NSTB invests in Technopreneurship Investment Fund
SINGAPORE, 25 May 2000 - The Board announces today that it has entered into a partnership with Techno Venture
Management (TVM) through the Technopreneurship Investment Fund (TIF).
The 300M Euro (US$270M) fund, called TVM IV, will be invested into high-tech start-ups from two industry
areas - Life Sciences, and Information and Communications Technology.
NSTB, the only Asian investor in this fund, has committed 10M Euro (US$10.1M) from the TIF/Strategic Tranche.
According to Lim Yew Seng, GM, NSTB Holdings, "NSTB's partnership with TVM underscores the emphasis we
place in establishing relationships and networks with top-tier venture capital companies in the world. With their
dual strength in the ICT and Life Sciences industries, this partnership serves as an excellent bridge for knowledge
transfer between Asia and Europe."
NSTB's investment in TVM IV signifies the board's continual efforts in building strategic networks and linkages
to different technology hotspots of the world.
By partnering with overseas venture capitalists, it aims to provide the springboard for Singapore-based start-ups
to jumpstart their ventures into the global arena.
The US$1 billion TIF set up by NSTB last April has helped to push Singapore's Technopreneurship
21 initiatives through co-investment with venture capitalists.
To date, the TIF has successfully invested in 24 funds and committed about US$500 million. Some of these TIF
partners include 3i, Fortune, Pacific Venture, JH Whitney and Draper Fisher Jurvetson.
Friedrich Bornikoel, managing partner and Dr Peter Levin, investment manager of TVM, are here in Singapore this
week. Besides meeting with the start-ups, they are also visiting research institutes, telecommunications provider
and local lead investors.
"Through this partnership with NSTB and potential partners here, we hope to gain a foothold in Asia's high-technology
investment scene. We are also investigating possibilities of doing co-investment with local technology investment
players for strategic investment collaborations," Bornikoel said.
About Techno Venture Management
TVM is a German-U.S. venture capital company with offices in Munich and Boston.
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