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500 Global Names New Southeast Asia Partners to Support Startups at Every Stage of Growth

The move underscores 500 Global’s multi-stage initiatives

From left to right: Martin Cu, Saemin Ahn and Shahril Ibrahim

Christine Tsai

Founding Partner and CEO

Published

20.02.23

A decade ago, we saw the potential to invest in Southeast Asia, then an underserved but fast-growing region with talented founders. Since then, we’ve backed more than 340 Southeast Asian companies, with several earning unicorn status. They include category-defining companies such as Grab, Bukalapak, Carsome, Carousell, FinAccel, and eFishery.

As companies enter their next phase of growth, 500 Global is committed to support their ambitions from idea to exit. I’m thrilled to welcome new Partners Saemin Ahn, Martin Cu, and Shahril Ibrahim who will lead the charge in building our growth initiatives across Southeast Asia. 

Saemin brings a decade of experience in growth investing. He was the Founding Managing Partner at Rakuten Ventures, where he led investments in more than 25 technology companies, including GoTo Group, Carousell, Epic, and Coda Payments. Saemin also has deep expertise in advising companies on public listings and acquisitions. Prior to that, he held management roles at Google in Korea and Singapore. 

Shahril was Director of Investments and Head of Khazanah Americas, a sovereign wealth fund of Malaysia. He established Khazanah Nasional’s presence in the U.S., deploying investments in enterprise technology and deep technology, focusing on AI, ML, and robotics. Shahril was also a board member at global fusion energy company, General Fusion, and on the advisory committee of growth equity VC firm March Capital.

Martin was previously Philippines Country Head of Ninja Van, one of Southeast Asia’s largest tech-enabled logistics companies. He grew the Ninja Van team in the Philippines from 0 to over 5,000 employees, and built a nationwide network serving 97% of the country. Amid the global pandemic, Ninja Van achieved a company valuation of more than $1 billion, and Martin played a key role in transforming the firm into a unicorn.   

Saemin, Shahril and Martin are a testament to the growth of 500 Global as we expand our multi-stage investment strategy. Welcome aboard!

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Christine Tsai

Founding Partner and CEO

Christine Tsai co-founded 500 Global in 2010, and led the firm’s growth over the past decade from a startup accelerator to a multi-stage venture capital firm with $2.7B in assets under management, and more than 2,700 investments in 81 countries. 500 Global regularly ranks as one of the most active venture capital firms in the world, according to PitchBook, with a top number of exits. The firm’s diversified portfolio includes 49 companies valued at more than $1B, such as Talkdesk, Canva, Grab, GitLab, and Intercom. Private Equity International has named Christine one of 10 Women of Influence in venture capital. She currently serves on the venture capital committee of the Association of Asian American Investment Managers, the Global Tech VC Council of the Global Private Capital Association, and is an active member of the Young Presidents’ Organization. Christine is also an honoree of Gold House’s 2021 A100 List, recognizing the most impactful Asian and Pacific Islander leaders across business and technology, entertainment, advocacy and politics, lifestyle, and sports. Prior to founding 500 Global, she held product marketing and operating roles at Google, including monetization and developer products such as Google AdSense, Google Analytics, YouTube APIs and syndication, and Google Developer Platform Tools. Christine holds a B.A. in Cognitive Science from the University of California at Berkeley.