DFC approves $25m investment in SG-based Monk’s Hill’s third VC fund

US development bank International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has approved a $25-million investment in the latest fund of Singapore-based venture capital investor Monk’s Hill Ventures, according to an announcement.

The commitment was part of the $245 million that DFC approved in the first quarter of this year to address the climate crisis through innovation and climate-start urban infrastructure and elevate businesses with loans.

DFC’s $25-million equity investment in Monk’s Hill Ventures III is part of its efforts to advance the digitalisation of Southeast Asia. Monk’s Hill filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission in July 2021 to raise $150 million for the said fund.

The fund will use technology to facilitate environmental protection and increased access to healthcare, education, and economic opportunities in hard-to-serve communities, per the announcement.

The firm closed its maiden fund at $85 million in 2016 and the second fund at $100 million in 2020.

Founded in 2014 by entrepreneurs Peng T. Ong and Kuo-Yi Lim and backed by institutional investors and family offices worldwide, Monk’s Hill Ventures invests in early-stage technology startups in Southeast Asia in countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia.

DFC also approved a $100-million partial credit guarantee to ADM Capital Asia Climate-Smart Landscape Fund. The guarantee is part of DFC’s efforts to promote sustainable land management practices and increase women’s economic empowerment through smallholder inclusion in Indonesia.

Additionally, the bank approved a $5.17-million direct loan to ManiBhavnam Home Finance India to help expand women’s access to affordable housing in India. It earlier proposed a total direct investment of $870 million in four companies that operate in the energy and financial services sectors in India.

The development bank also approved several other investments at the corporation level, bringing total approved projects to nearly $364 million for the quarter.

“The projects DFC approved this quarter will improve people’s lives and promote U.S. foreign policy in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Indo-Pacific,” said DFC chief executive officer Scott Nathan.