When US tech stocks began to quake at the start of 2022, Southeast Asia appeared seemingly immune from the shocks. For months, Southeast Asian venture capitalists were an outward display of zen calm, gently hitting the brakes on their post-COVID dealmaking spree as they digested the year’s pivotal decisions by the Fed, US retail investors and Vladimir Putin.
Since then, the Nasdaq Tech 100 and Dow Jones US Tech Index have each shed almost a third of their value. Russia’s miscalculated invasion of Ukraine has tossed up a basket of uncertainties around food and gas prices. Crypto has crashed. Inflation remains on the rise while a global recession looms large.