At The Fund Playbook breakfast in Singapore on Tuesday, April 21, one idea stood out above the rest: fund managers are founders, just not the kind most people are used to talking about.
Hosted by Auptimate in partnership with INSEAD Angels Asia, the session brought together aspiring and emerging fund managers for an honest conversation on what it actually takes to build a fund from the ground up. Joined by Benedict Tan of Greenberg Traurig, LLP and Rajiv Premkumar of Curia Regis, the discussion moved quickly past theory and into the operational reality of launching a fund in Singapore.
What became clear in the room was that starting a fund is not a light decision. It means putting in personal capital, taking real risk, and often spending months building before any certainty exists. For many first-time managers, that looks a lot like early-stage founder life: soft commitments instead of guaranteed capital, high upfront costs, long timelines, and no assurance that the market will meet you where you are.
That framing matters. Too often, founders pitch fund managers as though institutional capital is already sitting there, ready to deploy. But for many emerging managers, the fund itself is the startup. Every cheque is a decision with consequences. Every deal shapes whether the platform gains momentum or stalls.
The panel also reinforced why Singapore is increasingly becoming a serious base for new fund managers. The ecosystem across legal, administration, and investor familiarity continues to mature. Structures such as the Variable Capital Company (VCC) have helped move the industry forward, while the rigor of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) continues to strengthen the market’s credibility with Limited Partners.
At the same time, the conversation was clear-eyed about the cost of doing this properly. Building a fund from scratch takes more time and capital than most people expect. Setup is not just formation. It is an ongoing commitment across compliance, fund administration, legal work, banking, and reporting.
The strongest advice from the morning was also the simplest: if you are serious about launching a fund in the next 12 months, start speaking with LPs now.
Because in the end, fund formation is not just about structure. It is about proving there is real demand behind the conviction.
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