TONIK gets go-ahead to open Philippines' first digital-only bank
THE Philippines will soon have its first digital-only, branchless bank.
Indonesia determined to create downstream sector
INDONESIA is bullish on its vision to create its own downstream industry, strengthened by the approval of environmental impact studies for factories to produce battery-grade nickel chemicals in...
US$106m Singapore-based fund to keep plastic from Asian oceans
CIRCULATE Capital has launched a US$106 million Singapore-based fund dedicated to preventing plastic from entering Asia's oceans, and which it hopes can catalyse more investments into this area...
Venture capital fundraising in Asean is on course to match 2018 record
ASEAN-focused venture capital (VC) fund-raising is on course to match the record figures reached last year, even as buyout deal values are falling amid a challenging macroeconomic environment,...
Singapore startups tapping new buzz in Indonesia as test bed
EVEN as Indonesia churns out its own startups, an increasing number of Singaporean startups are looking to the country as a launchpad to test their business model.
SMEs' next big investment push: transformative technology
INVESTMENT in technology is reaching a key milestone, according to a new EY report which found that small and medium enterprises across South-east Asia (SEA) expect to make investments in...
Short rental cycles resulting in 'hit-and-run' business practices, says IndoChine boss
MICHAEL Ma, founder of the IndoChine group of hotels, eateries and clubs, has been vocal about his dismay at the decision made by Gardens by the Bay not to renew the IndoChine Supertree lease.
Singapore business body pushing for fair rent terms from private landlords
THE Singapore Business Federation (SBF) is in the midst of a last big push to get private landlords to support and adopt the tenets outlined by the Fair Tenancy Framework even as they look to...
My SME Story Ep 5: XM Studios
We speak to Ben Ang and Bryan Tan, the co-founders of XM Studios, a design studio which designs and produces handcrafted cold-cast porcelain statues of pop culture brands such as Marvel, DC and...
XM Studios constantly pushing boundaries
"WE are often labelled as crazy people because we do crazy stuff," declares Bryan Tan with a certain modicum of pride. "Sometimes the toys we make are not meant for the general public. Like S$6,000...