People often think that men take precedence over women in the business world. However, some say the future of startup belongs to women. What is your opinion? Undeniably, women still have a long way to go to surpass men in the startup scene, particularly in the tech arena. However, founder of Startup Asia Women (SAW),
In 2015, the World Bank ranked China as seventy-eighth in the world for overall “ease of doing business”. I believe this poor ranking is due to three regulatory obstacles in China: bureaucratic red tape, the inconsistent interpretation and enforcement of rules and regulations— which appear to be completely discretionary—and the fickle lawmaking environment. Before
In early March 2017, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang announced his target of a 6.5% economic growth this year. The Chinese government also aims to create 11 million new urban jobs in 2017. Plans are in place to keep cash within the country as Chinese companies spend close to 130 billion pounds in 2016 (S$226 billion,
“I believe that everyone has to experience entrepreneurship at least once in their lifetime.” – Dr Patrick Khor, founder and CEO of iBosses Starting and growing a business is challenging, but is there a system to increase one’s success? Yes, says Dr Patrick Khor, founder and CEO of entrepreneur coaching company iBosses. With over 15 years of
“A typical Koufu customer is the man-in-the-street, therefore Koufu has the obligation and responsibility to do good things for the general public.” – Mr Pang Lim, founder and managing director of Koufu Koufu’s logo consists of four brisk calligraphy brush strokes that represent the Chinese character ‘mouth’. Since its inception in 2002, Koufu believes that
“Giving begins with a small step to pay it forward, but when organised and thought through properly, can be powerful and purposeful.” – Melissa Kwee, Chief Executive Officer of NVPC Melissa Kwee, the oldest child of hotel and property tycoon, Kwee Liong Tek, recognised her life calling during childhood. The director of Pontiac Land and civic
“CSR is quite different from charity. You are not just giving away, but you are actually helping to create an environment upon which you thrive in. It is to the benefit of corporations to do CSR, to help the surroundings around them, which is actually their marketplace.” – Gerard Ee, Chairman of the Charity Council and
How many “points” have you collected so far this holiday shopping season? Like millions of consumers, you likely belong to at least one loyalty rewards program. These programs give you “points,” “miles” or some virtual currency when you buy from specified airlines or retailers. You can later redeem your points for rewards that might range
Last week I was followed around the Internet by a pair of shoes. I had looked at them online as a gift for my father-in-law, but he didn’t like them, and neither did I. Yet no matter what site I visited, there they were, staring at me in their full moccasin glory. Digital advertising can
Nearly 170 years before the invention of Bitcoin, the journalist Charles Mackay noted the way whole communities could “fix their minds upon one object and go mad in its pursuit”. Millions of people, he wrote, “become simultaneously impressed with one delusion, and run after it, till their attention is caught by some new folly more
Can a single tweet make a country’s currency depreciate by 16%? Apparently it did on August 10, when Donald Trump tweeted that US tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminium would rise sharply. Amid 36,100 retweets, and calls by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his people to dump foreign assets, the Turkish lira plunged. It’s not just the president of
To start a new business is often to solve a problem or fulfil a need, to improve people’s lives. For serial tech entrepreneur Chris Kitze, it’s about helping people while also improving himself. “I’ve learned that starting a business is like being on a [spiritual] cultivation path,” Kitze says. Church bells ring in the background
The unfortunate fate of Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit, one of China’s three major major microchip firms, serves as a window for determining the success of China’s strategy of trying to play technological catch-up. It also provides a good through through the fog of war on the “battlefield” of intellectual property disputes between China and the
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump has presented Chinese leader Xi Jinping with a carrot and a stick on trade negotiations between their two countries, three days after their meeting in Argentina during the G-20 summit. In a series of tweets on Dec. 4, he recalled their “wonderful and very warm dinner” where the two discussed trade, and
The bitcoin price is crashing; naysayers and doomsayers are having a field day. The demise of the dominant cryptocurrency is finally happening — or is it? Bitcoin has been buried hundreds of times, most notably during the brutal 90 percent decline from 2013 to 2015. And yet it has always made a comeback. Where the
The G-20 meeting in Buenos Aires had one important objective: to reach a trade agreement between the United States and China. However, the announced agreement is more of a “diplomatic truce” than a real agreement. The United States committed to delaying tariffs against China that were scheduled to start on Jan. 1, 2019, and China committed to purchase more
President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with China’s leader Xi Jinping on Dec. 1 in Buenos Aires at the G-20 summit. Both have indicated that they are ready to talk about trade. Despite China being hard pressed to negotiate a trade deal with the United States, the possibility that the two countries make a
Patrick Tan is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fortis Law Corporation, a young and promising law firm. It was the first in Singapore to be awarded the prestigious PrimeLaw certification, which stands for Practice Management Excellence Standard awarded by the Law Society of Singapore. Patrick is an entrepreneur by nature, spontaneous and bold
In my previous article (China’s Neo-Colonizing Bag of Tricks), I explained how China’s “build now, pay later” investment strategies have entrapped many smaller countries as China’s neo-colonies of the 21st century. The case previously highlighted was that of Sri Lanka. The country owes China billions of dollars, and as part of Sri Lanka’s debt reduction
In my previous two articles (China’s Neo-Colonizing Bag of Tricks and China’s Neo-Colonising Bag of Tricks: Malaysia), I explained how China’s “build now, pay later” investment strategies have entrapped many smaller countries as China’s neo-colonies of the 21st century. The case previously highlighted was that of Sri Lanka. The country owes China billions of dollars,
