Singapore, 5th of June 2020 – Latin Leap venture capital studio establishes as a Variable Capital Company (VCC) in Singapore with the support of Singapore law firm ZICO Insights Law and financial services company Swiss-Asia. This newly established VCC allows for greater operational flexibility and cost savings to Latin Leap while strengthening the investment ecosystem and promoting greater cooperation between Southeast Asia and Latin America.

The VCC is a new corporate structure launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Accounting Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) in January 2020 that can be used for a wide range of investment funds. As a VCC, Latin Leap will be able to carry out fund domiciliation and fund management activities locally and contribute to the enhancement of Singapore’s asset management industry. Latin Leap’s incorporation as a VCC plays a part in strengthening Singapore’s investment ecosystem by boosting funds and opportunities available for local and regional tech companies looking to expand to Latin America. This ultimately encourages deeper cooperation between the two emerging economies of Southeast Asia and Latin America.

While Southeast Asia and Latin America may seem like two vastly different regions at first glance, a closer look will show that these two emerging markets share many similarities that make them very suitable for business partnership and cooperation.

Latin Leap, a newly formed venture capital studio focusing on opening up opportunities in Latin America for tech scale-ups in Southeast Asia, aims to become a key pillar supporting the globalisation of Latin America’s tech sector while supporting the expansion of Southeast Asian tech businesses.

“We are very satisfied to have established ourselves in Singapore making good use of the strengths of the new VCC structure and being supported by such strong partners as ZICO Law and Swiss Asia in our endeavour to connect the tech landscape between two emerging regions of the world, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Pre and post covid19 we see great opportunities in this collaboration.” said Stefan Krautwald, Managing Director of Latin Leap.

ZICO Insights Law, the representative firm of the ZICO Law network in Singapore, provides local, multi-ASEAN, and multinational clients access to Singapore legal advice and the resources of the entire ZICO Group of services.  The ZICO Law network comprises more than 300 lawyers in 18 cities across all 10 ASEAN member countries, thereby providing seamless cross-border legal advice and integrated business services. The firm is supported by experienced lawyers in Singapore with a focus on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and investment funds.

“ZICO Insights Law is delighted to advise Latin Leap on its maiden foray into Southeast Asia. We are also heartened by the choice of the recently-launched variable capital company as Latin Leap’s investment funds vehicle in Singapore. We look forward to advising Latin Leap as it leverages on this new innovative corporate structure to conduct investments in ASEAN across its investment strategies.” said Ryan Lin, Director of ZICO Insights Law.

Swiss-Asia Financial Services Pte Ltd, a Singapore licensed Fund Management Company of the group of companies that form Swiss-Asia Holding Pte Ltd, is a leading independent provider of alternative investment solutions and advisory services based in Asia. Aside from fund management, Swiss-Asia offers institutional investors customised services including fund selection and research, middle and back-office support, and a comprehensive platform for independent and external advisors and fund managers. Swiss-Asia’s financial service platforms serve private bankers, start-up fund managers, and businesses alike.

“Latin Leap is designed to bridge Asia and South-America by helping cutting-edge tech firms with innovative products access the South American continent. Swiss-Asia provides a solid regulatory and operational foundation with extensive experience and network in Asia to assist the Latin leap team with its project.” said Steve Knabl, COO and Managing Partner of Swiss-Asia.

In working to support the establishment of Latin Leap as a VCC, ZICO Insights Law and Swiss-Asia present Latin Leap with the opportunity to strengthen the investment ecosystems in both Singapore and Southeast Asia. The new corporate structure and the legal support provided by ZICO Insights Law, together with the financial management of Swiss-Asia, will allow Latin Leap to deepen its involvement in Singapore and Southeast Asia and continually work to provide expansion opportunities to tech companies across the region.