Former Fave leaders Joel Neoh and Audra Pakalnyte launch fund to support startups in SEA

Former Fave executives Joel Neoh (pictured left) and Audra Pakalnyte (pictured right) have established First Move, a founder-led early-stage fund launched to empower consumer-focused startups across Southeast Asia. 

The fund, which aims at making significant steps towards fueling innovation and reshaping the consumer technology landscape in the region, aims to provide pre-seed funding of up to US$100,000 to companies. It also has a current portfolio of seven companies spanning Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Don't miss: Head of FavePay Later Audra Pakalnyte steps down after 8 years

"Southeast Asia is a vibrant epicenter for consumer technology innovation. With the ecosystem and infrastructure primed for growth, First Move is thrilled to partner with emerging entrepreneurs embarking on their journey to fuel the creation of tomorrow's consumer-tech giants," said Pakalnyte in a statement. 

"As founders ourselves, at First Move, we go beyond capital injection. We believe in providing guidance, mentorship, and access to a vast network of industry connections which is crucial in early stages to get on the right path. We understand the pain points of founders and aim to leverage our experience to provide invaluable mentoring support during the early days of their journey and set our portfolio startups up for long-term success."

Adding on, Neoh noted that having embarked on his own entrepreneurial journey, he is "humbled" by the support he has received from the startup ecosystem. "Now, with First Move, we are committed to paying it forward, supporting founders, being companions on their journey and filling the crucial gap of early-stage support in Southeast Asia,” he said. 

First Move, in addition to providing direct funding to startups, will embrace a collaborative approach by actively partnering with other venture capital firms in the region. Amongst its first collaborators and backers are 500 Global, underscoring First Move's collaboration-first approach to support the growth and success of startups in the region.

In the same spirit, First Move has also established the Consumer Tech Angel Syndicate, a close-knit group of experienced founders and executives in the consumer space, it said.  Members of the Angel Syndicate, which includes founders and senior executives from D2C, eCommerce, mobility and fintech scale-ups across Southeast Asia, will be able to co-invest in First Move deals. Moreover, these leaders will provide hands-on support and counsel to the startups.

The news comes shortly after genomics and precision oncology company Prenetics Global appointed Neoh to head CircleDNA as its new managing director. Additionally, Neoh will also be taking on the role of chief consumer officer of the group as it looks to further expand CircleDNA into a leading consumer preventive healthcare platform.

Neoh's appointment comes as the company looks to reinvent the preventive healthcare landscape, with a focus on harmonising consumer health and genetics, breakthrough technology for early cancer detection, and targeted therapy for cancer treatment. It is also looking to significantly expand into new verticals and introduce new, personalised healthcare offerings to consumers within CircleDNA.

"In all honesty, after my recent departure from Fave, I had planned an extended vacation and even organised travel plans through mid-2024," said Neoh in a statement. "Yet, life often surprises us. Casual chats with Danny Yeung, a close friend of over ten years, took an unexpected turn. The mission of Prenetics and CircleDNA thoroughly intrigued me. Realising the immense potential for us to positively affect people's lives, helping them to live healthier and happier, I made a conscious decision to shelve the vacation and join the cause," he continued. 

Pakalnyte on the other hand, stepped down from her role as head of FavePay Later just last month after eight years at the Malaysian fintech platform, according to a post on her LinkedIn page.

Pakalnyte, who operated in the Malaysia market, was one of the first employees at the company. 

In her farewell post, Pakalnyte wrote, “As the first employee, I've witnessed the transformation from zero to one, from humble beginnings to becoming a part of a fintech unicorn. From pivoting KFit to Fave to orchestrating strategic acquisitions of Groupon and eventually the sale of the company to Pine Labs.”

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