ASEAN has witnessed a significant rise the number of Unicorns across various industries, almost doubling from 2021 and reaching a number of 51 this year. Super apps like Grab, Gojek, and Lazada have even become decacorns by passing the $10 billion valuation mark. This has generated a large amount of wealth and employment, positioning ASEAN as a major emerging power on the global tech map.

Preqin’s Territory Guide: ASEAN 2022 reports that 2021 saw record-breaking venture capital deal activities for ASEAN, both in the number of deals and the aggregate deal value – which was up almost 35 per cent from 2019 and 2020 levels combined, with a record peak of $20.4 billion.

The International Monetary Fund, ASEAN Development Outlook 2021 projects that ASEAN will become the fourth-largest economy globally by 2030. With this exponential rise, ASEAN has gained the potential to brand itself in the global market as a nursery for successful startups.

ASEAN’s potential as a global Start-up Hub presents below key opportunities that businesses from around the world can tap into.

Digitalization: Statistics show ASEAN has increased both internet users and market penetration rates for online technology and services, driving significant growth in the e-commerce market, indicating a large change in taste and preferences, as more consumers go online to find the products, resources, and services.

Untapped human and natural resources: ASEAN has wide untapped natural resources as well as a large skilled and young labor force. It offers a cost-effective alternative for global manufacturers, providing access to labor, transportation, land, and the materials needed for production.

Fertile ground for innovation The developing world has ongoing challenges and demands that need new solutions and create an environment for constant, groundbreaking and creative innovations which out-of-the-box thinking. ASEAN offers a fertile and competitive ground where such ideas can be nurtured, developed, implemented and later distributed to a larger global market.

The ASEAN Scale Hub serves as a centralized platform that facilitates networking, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing among scale-up's, investors, technology channels, ecosystem partners and other key players in the start-up ecosystem. The hub provides resources and infrastructure, hosts events, and offer mentorship programs to assist scale-ups in navigating challenges and scaling their businesses.

It aligns with the broader objective and efforts by the ASEAN Secretariat in the region to promote entrepreneurship and innovation, and plays a crucial role in connecting, supporting, and promoting the growth of scale-up’s across ASEAN region.