Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd CEO Rafiza Ghazali says the catalyst for assisting and funding startups is very broad because it varies depending on the problem-solving services they offer, but money will come to a good startup in the end.
“There is no single answer, the main difference between startups and other businesses is that startups solve problems,” she says when asked about the criteria’s for success for startups.
“It’s even easier if your solution can be accepted globally without the need for people to be present. There is a problem to be solved that is scalable and adaptable to ease challenges, such as regulatory and resource constraints.
“What’s your proposal to any investors? If the investors see the potential of it, they’ll fund it, money will come to a good startup. If they can address a global issue, which no one has thought of, money will come.
“If there is no regulatory issues and if they’ve solved a global problem and it’s something they can scale up very quickly,” for the third time she says, “You know, money will come.”
To accelerate the goal, the startups need to address the original problem or a global problem and how can they accelerate the issue.
“To accelerate your goal, your solution must address an original problem or a global problem. As an example, let’s say you have technologies that only address the problem at Klang Valley, then, how can you scale up?
“Because a pandemic creates a global problem, a lot of startups grow to have a high spurt of growth during the pandemic. So, if they can solve a problem in KL, they can solve a problem anywhere. That is important.”
Tell A Good Story
Rafiza emphasises that good startups aren’t just about good technologies; the ultimate seller is to come up with a story, to demonstrate that they can solve problems and are confident in their solutions.
“Tell a good story that is appealing to investors because they must remember that when the investors put their money into a company, they need to have the assurance that it will grow.”
To help the startups, Cradle also assists the startups as it guides them in telling a better story to project it from the view of the investor.
“They(startups companies) have the right intentions, but they lack the necessary stories to tell the investor, those are a few of the things that Cradle will assist with.
“We tell startups to put themselves in the shoes of an investor and think about what they’re looking for and what kind of assurance they want. At the end of the day, investors must answer to their investors because they are putting money into the venture,” she says.
Towards Digitalization
According to Rafiza, pandemics create a global problem because they teach the world how to adapt to digitalization. She believes Malaysia will thrive in digitalization with the government imposing My Digital Blueprint 4IR.
“Malaysia is blessed because we have high internet penetration. There’s gonna be a boom in digitalization, and you know the government also has set the My Digital Blueprint of 4IR,” she says.
Rafiza saw a good opportunity with the relaxation of pandemic restrictions and the country becoming more borderless, as more funding and cross-border collaboration continue to pour in the front door, which is good for startups.
“It’s a very good opportunity. Plus, it also has a lot of funding, a lot of cross-border collaboration. You know the country is becoming more borderless.
Rafiza shares that someone did ask her opinion on seeing startups collaborating with neighbouring countries, she says, “We need to work as a region, we can’t work as a Malaysian on our own as I believe the more prosperous the region becomes, the better for Malaysia.”
“We have an ample supply of talent, the talent that could not just reside in Malaysia but also elsewhere.
“A lot of startups are supported by talents all over the world but they’re building their business in Malaysia. I think it is good it makes the startups build their business quicker and bigger,” she concludes.
Iffah Salleh contributed to the story
