May 11, 2022

1337 Ventures, a Malaysian venture capital firm that focuses on early-stage companies, has created a fundraising Bootcamp as part of an equity crowdfunding (ECF) accelerator program to assist local SMEs. The Hive SEA, Tenggara Capital, Gobi Partners, Malaysia Debt Ventures, Kairous Capital, and Rosewood Capital attended 1337 Ventures’ demo day, during which startups presented to investment firms such as The Hive SEA, Tenggara Capital, Gobi Partners, Malaysia Debt Ventures, Kairous Capital. Unearth, a marketplace for old products and idle assets, and QueueMed Asia, a healthtech business, were among the participants. Leet Capital, a sibling business of 1337 Ventures, will raise money through the ECF. Suresh Thiru, an angel investor and former CEO of Seek Asia, said the ECF accelerator program witnessed “a terrific mix of engagement” from various industry heavyweights and will “play a key role” for Malaysian entrepreneurs. The four-week curriculum included information on how to undertake a business appraisal, the sorts of legal instruments needed for an ECF raising, the many types of grants now available, and what makes a good media narrative. In Malaysia, ECF is becoming more popular as a fresh and effective approach for local firms to generate financing. The total ECF funds raised grew to 221.63 million ringgit (US $50.6 million) in 2021 from 127.73 million ringgit (US $29.1 million) in 2020, according to the Securities Commission Malaysia.