Singapore is the most mobile payment-ready nation in the world, according the the Mobile Payments Readiness Index by MasterCard. Philippines came in second in Southeast Asia, followed by Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
The Index gauges the readiness of 34 countries across the globe in three different categories: Peer-to-peer, mobile commerce, and point-of-sale. An overall score was given for each country, with a score of 60 indicating an inflection point where a country is ready for the mass adoption of mobile payment. Read more
Filed under Mobile, News Stop, Special CommentaryTags: indonesia, Malaysia, Mastercard, mcommerce, Mobile Payments, nfc, Philippines, pos, Singapore, Southeast Asia, thailand, vietnam
Recently, I did a talk at JFDI, a Y-combinator-quality incubator for South East Asia, where I shared how it is like to be an entrepreneur.
A lot of people tend to think: Being entrepreneur is about having a $1B+ home run in the first try. But it’s almost never the case. The best way to describe the life would be through an analogy of playing poker.
Why poker? Well, it is one of those few card games, where you are not playing against a bank/dealer, but rather amongst the players themselves. Winning a hand is not just a matter of having the best card, but also how you play the hand (since having the best card may not necessarily lead to a win). Read more
Here’s a video interview with Tim Draper, manager director of Silicon Valley venture capital firm Draper Fisher Jurvetson. He talks about the differences between male and female entrepreneurs, how women tend to make really good people managers but tend to be less stubborn in pursuing their ideas since they are more peer-oriented. Let us know whether you agree with him!
It was a bad day for Wild Honey, a popular all-breakfast restaurant in Mandarin Gallery, Singapore.
A customer named Gary Tan posted a complaint on the company’s Facebook Page alleging that he has been discriminated against.
Apparently, his request to get a corner table for three for himself and a guest was rejected. However, a foreigner that came in later was able to do the same. Think Rosa Parks, 21st Century version.
What really pissed people off, however, was the response from Guy Wachs, the restaurant’s founder. He said: “Dear sir, we have an international staff including many Singaporeans and respect all people. We deeply regret your remark (emphasis mine). Guy Wachs, Director.”
A screenshot was captured of the comments, which was apparently deleted. It caught fire on the forums (examples here and here) since yesterday: Read more
Conventional wisdom says that Singapore is an attractive test market and launchpad for the rest of Asia. Indeed, that’s what its government agencies like to say. Actually, they’re not wrong either.
If you’re a startup that wants to go into emerging markets, Singapore may be a great place to set up your regional headquarters, but it most certainly isn’t your test market.
David Wilkie, an entrepreneur based in Phnom Penh, certainly thinks Cambodia is a great place to launch his business. Read more
Countries in Southeast Asia like Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines may be up-and-coming entrepreneurial hubs, but their efforts may be undone by clogged airports.
An illuminating report by Reuters has revealed that Southeast Asia’s main airports are struggling to keep up with demand, resulting in delays, long lines, and planes being forced to circle overhead or wait at the tarmac.
The situation is likely to get worse.
A main reason for the spike is the emergence of low-cost carriers that have now enabled more people to visit other countries. This drastic increase in demand for budget travel was never foreseen by airport designers. Read more
The best place for social entrepreneurship?
“Where’s the best place in the world for a social entrepreneur to live and build a social enterprise?”
That’s a tough question. It appears there are two schools of thought when it comes to attempting an answer: Get close or go big.
Some people believe that a social entrepreneur should be physically near to her target market. If she is working on poverty alleviation, then perhaps she should be in a city like Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Or if she is fighting air or water pollution then perhaps Dhaka, Bangladesh. That certainly makes sense for a number of social entrepreneurs.
But then there are those of us who think that a social enterprise with the greatest potential for global impact requires a very specific type of climate to flourish. In my research, I’ve identified a few factors that deeply matter: Access to talent, access to funding, access to markets, a good business climate, and a supportive culture. From that perspective, highly developed cities rise to the top. Read more
Many months back, I tweeted about the entrance of Rocket Internet in Southeast Asia with the comment, “Winter is coming.” Not long after, they have gotten off the ground running with an aggressive hiring spree and clones in the e-commerce space.
Rocket Internet is a company that belongs to the Samwer Brothers. They are known for their amazing execution prowess and their ruthlessness in cloning successful US Internet companies. Of course, their tactics and methods have raised the ire of many, including pro-Silicon Valley reporters such as Sarah Lacy who mounted a campaign against them.
But is the company’s impact on the Southeast Asia digital market all bad? I’ll examine this issue in detail and argue that while it may have some impact on innovation, it isn’t bad for the industry as a whole. Read more
Filed under Featured, Innovation & Technology, Special Commentary, Technology, WebTags: Airbnb, Amazon, Germany, Groupon, lazada, pinspire, pinterest, rocket internet, samwer brothers, Sarah Lacy, Southeast Asia, Wimdu, Zalora, zappos
The adoption of green practices among entrepreneurs could become the new black in 2012. With natural resources dwindling, the quest for more sustainable business practices that generate profits will remain a pressing issue for years to come.
In addition, as more consumers are willing to spend more on green products, the boon to an organization’s profitability can be substantial. As such, companies know that taking the plunge into green business practices is necessary to add to their company’s overall value.
Green Future Solutions, a Singapore-based business that promotes environmental awareness and action, provides consultancy services to help SMEs reduce costs, increase revenue, and become more sustainable. Read more
Filed under Entrepreneurial Mindset, Marketing & Branding, Special CommentaryTags: Al Gore, green cleaners, green future solutions, green practices, LEED, singapore environment council, singapore environmental agency, sustainability, the body shop
Dr Ni Zhengdong (second from left) and Marc van der Chijs (second from right).
Depending on who you speak to, China is either a dead zone or the land of milk and honey for foreign entrepreneurs who want to set up a new enterprises there.
Firmly entrenched in the Avoid China camp is Marc van der Chijs, who, ironically enough, is the founder of Tudou, the second most popular video sharing site in China. It was recently bought over by Youku.
“There are less opportunities in China these days; the environment is not so positive anymore,” he says at the sidelines of DEMO Asia in Singapore, “I’ve been there for 12 years, had a great time. I still love the country. But doing business as a foreigner has become more difficult.” Read more
Filed under Special Commentary, ToolkitTags: China, chinese entrepreneurship, chinese market, DEMO, DEMO Asia, DEMO Asia 2012, marc van der chijs, ni zhengdong, unitedstyles, Zero2IPO
