Forge Ventures

Forge Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm based in Singapore, dedicated to partnering with ambitious founders to build the future of Southeast Asia. The firm leads pre-seed and seed financing rounds, committing meaningful capital to empower founders from inception to realization. Through its expansive network of founders, operators, and industry leaders, Forge Ventures provides access to experts across every sector and function, offering hands-on support to portfolio companies.

The firm's investment focus spans various industries, including agritech, healthtech, SaaS, sustainability, edtech, insurance, climate, tech, fintech, and B2B sectors. Forge Ventures primarily invests in companies at the pre-seed, seed, and pre-Series A stages, with typical investment sizes ranging from $500,000 to $1 million. The firm's geographical focus includes Singapore and Indonesia, aiming to build a concentrated portfolio of 15 companies over the next three years.

Forge Ventures was founded by Foo Tiang Lim and Kaspar Hidayat in partnership with Alto Partners, a multi-family office in Singapore. Foo brings over a decade of experience in building, operating, and investing in startups in the region, having previously been a partner at early-stage investment fund SeedPlus and head of market development for Evernote in Asia-Pacific. Hidayat has held investment roles at numerous venture firms, including 500 Startups, Venturra Capital, and Maloekoe Ventures, and was vice-president at Pomelo, overseeing the online retail platform's Indonesia business and regional marketing and business intelligence.

The firm's debut fund, launched in September 2021, raised $21.9 million at its first close and was oversubscribed. To date, Forge Ventures has led investments in companies such as Vouch, a digital concierge platform in Singapore; Indonesian grocery delivery service Dropezy; and Marathon, a tutoring business based in Vietnam. The firm's limited partner base includes founders and operators from technology companies and startups, including Airbnb, Carousell, Facebook, and Grab, among others.

Forge Ventures aims to build a concentrated portfolio of 15 companies over the next three years, focusing on Singapore and Indonesia. By limiting the number of companies within the portfolio, the firm ensures that partners have the bandwidth to work closely with every founder, providing hands-on support and leveraging its expansive network to help portfolio companies succeed.