NWCA TO EXPAND IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
London-based company plans to make Malaysia its strategic hub
NEW World Capital Advisors (NWCA), a London-based merchant banking and investment firm, is expected to establish its presence in Southeast Asia with Malaysia being its strategic hub.
Its co-founder and managing partner, Adam Sadiq, said this was part of NWCA’s plans to expand its investment portfolio in the region.
“We are expanding our business within the region to capitalise upon economic growth and meet growing demand from our limited partners. Malaysia is a strategic market for which we are finalising our business plan,” he told the New Straits Times recently.
Sadiq said NWCA’s foray into the region’s technology and asset management sectors would complement its existing investments.
“We have invested in the Asia Pacific on behalf of our limited partners and are dedicated to expanding our company’s footprint within the region,” said Sadiq.
He said NWCA’s plans would also see it facilitate its existing investors in the region through the firm’s managed assets and general partners.
Sadiq said he was unable to reveal the amount of potential investment in Malaysia due to the private nature of the firm’s investments.
“We plan to invest long-term strategic capital to the region and Malaysia by allocating across key sectors including asset management and technology. We are special situation investors and deploy at various stages of an entity’s growth cycle,” he said.
He described the Malaysian market as important to the firm as it offers a large consumer base, a burgeoning small and medium enterprise (SME) ecosystem and a strong talent pool.
He said Malaysia and the region were an attractive destination as it offered a different value proposition compared with developed markets when it came to asset management and technology.
“We are finalising our plans (for our Malaysian office). Private equity investment in Malaysia is supported by strong underlying demographic and economic fundamentals as determined from the deals in the region, as well as an increase in deal value with multiple valuation.
“This trend will continue as the region develops, supported by young and growing digitallysavvy populations, an ecosystem open to investment and the potential for investors and companies to achieve commercial scale and equity upside,” he said.
NWCA has over US$2.5 billion in assets under management (AUM) and acts as a fiduciary to institutional and sovereign capital.
Meanwhile, the company had recently appointed Lena Tan to its board of directors to boost its leadership team in line with its future growth plans.
Tan is 7-Eleven Malaysia Sdn Bhd and Singer Malaysia chairman as well as a 7- Eleven Malaysia Holdings Bhd director.
She also serves as a director at Berjaya Retail Bhd, Razer Fintech, Berjaya Fintech Sdn Bhd, and Berjaya Credit Sdn Bhd.
Before her formal appointment, Tan had supported Sadiq and another NWCA co-founder, Zeiad Idris, in an advisory capacity.
Previously, NWCA had made several strategic investments, including the launch of its GP programme, by taking a stake in real estate investor Valesco Group, which has grown its AUM to about €2 billion.