Indonesian state telecom said to consider selling MDI Ventures

A unit of Indonesia’s largest state-owned telecom conglomerate is said to be weighing the sale of an embattled venture capital firm.

TelkomMetra is considering selling MDI Ventures, according to four people familiar with the matter, who requested not to be named discussing private matters. They said the process is still at a preliminary stage and no final decision has been made. TelkomMetra has hired Jefferies to advise on the deal, two of the four people said.

TelkomMetra, a subsidiary of PT Telkom Indonesia (Persero), is “assessing various alternative strategic corporate actions” for MDI Ventures, including a sale, according to a letter issued by MDI and seen by CNBC. The letter, sent to at least one company in TelkomMetra’s portfolio early this month, requested stakeholders’ opinions on the proposed process by July 17.

In an emailed statement to CNBC, a representative for MDI Ventures said that “at this time, we are not in a position to comment on or disclose any information regarding the matters.” Jefferies declined to comment, and TelkomMetra did not respond to CNBC’s requests for comment.

With $830 million in total committed assets under management, MDI Ventures is one of the largest corporate venture capital firms in Indonesia. Its funds also manage capital from institutional investors in South Korea, Singapore, and Norway, according to PitchBook.

Indonesian tech companies are in a multiyear funding drought, with capital raised falling to $213 million in 2025, down 38% from a year earlier and 85% below the 2023 level, according to Tracxn.

MDI has also been one of Indonesia’s most active state-backed technology investors with a portfolio of more than 80 companies, including six unicorns — companies that hit or exceed $1 billion in valuation — such as Kredivo, a Jakarta-based digital credit platform, and Nium, a payment system services provider co-headquartered in San Francisco and Singapore.

The possible sale follows a corruption verdict against two of its former executives over their investments in agritech startup TaniHub Group, that later collapsed. The case has put under spotlight Indonesia’s anti-corruption laws, where prosecutors could pursue criminal cases against executives over alleged losses to state finances.

TelkomMetra has also sought to shrink its sprawling portfolio this year. Local media reported earlier this year that Danantara Indonesia, the country’s sovereign wealth fund that oversees state companies, had months ago asked Telkom Indonesia (Persero) to cut 10 subsidiaries by the end of June, out of more than 60. CNBC could not independently verify that report. Danantara didn’t respond to a request for comment.