KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 7): Venture Capital firm Gobi Partners sees an untapped global market opportunity of US$6.3 trillion (RM27.94 trillion) in Taqwatech, a term coined by the company to represent entrepreneurs and startups focusing on serving niche Islamic demands of the Muslim population through technological innovations.

Despite historical under-investments in Muslim markets, Taqwatech has the potential to outpace other markets due to contributing factors such as the accelerated population growth of Muslims, economic expansion and the internet penetration of Muslim markets, said Gobi Partners co-founder and chairperson Thomas G Tsao at its exclusive event at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Kuala Lumpur on Feb 6.

“This is a big market with a huge opportunity, but very little money is going into it. From our forecast, only US$668 million went into Taqwatech investments. The key driver of returns is always scarcity of capital, and Gobi Partners is really focusing on this investment trend,” said Tsao.

Products such as Islamic finance, halal pharmaceuticals, halal cosmetics and the Muslim community-focused media are some key areas for investment opportunities, said Tsao.

Tsao stressed that Taqwatech — one of the six major investment themes that Gobi Partners is looking into — is a theme that is linked across the continent of Asia. The other themes the firm is focused on are the re-globalisation of Asia, the Greater Bay area, connectivity across the Asian continent, women in funds and the circular economy.

Southeast Asia, in particular, has become an attractive investment destination in recent years due to its critical mass, nascency and its early stage for technological adoptions. Tsao said that these qualities have given the region the ability to leapfrog, and this resembles a similar phenomenon that occurred in China.

“Southeast Asia is at the front of the wave and investors are coming in. My friends in the US still haven't figured out Southeast Asia, but they're going to, so we want to get ahead of that and watch people come in and push up the valuation,” he said.

Other activities that Gobi Partners will focus on include collaborating with Hong Kong universities to bring deep tech into Southeast Asia as well as its upcoming partnership in Indonesia to expand Gobi Partners’ reach.