KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 — The Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry (MOSTI) will not exclude local high-tech start-up companies with the potential to become a ‘Unicorn’ from getting assistance and financing.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, said that has been the ministry’s stance to prevent the companies from migrating abroad as it would have a negative impact on the local economic environment.
“These startups, although small, are actually capable of becoming scaleable fast quickly, and for that reason, I have instructed MOSTI not to exclude any startup company from the high-tech sectors to be financed or assisted,” he said.
He told reporters this after opening the 2022 KL Venture Finance Forum (KLVF) 2022 and the 20th-anniversary celebration of Malaysia Debt Ventures (MDV) Berhad.
Dr Adham said the ministry was also drafting a Research, Development, Commercialisation, and Innovation (R&D&C&I) roadmap to attract international ‘Venture Capital’ to further strengthen the financing ecosystem of start-up companies in the country.
“The need to invite ‘venture capital’ (VC) into our country is necessary so that international VCs remain in our country and continue to support these startups,
“This is so that they (local start-up companies) become big companies before they migrate to other countries because of better opportunities there,” he added.
