Temasek Holdings, the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund, is reportedly planning to raise over $100 million for its second venture capital fund, as revealed by Bloomberg today. Temasek will serve as the primary investor and partner for the new fund.
(Background:
Taiwan has no sovereign fund! Central Bank’s Yang Chin-long: Temasek’s investment in cryptocurrencies suffered a loss of $5.7 billion, difficult to explain to society)
(Additional Background:
Temasek: No longer willing to engage with cryptocurrencies, as regulations are unfriendly! Suffered a loss of $275 million due to FTX, “the wound still hurts”)
Following the fallout from FTX, Temasek Holdings is making a return to cryptocurrency and blockchain venture capital. Bloomberg reported yesterday that sources familiar with the matter disclosed that Superscrypt, a blockchain venture capital firm supported by Temasek, is planning to raise over $100 million for its second fund. Sources also indicated that Temasek and New York-based fintech company Republic have been listed as the primary investors in the new fund and will jointly serve as general partners. The fundraising process is currently ongoing, and the final amount raised may still be subject to change. Temasek, Republic, and Superscrypt have not responded to confirm this report.
Temasek’s reluctance to engage with cryptocurrencies stems from the losses incurred from FTX. After the collapse of SBF’s FTX exchange in November 2022, Temasek had no choice but to write down its $275 million investment in FTX to zero, which subsequently led to questioning in Parliament directed at former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and current Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. Following the incident, Temasek significantly reduced the salaries of the team responsible for investing in FTX and its executives.
Temasek’s investment director stated the following year that due to significant uncertainties surrounding cryptocurrency regulations, making another cryptocurrency investment would be “extremely difficult” for them. Despite the prolonged downturn in the overall cryptocurrency industry and market caused by the collapses of Terra, Three Arrows Capital, and FTX in 2022, the cryptocurrency market has experienced a bullish trend this year following the listing of Bitcoin spot ETFs, leading to a gradual recovery in venture capital inflows into digital asset companies. Reports indicate that Temasek, which lost $275 million in FTX, is also planning a return to the sector.
Extended reading:
Temasek: No longer willing to engage with cryptocurrencies, as regulations are unfriendly! Suffered a loss of $275 million due to FTX, “the wound still hurts”
Superscrypt: A Web3 fund supported by Temasek
Superscrypt is an early-stage blockchain venture capital firm supported by Temasek, investing in protocols and teams that help make blockchain more usable, and supporting teams in building applications and emerging use cases reliant on Web3 technology. Since 2022, it has invested in over 20 projects, including software developers backed by Microsoft and startups such as Space and Time and Aptos Labs, which operates the Move public blockchain.
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Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister: No intention to become a “hub for cryptocurrency activities”; Temasek’s reputation “damaged” due to FTX is under internal review