PE/VC/FO
Private equity and venture capital firms (family offices included), particularly those in the mid-market segment, often face capital commitment constraints for upper-market deals. Lucrative returns notwithstanding, the size, scale and complexity of these deals, will tend to suggest higher risk of an unexpected delayed 'exit', which could - and would - significantly undermine the performance of mid-market PE/VC. The SDGA team promotes alternative solutions to scale current capital through wholesale lenders in the U.S., focusing on capital preservation via re-insurers and, most notably, the contingency exit strategy in the everchanging PE environment. The elements guiding our alternative risk solutions secure the hedging needs of mid-market PE/VC, allowing the capacity to underwrite a wider array of deals under consideration..
Marine & Offshore
Industry players in the marine and offshore sector have seen tighter credit facilities over the recent years, attributed in part to mounting concerns about rising (and hidden) risks associated with the M&O space. Adding to the woe, there were signs of seemingly increasing risk aversion among institutional investors for M&O projects. This explains the rising participation of private offtakers (particularly, global trading firms) in the financing segment of M&O projects, which (in many cases) will significantly erode margins. The SDGA team provides alternative financing solutions to M&O players with proven project feasibility and binding offtake contracts, under a strategic arrangement with private lenders and family offices in the U.S. This allows M&O players to navigate today's changing markets and select options that generate wider margins.
Real Estate & Infrastructure
In contrast to the unique real estate fundamentals in Singapore, real estate development projects (infrastructure alike) in other Southeast Asian peers, albeit promising returns, could pose significant risks. This suggests limited financing options for developers as traditional lending will tend to impose low LTV and require high collateral. A common market practice is to fund the development using sales proceeds. But such a move comes with its constraints and risks as well, particularly in the context of developing countries. A relatively large segment of our clientele consists of developers (including funds) looking to utilize our alternative financing solutions as secondary lender, which will, in turn, empower them to better manage their cashflow through the different stages of development in the face of execution and geopolitical risks at the domestic level.
Startups
The two biggest challenges facing majority of startups are cashflow and traction, which also tend to exhibit a causality relation. From this perspective, the bandwidth for fund raising can be considered a critical ingredient to drive the success (and subsequently, valuation) of startups. This explains the importance attached to the roles of CFO, CSO and CMO under the management structure. The SDGA team provides alternative consulting solutions to close the gaps observed among these C-suite roles, with the ultimate aim to inject the well-needed boost to the fund raising capacity of startups. Often, upon in-depth feasibility analysis, our premier advisory team will connect and integrate the startup into a strategic ecosystem, which should - and would - provide the needed profile for the startup to qualify for our alternative financing options.