying that successful SMEs will require support on all fronts including not only mentoring and business networking but also access to capital and funding sources. “The establishment of iCentre to support the development of ICT companies in Brunei has seen our talented entrepreneurs embarking on new capabilities, but in reality, most of our SMEs are still lacking access to capital or funding. This venture capital fund is hoped to be an important step in our effort to plug the gap in funding startups and early stage companies, encourage and guide them through to develop new capabilities and grow successfully”, he said.

With the introduction of Accel-X venture capital fund, the BEDB hopes that this initiative will not only complement the Ministry of Finance’s initiatives in providing equity financing for strategic projects but will also be the right partner to guide our startups in their quest to grow while making the business environment more conducive for our SMEs.

Accel-X Pte Ltd is one of SPRING SEEDS’s accredited business angel partners which plays a key role in raising smart money to groom more innovative startup companies in Brunei, Singapore and elsewhere in the region. Working in partnership with the BEDB, NUS Enterprise and SPRING SEEDs, the team behind Accel-X has more than 20 years of investment and portfolio management experience. They will be bringing with them a wealth of knowledge, hands-on mentoring capability and operational capability to the companies, focusing on high-tech startup companies with high growth potential.

Press Contact: Lela Suhailee (lela@bedb.com.bn)