How Prosus Ventures Became an “Honorary Australian” Fund | Sachin Bhanot

Win $2,000 in credits with the Day One Network — take our 2-minute audience survey before 30 June: dayone.fm/surveyEpisode SummarySachin Bhanot leads Southeast Asia & ANZ investments at Prosus Ventures, a global fund with $100B+ in assets. Though based in Singapore, Sachin has become an “honorary Australian fund manager”, with nearly half of Prosus’s regional portfolio now in Australia and New Zealand.In this episode, Cheryl and Maxine dive into why Prosus ramped up in Australia during a downturn, what paradoxical traits they see in winning founders, and how Singapore and Southeast Asia really compare as markets for expansion.They unpack the playbook for Australian startups going regional, what Singaporean family offices are actually looking for, and why relationship-building is the real cheat code in Southeast Asia. Sachin also shares his biggest Big Chon moment, and how building coffee chains in the Philippines and Malaysia reshaped his view of what it takes to be an investor.Time Stamps02:53 – Sachin’s first and most important investment (hint: not a startup)07:31 – The paradoxical traits of winning founders10:26 – Singapore vs Southeast Asia: the tale of two ecosystems18:12 – Why Prosus doubled down on Australia in 202228:40 – Tips and traps for Aussie founders expanding regionally34:44 – When is the “right” time to enter Southeast Asia?42:11 – The rise of the Australia–India–Singapore innovation corridor48:34 – Singapore family offices and the art of relationship-driven capital51:59 – Sachin’s Big Chon moment: learning empathy by building businesses himselfResourcesResources Mentioned🙋🏻‍♂️ Sachin Bhanot - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sachin-bhanot-15551913a/💰 Prosus Ventures - https://www.prosus.com/prosus-venturesSponsors:First Cheque is supported by our wonderful sponsors:Deel: Founders scale faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes, hire anyone anywhere, and get visas handled fast, so you stay focused on scaling. Deel takes care of onboarding, HR, IT, EOR, benefits, and compliance, so your team can grow without borders.It’s why more than 40,000 fast-growing companies trust Deel to move fast.Visit https://www.deel.com/dayone___Pear Tree: Pear Tree helps Australian and New Zealand founders build high-performing offshore teams without the agency middleman.As local hiring becomes more expensive and harder to fill, many operators are turning to offshore talent across engineering, development, marketing, accounting and operations at a fraction of local salary costs.The offshore horror stories you hear usually aren’t a talent problem. They’re the result of outsourcing agencies that overcharge clients while underpaying staff. Pear Tree takes a different approach through a direct, transparent model where your team is paid fairly, fully compliant, and focused entirely on your business.As part of the Day One community, you’ll receive a free team audit to identify where offshore talent could move the needle in your business, plus 20% off your first hire. Learn more at http://dayone.fm/peartreeFirst Cheque is part of Day One.Day One helps founders and startup operators make better business decisions more often. To learn more, join our newsletter to be notified of new First Cheque episodes and upcoming shows.Mentioned in this episode:Deel x PX_Script 1This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrpSpotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/