Ant Financial to Launch Billion Dollar Fund for Indian and Southeast-Asian Unicorns

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Fintech giant Ant Financial plans to launch a new fund to pursue investments in unicorn companies in India and South-east Asia.

Ji Gang, Ant Financial vice president, said to DealStreet Asia that the billion dollar “Ant Unicorn Fund” will focus on unicorns in its own “strategic businesses” such as online payments and other forms of fintech.

“Ant Financial is different from traditional financial investors since we specialize in investments centred around the strategic business of the company, including those relevant to Alipay that focuses on payment verticals and technologies,” said Ji during a speech delivered at the 4th Global Entrepreneurs Summit.

According to Ji Ant Financial will continue to focus on the application of “BASIC” technologies to finance, including the blockchain, artificial intelligence, security, the Internet of Things and computing.

Ant Financial first made a foray into the Indian fintech market with an investment in payments giant Paytm four years ago. At the end of November Ant Financial also took part in a billion dollar funding round for Paytm, alongside SoftBank Vision Fund, T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. and Discovery Capital.