Total committed funds under management in Malaysia's private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) industry stood at RM24.7 billion at the end of 2024, according to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) Annual Report 2024.

Of this, PE accounted for RM18.01 billion, while VC's committed funds totalled RM6.7 billion. PE investments were primarily directed towards growth-stage opportunities (83.82%), with early-stage investments making up the remainder (16.18%). Meanwhile, VC investments focused on growth-stage (44.60%), followed by early-stage (35.98%) and startup-stage (13.44%) opportunities.

In terms of investor sources, corporate investors (40.91%) led PE commitments, followed by individuals and family offices (16.77%) and financial institutions (13.27%). For VC, top funding sources were government agencies and investment companies (35.99%), sovereign wealth funds (20.15%), and individuals and family offices (19.55%).

A total of 90 PE and VC deals were recorded in 2024. The top three registered corporations by investor commitments were Creador, Gaia Investment Partners, and Xeraya Capital.

The wholesale and retail trade sector saw the highest share of VC investments (13.65%), followed by other service activities (11.92%) and professional, scientific, and technical activities (10.94%). For PE, the top investment sectors were technology services (19.60%), manufacturing (15.18%), and financial and insurance/takaful activities (7.11%).

Divestments in PE portfolios were mainly exits in the growth stage, while VC saw most divestments in early-stage positions, followed by growth stage. The SC noted that "exits in 2024 were primarily through initial public offering (IPO) or sale to public markets and redemption of shares."

Total funds raised through equity crowdfunding (ECF) in 2024 dropped 23% to RM97.57 million from RM126.28 million in 2023. The number of successful campaigns also declined to 35 from 51.

The highest-funded sector was wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, which secured RM24.67 million. Meanwhile, the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors saw significant growth, with total funds raised doubling to RM17.81 million.

The number of ECF issuers fell to 35 from 51 in 2023, with 77% based in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur. However, growing participation was observed outside the Klang Valley, including Kelantan and Negeri Sembilan, which made up 6% of total issuers.

Investor participation also declined, with the total number of ECF investors dropping 24% to 3,099 in 2024. First-time investors accounted for 15% of total participants.

In contrast, peer-to-peer (P2P) financing saw total funds raised increase 20% to RM2.51 billion from RM2.09 billion in 2023. The number of campaigns grew to 34,512 from 31,002.

Small-scale fundraising dominated, with 66% of campaigns raising RM50,000 or less. The wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles sector remained the largest beneficiary, securing RM1.28 billion and contributing 51% of total P2P funds raised.

As at end-2024, the total number of P2P issuers stood at 19,956, with 5,206 new issuers recorded in 2024, a 3% decline from 5,359 in 2023. The total number of participating investors since P2P financing was introduced has surpassed 38,000, with 15,628 investors recorded in 2024, marking a slight 0.2% increase from the previous year.