Southeast Asia’s VC market slides back to pre-unicorn days

Venture funding in Southeast Asia has regressed to 2016 levels, according to a Cento Ventures report, summarized by Jon Russell. Both deal volume and capital invested have collapsed to near decade-old lows, undoing the pandemic-era surge when optimism ran high around Grab, Gojek, Sea, and new fintech and quick-commerce plays.

While other emerging markets such as Latin America and the Middle East have rebounded, Southeast Asia lags. Narratives like “Vietnam as the next China” or the Philippines as a breakout market look overstated. Fintech remains a relative bright spot, accounting for nearly three-quarters of VC dollars in the second half of last year.

The core problem is exits. Grab and Gojek’s poor public-market performance has hurt confidence, and the region lacks a clear IPO pipeline, especially compared with Hong Kong and India. Without stronger exit paths, investor appetite in Southeast Asia risks staying muted.