Bangladesh Soccer League, Indonesian Film Venture Drive U.K. Financier Goldfinch’s Asia Push (EXCLUSIVE)

A proposed Bangladeshi soccer league and an Indonesian film joint venture sit at the center of Goldfinch International’s move into Bangladesh and Indonesia.

The company is the emerging-markets division of London-based entertainment financier and producer Goldfinch.

In both countries, Goldfinch International is following the approach it took in the Gulf with Fablemill, building ties with governments and institutions.

Its Bangladesh partner is 1CS Holdings Limited, headed by Nazir Alam, which is originating and steering the local projects. The two companies have joined forces with Fablemill and Germany’s Akani Group to create the Bangladesh Strategic Partnership (BSP), a consortium set up to draw foreign investment, institutional ties and skills training into the country’s sports and creative sectors.

Earlier this month, BSP and the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) signed an MoU to look into building the proposed Bangladesh Super League. The competition would mix existing clubs with regional franchises and bring in professional governance alongside international commercial know-how and investment. The consortium plans to approach British and European clubs, family offices, specialist investors and members of the Bangladeshi diaspora. Beyond the league, it is also eyeing soccer facilities, academies, athlete rehab, creative skills training and sports employment.

“Bangladesh has extraordinary potential in sport, technology and the creative economy, particularly through the talent and aspirations of Generation Z,” said Alam, who is executive chairman of BSP. “Our partnership aims to connect that potential with British and European expertise, international investors and credible commercial opportunities. The MoU with the Bangladesh Football Federation is an important first step toward building a wider ecosystem of investment, skills, employment and international collaboration.”

BSP has also opened conversations with the Bangladesh Olympic Association, the ICT Division, Startup Bangladesh and the Ministry of Youth and Sports about possible sports infrastructure and institutional cooperation. Separately, the group is weighing a National Creative Economy Partnership that would cover international production, creative infrastructure, IP and technology, as well as openings for the country’s younger generation.

In Indonesia, Goldfinch has entered a joint venture opportunity partnership with Jakarta creative company Rangkai. The deal follows the MoU that Goldfinch signed with Rangkai and the Jakarta Film Commission at the Cannes Film Festival in May.

The venture pairs Rangkai’s standing in Indonesia’s filmmaking community, its local distribution track record and its government and industry connections with Goldfinch’s global sales network, production financing and deal-structuring expertise. It will be active in community building, distribution, global sales, production and advisory work, with the goal of putting Indonesian talent and stories in front of overseas buyers, partners and investors.

Rangkai CEO Redemptus Rangga Raditya said the company has spent five years building ties with Indonesian filmmakers, government and audiences. “In Goldfinch we have a partner that brings the international reach and financing experience to take Indonesian stories to the world, and we are proud to be building this together as equals,” he said.

The Gulf template came from a strategic tie-up that Goldfinch International launched at Cannes this year with Fablemill, a Gulf-based creative industries advisory led by Eman Alsabah. Also backing the wider platform are a production debt fund for emerging markets that launched in 2025 and is set to start deploying capital in early 2027, and Vault 47, a Singapore branded entertainment studio formed in late 2025 with Virtue, with guidance from Justin Deimen, David Webster and Lesley John. Goldfinch International said it is in talks with partners in several more Global South territories.

“Bangladesh and Indonesia are two of the youngest and largest markets in the world, and in 1CS Holdings and Rangkai we have partners who sit inside government and inside the creative community at the same time,” said Phil McKenzie, co-founder and COO of Goldfinch. “Our role is to bring the capital, structure and international relationships that turn that access into leagues, studios and skilled jobs. With Fablemill in the Gulf, Vault 47 in Singapore and the Commonwealth Creative Industries Alliance now reaching 56 nations, Goldfinch International is quickly becoming a genuine platform for the Global South.”

In November, the Goldfinch team will travel to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda to promote the Commonwealth Creative Industries Alliance, and will unveil more development programs there. Goldfinch launched the alliance this year with the Commonwealth Foundation and the Commonwealth Businesswomen’s Network as an events, advisory and research outfit for creative industries across all 56 Commonwealth nations.