We’re living in the Asian Century. Asia has the money, the population and the ambition to lead the world in many areas, including healthcare, advanced manufacturing and renewable energy. Much of this growth and development is being funded by China with the benefits seeping out into all Asian markets who, despite negative media and well publicised geopolitical tensions, are all busy cutting deals, making money and building long term relationships for the future.
On our recent Australian HealthTech Mission to Hong Kong, we found a strong appetite amongst Hong Kong and Chinese investors to invest and partner with leading Australian innovators (founders, startups and inventors) who are willing to bring their technology to the region. There was less appetite for investing in Australia (other than for R&D) which is a small and faraway market compared with say Indonesia (population 280 million), Vietnam (population 100 million) or the Greater Bay Area of China (made up of 11 cities in a region the size of Tasmania and a population of over 80 million affluent consumers).
The message is clear. If you’re looking to raise early stage capital or commercialise your innovations into Asia you have to get out of Australia. We’ll be going back to Hong Kong in September with another mission aligned with BioHK 2024. If you know any biotech founders or startups seeking to raise capital, please refer them to our mission website or invite them to watch the video below: