Goldfinch International Targets Bangladesh Soccer League and Indonesian Film Venture in Asia Expansion

Goldfinch International, the emerging-markets division of London-based entertainment financier and producer Goldfinch, is expanding into Bangladesh and Indonesia. A proposed Bangladeshi soccer league and an Indonesian film joint venture anchor the push, according to details shared exclusively with Variety.

In both countries, the company is repeating the approach it used in the Gulf with Fablemill, which relies on building relationships with governments and institutions. In Bangladesh, its local partner is 1CS Holdings Limited, led by Nazir Alam, which is originating and steering the projects on the ground.

The two companies have teamed up with Fablemill and Germany's Akani Group to form the Bangladesh Strategic Partnership (BSP). The consortium aims to attract foreign investment, institutional links and skills training to the country's sports and creative sectors.

Earlier this month, BSP and the Bangladesh Football Federation signed a memorandum of understanding to explore creating the proposed Bangladesh Super League. The competition would combine existing clubs with regional franchises, and it would pair professional governance with international commercial expertise and investment. The consortium intends to approach British and European clubs, family offices, specialist investors and members of the Bangladeshi diaspora. It is also looking at soccer facilities, academies, athlete rehabilitation, 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. He described the federation MoU as "an important first step toward building a wider ecosystem of investment, skills, employment and international collaboration."

BSP has also opened discussions with the Bangladesh Olympic Association, the ICT Division, Startup Bangladesh and the Ministry of Youth and Sports on possible sports infrastructure and institutional cooperation. The group is separately considering a National Creative Economy Partnership covering international production, creative infrastructure, IP and technology, along with opportunities for young people.

In Indonesia, Goldfinch has entered a joint venture opportunity partnership with Jakarta creative company Rangkai. It follows an MoU that Goldfinch signed with Rangkai and the Jakarta Film Commission at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The venture combines Rangkai's standing among Indonesian filmmakers, its local distribution record and its government and industry connections with Goldfinch's global sales network, production financing and deal-structuring skills. It will work in community building, distribution, global sales, production and advisory services, aiming to bring Indonesian talent and stories to overseas buyers, partners and investors.

Rangkai CEO Redemptus Rangga Raditya said his company has spent five years building ties with Indonesian filmmakers, government and audiences. He said Goldfinch brings international reach and financing experience, and that the two are "building this together as equals."

The Gulf model stems from a strategic alliance Goldfinch International launched at Cannes this year with Fablemill, a Gulf-based creative industries advisory led by Eman Alsabah. The wider platform also includes a production debt fund for emerging markets, launched in 2025 and due to begin deploying capital in early 2027, and Vault 47, a Singapore branded entertainment studio formed in late 2025 with Virtue. The company says it is in talks with partners in several other Global South territories.

Goldfinch co-founder and COO Phil McKenzie said the firm's role is to supply the capital, structure and international relationships that turn access into "leagues, studios and skilled jobs." 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, which now reaches 56 nations, and to unveil further development programs.