Aaron Tan

Illuminate Financial leads $70m round in Singapore-based wealth management platform Endowus to support expansion and AI-driven capabilities. The round was led by Illuminate Financial, alongside Prosus Ventures, Citi Ventures, and several leading Asian family offices. Over the past year, the company has achieved remarkable milestones across its core markets: 💲 Client assets have surpassed US$10 billion, marking a major milestone for the Endowus Group. 🚀 Hong Kong has been a standout growth driver, with 150% growth in client numbers and a 3x increase in client assets year-on-year. 💰 Alternative investments on the platform have grown more than 3x to over US$500 million (S$650 million), as Endowus continues to democratize access to private market opportunities previously reserved for institutions. We are excited to partner with Samuel Rhee, Gregory Van, Dominic Ong, Deepak Sarda, Hugh Chung, Jason Huan and the rest of the Endowus team on their next phase of growth. Read more about why we invested from my colleague Konstantin Koenig: https://lnkd.in/emai_esj cc: Luca Z. Rezso Szabo Mark Beeston Charlton Hook, CFA Rachel Townend Peter Hung Alex Gheorghe Hugo Hazon Julie McCrimlisk Andrew Patey Oliver Hickinbotham Esther Muschamp Molly Day Emma Dearden Daria Dmytrenko Rosie Zehtab Crystal Tan Richard Blundell, ACA

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At Singapore Venture & Private Capital Association, we have been liasing with Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and SGX Group closely and participating in the Markets Workstream of the Equities Market Review Group. We applaud the announcements made on Friday of the S$5bn EQDP to support the local market and the announcement of faster listing processes (amid a slew of other measures - take a read below). For some SVCA members a stronger local listing option is an imperative, the capital return cycle is required for them to stay funded and busy on the ground funding innovation. Foreign exchanges may be less suitable. For other SVCA members, it is an opportunity. There can be more LP committments, secondaries, private credit, crossover investing if SGX is busier. They can see the quality of some of the companies coming through the system but aren't acting now while exit options are more constrained. Some of the Q&A since Friday night: Is this enough? This is a big step in the right direction and the Group continues its work. Now we need the implementation in coming months of the EQDP to committed and capable awardees who can subscribe to and trade IPOs. We need Boards and Founders of growth companies that are ready, to now give SGX the additional consideration. Can SGX compete with other exchanges? We see Singapore's role as crucial, probably 70% of private capital coming to ASEAN is coming through Singapore structures. Over $100bn in recent years. But more partnerships are also essential. The existing arrangements with Thailand should be geared up and more partnerships and alliances considered. Which companies will list and how many? Participants have identified dozens of potential candidates who could be persuaded with a rewired funding landscape and listing offering. They come from varied sectors, stages and financial profile but if 5+ can list in similar timeframe, they can create a "cohort" of New Economy mid-market growth stocks that will change perceptions and attract broader interest. If indexed as their own category they can attract more passive liquidity and interest. This is on top of the ones that SGX is already working with like Avepoint. What difference can tax/research arrangements etc make to this program? These are all helpful features. A 20% income tax rebate if we can acheive same PE multiple can help market cap indeed... Research and awareness are also important. But attracting the right crop of companies and them trading well is the best way to make the system self-reinforcing. https://lnkd.in/gYeRUzJ5

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The 648-page DRHP offers a deep dive into Pine Labs capital structure. At the time of filing, Peak XV Partners Pine Investment Holdings topped the shareholding chart with a 20.35% stake. Singapore-based Macritchie Investments held 7.10% stake, followed by PayPal (6%) and Actis Pine Labs Investment Holdings (5.78%). Global payments giant Mastercard’s Asia/Pacific arm owns 5.24% stake in the company. Other institutional investors include Alpha Wave Ventures II (3.39%), Invesco’s AIM Investment Funds (2.84%) and Madison India Opportunities IV (2.67%). On the leadership front, Pine Labs CEO B Amrish Rau holds 2.35% stake, while founder Lokvir Kapoor and CTO @SanjeevKumar own 1.97% and 1.01% stakes, respectively. The DRHP also outlined that the fintech major allotted 2.32 Cr shares to its CEO Rau between January 1 and June 25, 2025. Read the entire story with Ananya Upadhyaya: https://lnkd.in/gt_GQAnu #pinelabs #stakeholding #pinelabsstakeholding #pinelabsinvestors #pinelabsipo #pinelabsdrhp #pinelabs

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The start-up landscape is facing increased scrutiny recently, especially concerning financial irregularities impacting investor confidence in healthy start-ups. To gain insights into this matter, I engaged with Jun Jie Yoon from Capsphere to discuss the challenges that businesses seeking financing may encounter. Fundamentally, funding is crucial for businesses as it sustains cash flow and supports operational growth. Given the current economic environment, it is vital for businesses to adopt proper governance and communication strategies. These strategies are key in upholding a favourable public image, reassuring investors investing or financing in these businesses that they continue to present viable investment prospects.

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