Heliconia's Assets Reach S$1 Billion

Heliconia's Assets Reach S$1 Billion

Heliconia Capital, a unit of Temasek, has gathered more than S$1 billion worth of assets under management, providing it with significant bullets to deploy.

The investment firm, which was set up in 2010, sees the opportunity to build at least two new business clusters within a decade out of Singapore's emerging companies: esports, and entertainment. Even as it reaches S$1 billion in assets under management (AUM), it will continue to invest in technology such as fintech and artificial intelligence, said Heliconia's CEO Derek Lau.

«Singapore has gone past that generation of creating 'sub-contractors'. Today, it's about creating intellectual property,» said Lau, who was quoted in «The Business Times» (behind paywall). The rise of technology - including the use of social media - would speed up the ability of growth companies to reach for global status, he explained.

Selecting Growth Companies

When screening for growth companies, Lau believes it boils down to the founders. Although there are risks in putting faith in founders, the decision to back companies based on their founders depends very much on whether the founder is «committed» but also willing to collaborate with partners.

To keep in constant touch with the portfolio companies, Lau text founders in his portfolio companies three to four times a day, and understanding their life goals. «We've so far invested in 30 companies with 30 strong founders,» he said. 

Hands-on Approach

The CEO also takes a very hands-on approach when working with Heliconia's portfolio companies, such as giving immediate feedback to the investee firm. For example, he has sent feedback to Chatri Sityodtong, the founder of One Championship, when he finds the sound quality of the production to be unfit. 

Heliconia is flexible about whether these companies are privately held or publicly listed. The investment firm would hold its stake long enough for the companies to hit their «inflection point», especially if they are expected to be global names. These inflection points can vary depending on how nascent the market is, Lau added.