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ZIG Ventures
ZIG Ventures is Sim Giok Lak's family office, investing early-stage capital into enterprise and industrial tech startups from its base in Singapore.
ZIG Ventures
ZIG Ventures is the investment entity of Sim Giok Lak and his family, created to deploy personal capital into early-stage technology companies. Sim co-founded Zicom Group in 1984, a Singapore-listed firm specializing in marine deck machinery, oil and gas equipment, and automation solutions. The family's wealth derives from his majority stake in that business, now run day-to-day by his son Sim Tze Jye as CEO. ZIG Ventures sits alongside Zicom Group as a separate entity, with Sim's other children — Sim Kok Hwee as CEO and Sim Hui Shan as Executive Director — managing the venture portfolio. The firm targets early-stage companies in enterprise software, industrial technology, and energy transition. ZIG Ventures writes equity checks from a proprietary pool of family capital, not limited-partner funds. The family holding company, SNS Holdings Pte Ltd, anchors the group's ownership structure and holds major stakes in both Zicom Group and portfolio companies. The firm's link to Zicom provides portfolio companies with potential access to precision engineering, supply-chain infrastructure, and manufacturing partnerships — a sourcing angle unusual among Singapore family offices focused on venture. Sim Giok Lak maintains board and professional ties across Singapore's corporate establishment. He sits on the Board of Governors of the UOB-SMU Asian Enterprise Institute and holds Fellow Life Memberships with CPA Australia and the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants. The firm runs a lean structure with no disclosed external offices or additional vehicles. Philanthropic efforts remain private, channeled through individual giving rather than a foundation. Its structural differentiator is the embedded industrial operating company — Zicom Group. Unlike most family offices that invest as pure financial sponsors, ZIG Ventures can offer founders a direct line to manufacturing and engineering scale, making its capital a form of strategic corporate venturing under the banner of family wealth. Succession governance appears settled, with the next generation operating both the legacy industrial business and the venture arm.
General information
Firm type
Single Family Office
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Asia
Country
Singapore
City
Singapore
Corporate office
Singapore
Principals
Sim Giok Lak
Founder and Chairman
Sim Kok Hwee
Director and CEO
Sim Tze Jye
CEO of Zicom Group
Sim Hui Shan
Executive Director
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at ZIG Ventures?
Sim Kok Hwee serves as Director and CEO, with his sister Sim Hui Shan as Executive Director. Their father, Sim Giok Lak, is the Founder and Chairman and provides oversight. The family operates through a holding company, SNS Holdings Pte Ltd, which consolidates their stakes in Zicom Group and the venture portfolio.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The family's wealth originates with Zicom Group, a Singapore-listed industrial engineering company co-founded by Sim Giok Lak in 1984. Zicom manufactures marine deck machinery, automation systems, and equipment for the oil and gas sector. Sim Giok Lak retains a controlling shareholding and serves as Executive Chairman.
Does ZIG Ventures write fund commitments or only direct deals?
ZIG Ventures deploys family capital directly into early-stage companies. There is no public evidence of fund-of-fund commitments or limited-partner investments in external venture funds. The vehicle operates as a proprietary balance-sheet investor.
What is ZIG Ventures' relationship to Zicom Group?
Zicom Group is the family's operating business — a publicly-listed industrial engineering company led by Sim Tze Jye, son of founder Sim Giok Lak. ZIG Ventures is the separate venture investment arm run by other family members. The relationship provides portfolio companies with potential access to Zicom's manufacturing facilities and engineering expertise.
Does the firm maintain philanthropic structures?
Sim Giok Lak undertakes individual philanthropy without a separate foundation structure. There is no registered family foundation or corporate-giving vehicle disclosed publicly under the ZIG Ventures or Zicom Group names. Giving appears to remain a private family matter.
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