MDEC BRIDGES LOCAL BUSINESSES AND POTENTIAL INVESTORS’ RELATIONS THROUGH ‘DEAL QUEST’

Enhancing the Start-up Ecosystem by Increasing Traction between Investors and Local Companies

Kuala Lumpur, 10 October 2013 – Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) today announces that it will collaborate with the Malaysian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (MVCA) to launch Deal Quest, a platform that makes the pitching process more efficient for local businesses. Deal Quest gives these companies the opportunity to attract investments from both local and regional venture capitalists (VC) and private equity (PE) players via an easy and efficient online platform.

The announcement came following the launch of the MSC Malaysia InnoTech 2013 at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2013 hosted by MDeC, in partnership with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) and MVCA.  The programme is an investment pitching platform pioneered and driven by MDeC since 2008. The platform matches technology-based companies with potential local and regional equity funders for growth and market expansion. From 2008 until 2012, the platform has garnered more than RM 130 million in secured deals and has successfully funded over 70 companies.

“We understand that in today’s competitive environment, businesses are finding it very hard to stand out and attract potential investors. Investors are not only looking for returns on investment in the first three years but are also imposing stringent conditions on companies. Through Deal Quest, these constraints are reduced. Local businesses are now exposed to a network of venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) players that are ready and eager to support them,” said Datuk Badlisham Ghazali, CEO of MDeC.

He added, “Deal Quest serves as a portal for companies to attract and steer potential investors towards their products, services and solutions. The platform first filters these companies’ relevant “first level of information” and ensures that each company is directed to the right VCs and PEs. By filtering the information provided, each company will be guided to multiple funders thus, allowing better traction between both candidate and investor.”

As the nation’s ICT industry continues on its exponential growth and become the driving force in Malaysia’s economic growth, Deal Quest seeks to abate the challenges that are abound and targets to enroll about 100 to 150 companies in the next six months.

Additionally, it also aims to record an increment of qualified or incubated deal flows for the VC and PE industry. Deal Quest is another platform which aims to enhance the start-up ecosystem in Malaysia and seeks to inspire more innovators and new players to come on board. Through the platform, entrepreneurs will become much more prepared for the challenges that will be confronting them. Beyond that, it will also present a vibrant investment deal flow opportunity to the Investors present at the InnoTech.