Dear Emily,
In my opinion, businesses in developing regions (e.g. most of Southeast Asia) are more dependent on government investment than private equity. Governments not only provide physical infrastructure but are also actively involved as shareholders and board of directors. The drive for growth is aggressive and there are high KPI targets.
On the other hand, in developed countries (e.g. USA and Japan), it is the multinationals that lead most investment activities. Government interest is in corporate taxes and employment.
Interestingly, there are also societies (e.g. Ireland) where angel investors are gaining strength. In these cases, capital gained from successful local entrepreneurs help fledgling SMEs to expand their operations and even venture abroad.
Associate Professor Dr Aida Idris
Universiti Malaya
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
