Temasek is in active talks to make its first direct investment in healthcare and education tech start-ups in South-east Asia, said its chief investment strategist.

The Covid-19 outbreak has fuelled demand for digital health and education services, prompting Singapore's investment company to review potential targets to add to its US$227 billion (S$306 billion) portfolio.

Temasek has been turning its attention to the two nascent sectors, though it has so far preferred to invest indirectly via venture capital funds that it backs in the region.

"We see multibillion-dollar companies emerging from these sectors over the next few years," Mr Rohit Sipahimalani, who also serves as head of South-east Asia at Temasek, said in an interview.

"We are in active dialogue with some of them right now and I wouldn't be surprised if we do make an investment."

He declined to identify specific target companies.

The strategy underscores Temasek's bet on South-east Asia's digital economy, which is poised to triple to over US$300 billion by 2025 after growth cooled during the pandemic, according to research it jointly compiled with Google and Bain & Co.

Released on Tuesday, the annual report, which primarily studies four key areas, including e-commerce, dedicated a section to health and education tech for the first time.

During the pandemic, major digital healthcare apps saw usage increase by four times, while leading education apps were used three times more, the study showed.

This has led to growing investment in countries like Indonesia, where there are not enough doctors and hospitals to meet the needs of the country's nearly 300 million people.

In education, a large portion of funds is going into online learning platforms. Last December, Indonesia's Ruangguru raised US$150 million from investors including EV Growth, a venture capital fund backed by Temasek, marking one of the largest financing rounds for a South-east Asian start-up.

E-commerce will continue to be an attractive area for Temasek, Mr Sipahimalani said. Temasek and Google have agreed to inject about US$350 million into Indonesian online marketplace Tokopedia, Bloomberg News reported last month.

The annual report showed that the region will see a 63 per cent increase in e-commerce gross merchandise value this year.

BLOOMBERG