Bain & Company announced that senior partner Wade Cruse, will assume the role of managing partner for the firm’s Southeast Asia region effective 1st April, 2022. With over 25 years’ experience, Cruse will continue to be based in Singapore and be responsible for leading the firms continued success in the region. He will focus on client relationships, leading the next generation of Bain client leaders and pursuing the firm’s mission of achieving new heights for our clients. “Wade is an exceptional servant leader and is someone who puts others first, including our people and clients. He is well respected within…
Author: Chris Lam
Read More
CapitaLand Development (CLD), the development arm of CapitaLand Group, has been awarded two prime residential sites in China, one each in the cities of Wuhan and Chengdu, at a total price of RMB3.49 billion (about S$748 million). CLD plans to build 1,581 quality homes catering to first-time home buyers and upgraders on these sites. The construction of both projects will begin this year. The Wuhan site is located in the central business district (CBD), at the intersection of Fazhan Avenue and Huaihai Road in Qiaokou District. Clinched at RMB2.31 billion (about S$495 million), it measures 45,709 square metres (sq m)…
Indonesian aquaculture-tech startup DELOS raised an $8 million extension seed round co-led by MDI-KB’s Centauri and Alpha JWC Ventures, with initial seed investors topping up and new strategic angel investors following on. The startup said it will use the new funds to build and scale its three main product lines: AquaHero, AquaLink, and AquaBank, which tackle specific problems and opportunities within both the Indonesian aquaculture industry and global seafood market. MDI-KB’s Centauri and Alpha JWC Ventures are joined by existing investors, Number Capital, Arise, iSeed SEA, Irvan Kolonas, as well as Alto Partners Multi-Family Office, Mahanusa Capital, Kopi Kenangan founder…
Shakey’s Pizza Asia Ventures, Inc. (PSE:PIZZA), the leading full-service restaurant chain and food service group in the Philippines, opens its first Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken & Sauce Bar ‘Fly-Thru’ store in Metro Manila. The ‘Fly-thru’ store marks the 54th outlet of Peri-Peri. Peri-Peri’s ‘Fly-thru’ store located in Vermosa, an emerging residential and retail lifestyle hub in Cavite, is another innovation by PIZZA. As one of the first grilled chicken drive-thru outlets in the country, the company elevated the typical drive-thru experience with its promise of speed and the signature Peri-Peri ambiance. A progressive outlet, the new Peri-Peri store was designed as…
Compass Offices, one of the leading flexible office space providers in the Asia-Pacific Region, has expanded its footprint with eight new floors of business centres in Hong Kong. This brings close to 110,000 square feet of new flexible workspace and serviced offices located in some of the key business districts of Hong Kong, including Infinitus Plaza in Sheung Wan, Lee Garden One and Lee Garden Two in Causeway Bay, and Admiralty Centre Tower 1 in Admiralty. This expansion is backed by a paradigm shift at the workplace. Compass Offices has witnessed a significant rise in demand in flexible workspace as…
Brick, a fintech API provider that allows Southeast Asian tech companies to offer in-app financial services with a single line of code, has announced raising $8.5 million in a Seed funding round anchored by Flourish Ventures and Antler. The round was also participated by Trihill Capital, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Rally Cap Ventures, and fintech angels, including Sima Gandhi (Plaid, Creative Juice), Yan Wu (Bond), Brian Ma (Divvy Homes), Ooi Hsu Ken (Iterative), among others. The fundraising supports Brick’s vision of powering the next generation of fintech companies with easy-to-implement, cost-effective, and inclusive fintech infrastructure. Brick was founded in 2020 by…
It is essential to take all necessary precautions from getting infected from COVID-19. Businesses have implemented strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to both their staff and their clients. These strategies include improving store policies, like mandating staff to wear PPE. What is PPE? PPE, or personal protective equipment, is used to protect oneself from health-threatening risks and hazards. Wearing PPE covers all entry points for the virus to invade and infect a person and minimize any possible injury. They cover the person from head to toe using safety goggles, face shields, face masks, isolation gowns, and much more.…
Digiassets Exchange (Singapore) Pte Ltd (“SDAX”) announced that it has obtained its Recognised Market Operator (“RMO”) licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore to operate a digital asset exchange. SDAX, founded and headquartered in Singapore, is an institutional grade digital asset exchange that leverages blockchain technology to enable asset owners to unlock the value of their assets through tokenising and listing of asset-based digital securities, providing alternative fundraising and exit options. As a secondary market trading platform, SDAX enhances efficiency, creates liquidity and offers greater access to previously out-of-reach alternative investment products for accredited and institutional investors. Mr Khoo Boon…
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is set to launch the sixth (6th) Philippine Startup Challenge 2021 (PSC 2021) this September. The event is an annual startup competition started in 2016 which aims to encourage and support Filipinos to create innovative and relevant ICT products and services that may develop into viable business ventures and potentially solve social problems. “Through this initiative, we hope to promote the entrepreneurial spirit among Filipinos that will surely help our country advance in the global digital economy,” DICT Secretary Gregorio “Gringo” B. Honasan II said. As part of the Republic Act No.…
The ASEAN Member States are working to address their needs and gaps in funding biodiversity conservation activities in protected areas. Several sustainable mechanisms, such as carbon financing and payment for ecosystem services have been identified to bridge these gaps. ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) Executive Director Theresa Mundita Lim said that although funding remains a challenge, sustainable finance mechanisms to address protected area needs are within the reach of the ASEAN region. “While much progress has been achieved in addressing the challenges in funding protected areas in the ASEAN, the work ahead may require us to establish means to incorporate…
The Department of Finance (DOF) is set to launch an online tool that aims to streamline the reporting of data pertaining to the debts and other liabilities of government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs). In a report to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, the DOF’s Corporate Affairs Group (CAG) said the use of the GOCCs’ Liabilities Reporting and Processing Tool (GLRPT) will assist the Department in its analysis of the debts of state-run firms, and enable it to better manage and formulate strategies on the financial exposure of the government in relation to their liabilities. Dominguez instructed the CAG in a…
The Brunei government has requested for exemption from the Philippines’ current deployment cap on healthcare workers, according to the labor department. In a virtual briefing on Friday, Labor Attache Melissa Mendizabal of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Brunei Darussalam said there is demand for around 200 nurses and 30 medical doctors in the country. However, due to the deployment cap on healthcare workers, she said the Brunei government has requested for exemption initially in 2020 but did not materialize. Then another request was sent around July this year. “There are two hospitals here, one government hospital and one…
The U.S. government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), turned over RT-PCR extraction kits equivalent to 3,000 tests to the Philippine Genome Center. These RT-PCR extraction kits will help strengthen COVID-19 testing and genomic surveillance in the Philippines. USAID Philippines Office of Health Director Michelle Lang-Alli handed over the extraction kits at a virtual event with Department of Health Undersecretaries Maria Rosario Vergeire and Myrna Cabotaje, Philippine Genome Center Executive Director Dr. Cynthia Saloma, and other representatives from the government and private sector. “We hope that these kits will continue to strengthen testing and genomic surveillance capability of…
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ordered Royal O’ Consultancy Services OPC, Royal O’ International Import and Export OPC, and their affiliate companies to stop soliciting investments from the public under a scheme disguised as an investment platform for alleged gambling, medical supplies, and export firms. In an order issued August 12, the Commission directed the one person corporations (OPCs) to immediately cease and desist from selling and/or offering securities in the form of investment contracts until they have filed and secured the necessary license. The SEC further enjoined Royal O’ from transacting business involving funds in its depository…
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) continues to strengthen engagement with varied stakeholders in the domestic and international fronts to intensify its campaign for the adoption of sustainable finance principles. During the recent general membership meeting of the Bankers Institute of the Philippines, BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said the central bank, in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund Philippines, the World Bank, and industry associations, will conduct vulnerability assessments and stress testing exercises with volunteer banks. “These exercises will enable the BSP to gather more data and information for financial surveillance analysis and policy development on sustainable finance,” said…
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is threatening Asia and the Pacific’s progress toward critical targets under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to a new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The pandemic pushed an estimated 75 million to 80 million more people in developing Asia1 into extreme poverty as of last year, compared with what would have happened without COVID-19, according to Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2021, released today. Assuming that the pandemic has increased inequality, the relative rise in extreme poverty—defined as living on less than $1.90 a day—may be even greater. Progress has…
The Department of Budget and Management has submitted the Duterte administration’s last full-year budget on August 23, 2021 to Congress for scrutiny and approval. With the theme, “Sustaining the Legacy of Real Change for Future Generations”, the FY 2022 National Expenditure Program (NEP) amounts to P5.024 trillion, which is equivalent to 22.8 percent of GDP and is higher by 11.5 percent than this year’s national budget. By Expense Class Bulk of the budget, in the amount of P1.456 trillion or 29.0 percent of the FY 2022 NEP, will go to Personnel Services expenditures to cover the hiring of healthcare workers…
The amount of bank loans of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) guaranteed by the Philippine Guarantee Corp. (PhilGuarantee) reached P2.1 billion as of June this year, allowing almost 10,000 COVID 19 pandemic-hit enterprises to continue their operations and retain jobs. PhilGuarantee president-CEO Alberto Pascual said that with the state corporation’s MSME Credit Guarantee Program (MCGP) granting a 50-percent guarantee for working capital loans, the cumulative loan approvals of P2.01 billion over the January-to-June 2021 period mean that PhilGuarantee will guarantee or cover about P1 billion of this amount in the event that borrowers default. “The private banks have shown…
On August 17, 2021, the Board of Directors of Emperador Inc. (“Emperador” or “the Company”) approved the Company’s pursuit of a Secondary Listing by Way of Introduction (“Secondary Listing”) on the Main Board of the Singapore Exchange (“SGX”). The Company’s Board of Directors has granted authority to the Company’s Management to deliver all the necessary requirements for a Secondary Listing on the SGX as soon as practicable. The Company will continue to maintain its Primary Listing in the Philippine Stock Exchange (“PSE”) and the stock is anticipated to trade in both exchanges concurrently, subject to obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals.…
Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), one of Asia’s largest Asian food service companies disclosed today that it will buy the shares of the remaining partners in the fund that owns the Tim Ho Wan brand. Its wholly-owned subsidiary Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd. (JWPL), which already owns an 85% participating interest in the fund shall pay SGD71.56 million to purchase the remaining 15% interests of other investors in Titan Dining LP (“Titan”), the private equity fund which ultimately owns the Tim Ho Wan brand and company-owned THW stores. JFC invested SGD45 million in Titan in May 2018 to own a 45% participating…