Singapore's United Overseas Bank is investing $10 million in Israeli equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd to extend financing to SMEs in South East Asia.
The deal is yet another example of global banks working with alternative financial platforms to nurture and fund the startup economy.
Through the partnership, accredited investors among UOB’s clients will now have an opportunity to broaden their investments into OurCrowd’s portfolio companies, taking a small chunk of equity in return for working capital.
The collaboration is OurCrowd’s first foray into Asia and represents a significant step towards developing the fintech ecosystem in the region, says OurCrowd founder and CEO Jon Medved.
"The UOB-OurCrowd collaboration represents a huge step forward for OurCrowd and the Asian tech ecosystem," he says. "Together, we will empower scores of new entrepreneurs and match them with global investors and mentor networks. The beauty of crowdfunding OurCrowd style is that the investor in Asia can now access quality deal flow in Israel, Silicon Valley and beyond, while a Singapore entrepreneur can easily gain top notch global backing."
OurCrowd has invested over $200 million in 93 portfolio companies and has seen four exits since its 2013 launch.