NUS Enterprise, the entrepreneurial arm of the National University of Singapore (NUS), on Tuesday signed a S$20 million ($16 million) co-investment agreement with Lotus One Investment and launched a new funding framework with SG Growth Capital to channel more capital into deep tech start-ups and venture funds.
The Lotus One partnership, part of Lotus Singapore Group, will back NUS spin-offs and selected venture capital funds, with profits reinvested into the university’s innovation programmes.
The agreement complements a new co-investment framework with SG Growth Capital, the strategic platform of the Economic Development Board and Enterprise Singapore, which will match NUS Enterprise’s investments based on its evaluation of VC funds.
“These partnerships give our ventures greater access to capital, networks, and expertise, while reinforcing NUS’ role in advancing deep tech innovation and contributing to a vibrant start-up ecosystem,” NUS President Professor Tan Eng Chye said.
The initiatives build on NUS Enterprise’s S$150 million VC Programme launched in July and were announced at the opening of the university’s revamped i3 building, a hub for its start-up ecosystem.
NUS Enterprise also unveiled a S$2 million ($1.5 million) pilot collaboration with Stanford University, supported by the Khetan Foundation, to give students hands-on experience in co-creating solutions to industry challenges with partners such as Meta and Venture Corporation.
Dr Tan Sian Wee, NUS Senior Vice President (Innovation and Enterprise), said the partnerships would strengthen NUS’ integrated ecosystem “uniting education, research, and venture creation to attract outstanding talent and nurture start-ups that deliver innovation with lasting global impact.”
Business News Asia
