According to the lender’s annual report, Piyush Gupta, CEO of Singapore’s largest bank DBS Group and one of the highest-paid CEOs in the country, his total compensation for 2023 decreased by 27.3 percent, according to the company’s annual report, which was released on Wednesday ( Mar 6 ). According toContinue Reading
PUBLISHED: 6 Mar 2024 at 05 :48
The region’s prime minister said on Tuesday while defending the mysterious arrangement that Singapore struck, guaranteeing Taylor Swift played in the city-state but nowhere else in Southeast Asia.
Swift, the only city in the area to feature on her blockbuster Eras world tour, is currently way through a run of six sold-out shows in Singapore.
The actor’s plan has sparked controversy in the area, with Singapore accusing Swift of refusing to pay her a visit.
Surprisingly, the Asean-Australia summit in Melbourne, a calm affair generally more focused on security and economic growth, brought up the subject.
At a joint press event with his American counterpart, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said,” Our organizations negotiated an agreement with her to come to Singapore and conduct, and to make Singapore her only cease in Southeast Asia.”
” A deal was reached,” reads the statement. And so it has turned out to be a very fruitful design. That does n’t strike me as being unfriendly.
Singapore has consistently declined to provide more information about the financial terms of the deal.
Swift’s Eras Tour may travel to Europe after Singapore.
Srettha Thavisin, the perfect minister, previously claimed he was aware of Taylor Swift’s decision to withdraw from Thailand. With the government providing grants of about US$ 3 million ( 107.4 million baht ) per show, she was able to do that as a result of the Singapore agreement to lure her to only do music.
According to Mr. Srettha, it would be beneficial for Thailand to follow suit in the future.
When Mr. Srettha mentioned Swift’s musical deal in Singapore without performing in another Asean nations, he brought this up, according to Chai Wacharonke, a government official. He praised Singapore for persuading the vocalist to accept the deal.
I regret misinterpreting the prime minister’s motives, and I urge those who want to criticize him on this matter to stop, Mr. Chai said.
” It is unnecessary to act to undermine the authority of a nation like this. Should n’t we collaborate to promote cleaner politics? This work together to overcome the difficulties in the nation.
A government spokesman said on Tuesday ( Mar. 5 ) that the prime minister’s remarks should not be interpreted as criticism or an expression of jealousy toward Singapore after Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin revealed last month that Singapore had brokenred an exclusive deal with Taylor Swift.
Thai Prime Minister’s Office spokesperson Chai Watcharong said Mr. Srettha had raised the subject of “admire and enhance Singapore” in a speech on Tuesday.
It’s really ambitious to give Taylor Swift bonuses. Taylor Swift was persuaded to perform entirely in Singapore, which was successful, according to Mr. Chai in Thai.
The remarks made by Mr. Srettha on February 15 at a company convention in Bangkok were the first to suggest that financial opportunities had been provided to ensure Swift’s success elsewhere in Southeast Asia. He claimed at the time that AEG, the musical administrator, had informed him that the Singapore authorities had offered US$ 2 million to US$ 3 million per present in exchange for luxury, which CNA believes is closer to the total amount spent for all six displays, not just for each.
Later, a lawmaker in the Philippines expressed unhappiness about Singapore’s agreement and reportedly said,” This is n’t what good neighbors do,” which led to media reports that focused on the alleged unhappiness over Singapore’s actions.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong before on Tuesday stated to reporters in Melbourne that he did not believe for a deal would be “unfriendly” to neighboring and neighboring nations.
When asked if the agreement had undermined the spirit of cooperation in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ( ASEAN), Mr. Lee responded,” Our agencies negotiated an arrangement with her to come to Singapore and perform, and to make Singapore her only stop in Southeast Asia.”
It has turned out to be a very fruitful structure.
Singapore’s exclusive concert agreement with Taylor Swift was not “unfriendly” to its neighbors, Premier Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Tuesday ( Mar 5 ) during a visit to Melbourne.
According to Mr. Lee, “our companies negotiated a deal with her to make Singapore her just stop in Southeast Asia,” he said.
It has turned out to be a very fruitful design.
After Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin claimed last month that Singapore had brokered a deal with the US music legend, the unique layout became a hot topic in the region.
Later, a lawmaker in the Philippines expressed regret over the Singapore deal and reportedly said,” This is n’t what good neighbors do.”
Mr. Lee was asked about the deal and whether it violates the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ( ASEAN ) spirit at a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday.
The singer-songwriter was given incentives from Singapore’s hospitality recovery account, which was established to resurrect the industry following the COVID- 19 pandemic, according to Mr. Lee.
” I do not consider that to be unfriendly,” he said. ” Maybe one nation makes a bargain, and other countries do it.” You can only be assured that you will travel to various locations if you agree to do so.
The second edition of Indonesia’s largest climate tech innovations competition, the Climate Impact Innovations Challenge ( CIIC ) 2024, has been announced by East Ventures, a pioneering and market-leading sector-agnostic venture capital firm that has supported over 300 tech companies in Southeast Asia.
To test their solutions in Indonesia to address various ecological issues and lessen the effects of climate change, the applicants will compete for a total prize pool of US$ 634,620 ( Rp10 billion ).
The” Climate Impact Innovations Challenge 2023″ has piqued our interest and had measurable effects on the weather business. As a firm believer in online ecosystems and startup ecosystems, we think climate tech innovators are key players in developing solutions that address the issues facing today and help pave the way for a resilient and sustainable future. Avina Sugiarto, Partner at East Ventures, said,” We invite all weather tech entrepreneurs in the region and partners to join us in making positive changes that benefit Indonesia and beyond.”
” We are encouraged that the company space’s Climate Impact Innovations Challenge 2023 has sparked imagination and vitality in favor of a more responsible and resilient potential. According to Lim Hock Chuan, Head, Programmes, Temasek Foundation, CIIC 2024 may assist them in embracing new opportunities and working toward scaling up their answers that will benefit the Indonesian habitat and the location.
 ,  , and CIIC 2024 are the three lines that CIIC 2024 focuses on this year.
CIIC 2024 may have a number of key agendas, including:
The CIIC, which was founded in March 2023, has been a catalyst for innovation and the creation of more responsible options. Over 330 candidates applied for the Challenge last year, and it came to an end with the Grand Finale, which was a part of the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit 2023 side function. FollowingOil ( Renewable Energy ), Qarbotech ( Food and Agriculture ), BANIQL ( Mobility ), and Waste4Change ( Ocean ), CIIC 2023 named four winners.
Interested parties may visit the CIIC site at climateimpactinnovations.com for more information.
.jpg "(L2R): The winners of Climate Impact Innovations Challenge 2023, two representatives from BANIQL, AfterOil, Lim Hock Chuan, Head, Programmes at Temasek Foundation, Avina Sugiarto, Partner at East Ventures, two reps from Qarbotech, Waste4Change.")
Southeast Asia’s commercial construction sector is experiencing rapid growth, with a projected 2.5% increase in 2023, reaching a value of US$450.1 billion. Simultaneously, the demand for infrastructure in Asia is anticipated to surge, reaching a forecasted US$1.7 trillion by 2030. However, despite the substantial economic advantage, the sector is a substantial contributor to waste, responsible for 35% of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The continuous rise in construction activities will pose a heightened threat to global warming and potentially contribute to extreme weather events. In 2023, the region experienced a record-breaking heat wave, which inevitably increased air conditioning usage, causing further energy consumption and GHG emissions.
In view of the ongoing energy and climate crisis, movements on taking the thermostat reading one degree down have begun, with nations like Singapore banning the supply of high-GWP (global warming potential) refrigerants and advocating setting cooling systems to temperatures no lower than 25 degrees Celsius.
More can be done, however. The silver lining is that construction processes are continually being digitalised and this presents opportunities for the Southeast Asian construction market to achieve their sustainable development targets.
Going digital: Leveraging technology for more sustainable development
Integrating passive design principles with digital Building Information Modelling (BIM) could significantly impact the quest for ‘one degree down.’ Passive building design focuses on optimising energy efficiency through strategic architectural choices to harness natural resources like sunlight and ventilation, reducing the reliance on conventional heating and cooling systems.
By applying passive design principles and incorporating BIM technology, the industry can improve construction efficiency by optimising resource allocation, minimising waste and reducing the environmental footprint of structures.
Across varying processes at different stages of the construction cycle, here are some ways BIM complements passive design strategies:
Conclusion: Mitigating environmental impact with digital-driven design
As Southeast Asia continues to prioritise sustainable development, the integration of digital tools and passive design principles is a pragmatic pathway for the construction sector to foster a sustainable built environment – one that meets both present and future environmental challenges.
Vitaly Berezka is Head of Sales for Central Asia, MENA and APAC for the construction and real estate management software company PlanRadar. Besides lecturing on digitalisation topics at universities, he is the author of scientific publications and the co-author of three books. Vitaly is a member of International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI).
Increase in unethical posts sparks concern
The government should rein in social media influencers to prevent them from churning out unethical or even illegal content, suggested the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC).
Danucha Pichayanan, NESDC secretary-general, said on Monday the council felt the Media Standard, Ethics, and Freedom Protection Act should be expanded to cover online content creators.
He pointed to the need to have a regulation which would allow authorities to closely monitor content bound for social media to ensure they are in compliance with the law.
The NESDC secretary-general also said the expanded law needs to define the term “social media” in an effort to improve enforcement.
Mr Danucha made the remarks in response to the latest Thailand Social’s Outlook on social media trends, which found the increased role online content creators and influencers have in the promotion of some vices, such as online gambling.
He said there is an urgent need to regulate the sector, as according to a report by data analytics firm Nielsen, as of 2022, Thailand has two million people who are considered to be influencers — second only to Indonesia in Southeast Asia.
Last year, influencers and content creators generated economic value worth at least US$19 billion (681 billion baht) globally, and the value is forecast to reach $140.3 billion by 2030, according to Nielsen’s report.
The enormous economic prospects are drawing more and more people to join in.
Mr Danucha said that Thai influencers can make up to 800,000 baht per social media post depending on their visibility and popularity, which has led to a high competition on content production and engagement attraction.
In the race to produce social media content, some influencers are opting to break from convention and produce unethical or even illegal content to capture audience and increase engagements, which translate into revenue for them.
Their strategy to increase engagement ranges from using fake news to drawing attention to the promotion of online gambling.
According to Mr Danucha, 7,394 accounts across the internet were found to have published 5,061 fake news stories last year.
Moreover, the Centre for Gambling Studies at Chulalongkorn University reported that 87.7% of the 740,000 new-face gamblers last year were attracted by online advertisements.
He noted other types of content may also cause adverse impacts on society.
Content which show influences flaunting their wealth have caught on well with Thai netizens, for instance, despite the fact they go against social conventions and value, Mr Danucha said, citing a study by Mahidol University which showed 74.8% of Gen Z netizens liked such content.
Other dubious content involve invasion of privacy and copyright violations, especially those where influencers retell their take on news stories, without citing the sources or keeping sensitive details confidential.
Also, a number of influencers have been blamed for setting unrealistic beauty standards for people in society, he added.
Mr Danucha suggested updating related laws including the Computer Crime Act and the Consumer Protection Act to keep up with fast-changing trends in content creation.
He noted countries like China, the United Kingdom, and Norway have come up with regulations on social media content.
A spokesperson for Blackstone has confirmed to , FinanceAsia that the size of its Singapore private equity team will double in order to expand into Southeast Asia ( SEA ) in the next two years. The group had “evaluate options” across the board in SEA, including Singapore, the spokesperson added.  ,  ,
Additionally, the New York-based other asset manager has appointed Mumbai-based Aravind Krishnan, a managing director at Blackstone Private Equity, to direct Singapore’s private capital staff. Krişnan, who has been with Blackstone for 11 years, will quickly move to Singapore to help with the team’s expansion.
In a press release released on January 16, Blackstone Private Equity’s head of Asia, Amit Dixit, stated in an email that” Singapore is home to some of our most significant owners, as well as office for international and Asian firms and a gate to SEA. Our SEA private capital company will be led by Aravind, who has been with Blackstone for more than a decade. The Blackstone Singapore group now has more than 100 professionals.
Blackstone celebrated its eighth celebration in the Lion City with a recent move to a new business in Singapore. Over 100 folks work for the company overall it.
In the launch, Blackstone’s global head of personal ownership, Joe Baratta, stated,” This is a great time to be in Singapore, an important doorway to the SEA and its emerging options. Over the past ten years, we have grown more than threefold across all of our companies and forged valuable collaborations with our shareholders, the government, and businesses. Our footprints in SEA will be greatly increased by the development of our private capital business.
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The debut RM500 million ($ 106 million ) Basel III- compliant Tier 2 subordinated Islamic medium term notes ( Tier 2 Sukuk Wakalah ) has been successfully priced by United Overseas Bank ( Malaysia ) ( UOB Malaysia ).
The first people Level 2 Sukuk transaction to be issued by a foreign-owned banks on January 23 was the Malay ringgit business.
More than 40 investors participated in UOB Malaysia’s successful debut in the sukuk business with the tightest spread for a Baht Level 2 transaction, according to William Chua, managing producer, loan capital markets, investment banking, group retail banking, at CIMB.
One of the mutual direct managers for the transaction was UOB, who also served as the transaction’s shared lead manager.
According to a media release, this deal was timed to catch the window when the “market is beneficial with sufficient liquidity” is early in the year.  ,
The Level 2 Sukuk Wakalah is rated AA1, whereas the Tier 1 UOB Malaysia is rated AAA with a robust prospect from RAM.  ,
More than 72 members from 38 different organizations from across the investing area attended the owners ‘ conference on January 10 to support this agreement.  ,
According to the transfer, the transaction was book-built with the deal size being beforehand announced to increase demand, which accelerated the identification of the actual interest and optimal pricing levels.
With a final order book of RM1.7 billion, which registered 3.39 times cover, UOB Malaysia was able to close the book at 4.01 %, the tightest end of the initial price guidance ( IPG).  ,
Insurance at 25 %, asset management at 58 %, private banks at 2 %, banks at 11 %, and other corporations at 4 % were among the distribution partners for the issuance.
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After a relatively poor 2022, while some Asian stock markets performed well in 2023, such as India and Japan, others including China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia languished as geopolitical tensions, rising interest rates and poor performing domestic economies knocked investor confidence.
There was also a downturn in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in Asia Pacific (Apac), with 155 deals completed in 2023 with volumes down 23% compared to 200 deals in 2022, according to WTW.
Broadly, investors were spooked by a combination of higher for longer interest rates from the US Federal Reserve, a lacklustre economic performance in China post-pandemic with the property sector dragging confidence, and wider geopolitical tensions.
Will Cai, partner and head of Asia capital markets practice and co-chair of China corporate practice at law firm Cooley, told FinanceAsia: “2023 was a very challenging year for all major capital markets in Asia, with Japan as the only exception. There were several contributing factors: the slower-than-expected post-Covid-19 economic recovery in China, the current regional and global geopolitical tensions, as well as the high interest rates.”
He added: “High interest rates have a significant negative impact on capital market deals. The logic is very simple: if treasury bonds can provide 5% annual return, risk free, investors will expect a much higher return on high-risk equity deals – which unfortunately is not what many companies can deliver in a tough market. We probably need to see a moderate reduction on interest rates before equity investors return to the market.”
Amid the gloom, other avenues in the equity space beyond IPOs, performed relatively well, with banks needing to respond to changing client needs.
Kenneth Chow, co-head of Asia equity capital markets, Citi, said: “These are challenging market conditions and as a bank you need to be nimble and flexible. However, there are always opportunities in Asia, such as convertible bonds and block trades.”
Japan and India rising
There were arguably two Asian ‘star’ performers in 2023: Japan and India.
Despite a weak yen, Japan saw a breakout from years of deflation, corporate governance reform and a solid domestic economy, while India saw strong GDP growth of around 7% and a continuation of reforms.
Udhay Furtado, co-head of Asia equity capital markets, Citi, told FA: “Japan and India have recently emerged as IPO hotspots, while Indonesia has also seen positive momentum. There is an increasing interest in the energy transition story, including the makers of electric vehicles and batteries.”
Japan, with IPO proceeds up 82% compared with 2022, was the standout Asian market last year.
Peter Guenthardt, head of Asia Pacific investment banking at Bank of America, said: “There are many opportunities in Japan with the fee pool increasing 20% in 2023, while overall fees were down by the same figure across Apac. The fee pool was twice the size of China this year. Japan could remain the largest fee pool in Apac in 2024.”
Guenthardt added: “In Japan, there has been an increase of IPOs, block trades and convertible bonds, with that trend set to continue. There has also been a rise in activist investors – for which it is the second most active market in the world.”
He continued: “Japanese companies are also looking to expand abroad for M&A opportunities, with the US being the most popular market and where sectors such as technology are particularly attractive.”
In India, the market saw a big improvement in the second half of the year. While many companies conducted IPOs outside of India, the local stock markets saw the number of issuers increase by over 50% to 239, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). With the second half of the year doing particularly well, this bodes well for 2024, with some experts tipping the world’s fifth largest economy to lead the way in IPOs globally this year.
Citi’s Furtado said in a media release: “We hope to see a turn in the IPO markets, as we have been seeing in India in late 2023 and we also expect to see [a] continued pick up in convertible bond activity (given refinancing efficiencies), alongside a robust follow-on/ block calendar.”
2024 Hong Kong bounceback?
One of the big questions for Asia in 2024 is can Hong Kong, one of the pre-eminent financing hubs, return to something resembling its former glory after years of protest and pandemic turmoil. Any turnaround in Hong Kong should also indicate improved confidence in Chinese equities given that the majority of companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) are Chinese.
PwC is predicting HK$100 billion ($12.8 billion) of deals in 2024 with around 80 deals in the pipeline, and KPMG is expecting Hong Kong to return to the top five of the IPO global rankings.
While the fundamentals are still strong in the Special Administrative Region (SAR), a recent reliance on Chinese companies, which have been buffeted by domestic headwinds and rising US interest rates, has damaged the market. In addition, the potential implications of the SAR’s new national security law have rattled global investor appetite.
However, in a sign of optimism, already in 2024, two Chinese bubble tea firms have applied for listings on the HKEX suggesting that market appetite could be rebounding in China – especially for companies supplying consumer staples.
Although stock markets in mainland China are providing stiff competition to Hong Kong, foreign investors and Chinese firms are still attracted to Hong Kong’s greater flexibility. In addition, geopolitical tensions mean that Chinese and Hong Kong firms are becoming more cautious about listing in the US.
Stephen Chan, Hong Kong-based partner at Dechert, told FA: “2023 was relatively challenging for the Hong Kong IPO market, with the number of deals and proceeds raised having declined year on year. We have seen a number of potential listing applicants choose to delay their listing timetable in view of the underperforming stock price of recent new listings.”
A sluggish stock market performance, low valuations for newly listed companies and the macroeconomic environment contributed to potential listing applicants opting for the wait-and-see approach, with the SAR facing strong headwinds.
Chan added: “The US interest rates hikes saw investors opt for products with high interest rates and fixed income.” This dampened the demand for IPOs, and in turn affected the valuation of potential IPOs and hence weakened the urge for potential listing applicants, explained Chan.
He said: “Increased borrowing costs and lower consumer spending in general – due to the high interest rate cycle – have also affected the operational and financial performance of the potential listing applicants. Improvements to both investor sentiment towards the equity market and companies’ operating and financial performance would be essential before companies could reconsider fundraising through IPO.”
Certain sectors have been performing better than others, including technology, media and telecom (TMT) and biotech and healthcare companies. These are likely to continue to lead the IPO market in terms of the deal count and deal size in Hong Kong, especially with January 1, 2024’s HKEX regulatory reform for the new Chapter 18C (known as the GEM reforms) for specialist technology companies, and an expanding market for biotech and healthcare under Chapter 18A which was launched in 2018.
Chan added: “The HKEX has taken the opportunity to introduce a number of modifications to improve the fundraising process including the new settlement platform, FINI, which will shorten the time gap between IPO pricing and trading and hence reduce the market risk and modernise and digitalise the entire IPO process.”
“The GEM listing reform aiming to enhance attractiveness for SMEs to seek listings. . . will also boost the number of deal counts for the Hong Kong IPO market and provide SMEs with development potential a viable pathway for pursuing listing in the main board in the future.”
A continuation of the return of visitors to around 65% of pre-pandemic levels to the SAR in 2023 should also help build momentum in the local economy. In addition, the SAR has been reaching out to the Middle East for investment and is increasing its trade cooperation with Asean countries.
Asia outlook
While China appears to still be struggling to turn its economy around, Asia will continue its overall growth trajectory as the middle class grows, technology evolves and connectivity improves. The relatively young populations of Asean countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand will also continue to provide a boon for investors.
Cooley’s Cai said: “In terms of deal counts, there were still relatively more biotech deals in 2023. Part of the reason is that biotech companies must raise capital regardless of market conditions (and therefore, the price). We also see companies from the ‘new consumer’ sectors looking to IPO. We believe these two sectors likely can do well in 2024.”
He continued: “We hope 2024 will be better than 2023, but we may need to wait a bit longer for a booming market.”
There is certainly a long way to go before seeing the region’s previous robust IPO levels.
“2024 is going to be a volatile year with the upcoming elections in the likes of the US and India, but there is a strong pipeline of deals if risk appetite returns, which will partly depend on the pace of monetary loosening,” said Citi’s Furtado.
Alongside a host of elections, there are ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, meaning there is much uncertainty over global supply chains, oil prices and the inflation trajectory.
While investors will be hoping that inflation can be kept under control so the US Fed can start cutting rates sooner rather than later, solid economic fundamentals and growth in many large countries in the region should provide confidence in Asia’s equity markets moving forward.
This article first appeared in Volume One 2024 of the FinanceAsia print magazine which is available online here.
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