Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd, an agency under Malaysia’s Ministry of Finance, announced this week the launch of an investment product called Direct Equity 800 (DEQ800) that is built to help startups receive cash injections of between RM800,000 (US$180,000) and RM300,000 (US$67,000).
The strategy behind DEQ800 is to slowly wean early-stage Malaysian startups off of government grants. According to Cradle Group CEO Nazrin Hassan, about half of Cradle’s budget for 2017 will be equity-funding while the other half will be in grants. Longterm, Cradle hopes to gradually shift away from grants and towards the equity model.
The decision comes on the heels of a February initiative from Cradle to expand its portfolio. Cradle will target a wide-range of industries — like fintech or oil, gas and energy. But, the company must be a tech-based startup.
Hassan said he hopes DEQ800…