This article is published via a special e27 partnership with StackTrek – a company specialising in using algorithms and data to build and scale programming teams for tech companies. Each week, StackTrek Founder & CEO Billy Yuen talks with top executives about startups, culture, and tech hiring.

This week, Billy Yuen chats with Alex Kong, founder and CEO of TNG FinTech Group, Inc – a Hong-Kong based company that provides next-generation financial services to 1.2 billion unbanked individuals throughout Asia.

Kong incorporated the company in 2012 but launched its services in November 2015. At that time they were less than 30 people, and today they have close to 400 employees across 14 countries. 

Yuen: So your role in the company has changed from day one to now. How has it changed?

Kong: I look at managing my company; it’s like we’re going through different phases of the corporate life cycle, just like human beings. When we first started to launch our service, we are like a baby, so we are at the stage of a baby. So, the way we manage a baby, a 20-people company, to 50 people, to 100, 200, 300, 400, are very different. Just like human beings, we go through a different corporate life cycle.

My role changes so fast because we grow so fast. We don’t even bother to print our position or title on the business card because the role keeps changing. It’s an ongoing challenge. It’s also an ongoing change management because the way we manage the business and the people are very different compare to day one.

From the freedom of working anytime, come to the office anytime, come to work at 11 AM, go to lunch anytime to now in which we become very systematic. You better come on time, and go to lunch on time. A lot more professional and a lot more systematic. There are different phases of growth but to me, I’m excited about the unique DNA that we have created because of the rapid growth of the company, so we built a culture of obsoleting ourselves.

Every week, our people, our different departments will discuss, sit down and discuss what happened, what we did last week, and what are the small changes we can do this week. And we work on their improvement week after week, and then the business keeps growing. 

You’ve mentioned company culture. Can you share with us what your company culture is like?

Kong: It’s about survival. We have very little cash, and with that little cash, how do we survive? And we have to do anything to pay the rent, pay the salary. We didn’t talk about culture at all, we just work, work, work, day and night, and through that, we kind of built a culture of survival.

Also Read: CloudSwyft, the startup that aims to change the way companies do human capital development

Now, the company is profitable. We have a lot more resources that we can dedicate for benefits and rewards that help us cultivate a certain culture. For example, recently we turned an entire office floor into a dedicated coworking-like space that promotes collaboration. It has an in-house cafe that serves coffees, sandwiches, soups, healthy drinks, etc.

We now provide a lot more fringe benefits and stop asking people to come on time. We don’t enforce the on-time policy. We don’t believe in that. But if they come on time, we reward them for something more. There’s a lot more freedom.

So it’s a very rewarding culture?

Yes. We want to make the culture rewarding because we believe people, by nature, want to work hard. We want to build a happy house – a happy environment that people look forward to come to, and collaborate with each other, and together create a solution and platform that serves as many as billions of the unbanked population around the world.

Our mission is to bank the unbanked. Helping the unfortunate people who couldn’t open a bank account to gain access to banking or financial services. We need people to believe in our mission. We need people to understand that we are doing something great together. And while doing it, we are enjoying every moment of it.

How do you ensure that as the company grows, they still feel like you are still a part of the team? Since they don’t see your face every day.

We are in a very virtual environment. I have 123,000 unread emails, and thousands of unread messages. People still send or copy me in messages, but I don’t really read every single one of them. Anything emergency, they will call me. And every time they come to me, it’s for a decision.

So my job is, every moment in the office, one after another is making important decisions. And I delegate down to my second-liner and third-liner, to entrust them to make the relevant decisions and create a policy, and create a system with check and balance. So you have to entrust the people to carry out the job. They cannot depend on everything on me anymore, only come to me for important decisions.

Can you share any tips with leaders who want to build a successful team?

There are a lot of things that you need to build a successful team, but one thing that has always stuck in my mind is people that are part of the solution.

Also Read: Book Excerpt: What Google, Facebook did to grow from zero to 1,000

I tell myself everyday: if I’m not part of the solution, then I’m part of the problem. When you first hear it, it sounds very harsh. I ask myself that question every day, “Am I part of the solution?” If not, then I’ve become part of the problem. I share that to my people as well. When they come to me with a problem, I want them to think about solutions. You don’t come to me with just a problem.

You have to come to me with proposed solutions. If you only come to me with your problem, then you yourself become part of the problem. Then what am I hiring you for? It’s harsh, but it’s a necessary evil. When we build teams, we need to make sure that we are building with people that can be part of the solution.

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As the price of bitcoin surges to highs that we have not seen since January 2018, attention has once again shifted to the prospect of mainstream adoption. But twelve years on from Bitcoin’s launch, cryptocurrency still has a perception problem. Mainstream media is quick to paint it as an ultra-high-risk investment instrument at best and a haven for dark web criminal transactions at worst.

The average person, if not already scarred by the 2017-18 Initial Coin Offering (ICO) mania, still considers cryptocurrency the domain of the tech savvy, while those who have experience with it lack use cases beyond investment and trading.

Usability is often cited as one of the key barriers to adoption, but despite best efforts, the cryptocurrency space still feels like the Wild West. Token prices skyrocket and collapse within minutes, scams proliferate, and exchanges are hacked. Mainstream adoption is nothing but a pipe dream at this point.

Sure, 55 million Bitcoin wallets exist, but the number of active users, aside from those who are trading, is still relatively small. And few merchants accept cryptocurrency as a payment method. According to coinmap.org, the number sits at just north of 18,000.

When it comes down to it, the average person just does not trust cryptocurrency enough to integrate it into their lifestyle. And this is by no means an unfair risk assessment. On the contrary, people trust fiat currencies because their value is backed by the issuing authority. Five dollars is five dollars because the government says so.

With cryptocurrency, there is no such authority. Value is determined by the community. Bitcoin, for example, has value because people with a stake in it say it has value. This is fine for some, but a majority of people would much prefer to place their trust in their government-issued currency. It’s accepted everywhere, comes with deposit insurance, and has other consumer protections.

Also Read: A lowdown on why DeFi is good for the growth of cryptocurrency

The thing about cryptocurrency, though, is that it has the potential to be an evolved form of money. It has features that existing forms of money do not have. Access to global liquidity, transparent and detailed tracking, and asset tokenisation are to name but a few.

To reach mainstream adoption, these features have to be accepted, trusted, and available. Using Singapore as an example, mainstream adoption is when Singaporeans are able to use cryptocurrency and cryptocurrency-based services with the same confidence and utility that they currently do with fiat currency.

This is why cryptocurrency regulation is so important and, I would argue, key to mainstream adoption. It would help mitigate criminal activity, ensure the same consumer protections as fiat currency, and spur government-supported innovation.

All of which add up to increased trust and the introduction of a rich variety of cryptocurrency-based services that people can integrate into their lives.

Combatting criminal activity

It is no secret that cryptocurrency is being used for illegal activity. But the truth is that any currency, fiat or crypto, can be used for illegal activity. Cash is still very much king in that regard. For large-scale money laundering, cryptocurrency is not particularly expedient, despite its pseudonymous nature, for two reasons:

• a complete history of transactions and wallet balances are stored and viewable on public ledgers
• exchanges are needed for conversion to fiat. The exchanges are particularly important because they can implement KYC and AML processes that weed out criminal actors looking to convert their cryptocurrencies to fiat and vice versa.

Cryptocurrencies, aside from the few that are specifically designed to hide transaction data, actually boost AML/CTF efforts because they offer transaction tracing by design. This allows firms such as Chainalysis, Elliptic, and Merkle Science to conduct forensics on any transactions and wallets identified as suspect.

I asked Ian Lee, VP Business Development at Merkle Science about the advantages of cryptocurrency in the context of AML/CTF. He told me, “The great thing about cryptocurrencies is that we can track the movement of value within a single ledger or across multiple ledgers. This is impossible with cash and very difficult with bank transfers, particularly due to bank secrecy laws and silo-ed transaction data. Combined with strict KYC processes on centralised exchanges, blockchain transaction monitoring and forensics is a strong deterrent for money launderers.”

Also Read: Why it makes sense to do business in cryptocurrency

At the same time, exchanges are a logical focal point for regulatory scrutiny. Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia have implemented important regulations that hold exchanges to a much higher standard, meaning a safer experience for users.

There is also the “travel rule” announced by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) that strongly encourages exchanges to pass sender and beneficiary information when making fund transfers. These regulations are a good starting point as a deterrent for criminal actors. Stronger regulation, such as the requirement to connect cryptocurrency transaction history with customer exchange accounts, will go even further. 

Consumer protections

All markets have scams. The cryptocurrency market is no exception. The difference is that regulated markets have consumer protections built-in. Deposit insurance exists so that you are protected in case your bank gets robbed; stacks upon stacks of documents are needed to stage an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in order to weed out scams. These same protections do not yet exist in the cryptocurrency space.

Anyone can launch a token and then disappear with the proceeds; if the exchange or DeFi protocol where you keep your funds gets hacked, you may not get your money back. These are real problems that prevent people from placing their trust in cryptocurrency.

Regulation adds a layer of protection because it increases scrutiny on exchanges, protocols, and other services that utilise cryptocurrency. To conduct a token sale, for example, the issuing company could be subject to similar standards as companies looking to stage an IPO. Deposit insurance could be built into decentralised finance protocols to mitigate smart-contract risk. Or stablecoins could be required to pass a stringent vetting process in order to be accepted as legal tender.

Innovation

Cryptocurrency is still a nascent technology. As such, the rate of innovation is high. New products and services are being launched every day. Some bring legitimate value to the space, while others are questionable at best. An argument can be made that the rate of innovation is a result of an uncertain regulatory environment.

If there are no regulations, the argument goes, there is no limit to innovation. And while this may be good for business, the consumer is left to swallow all of the risks.

I would argue that clear, consistent, and fair regulation actually results in better innovation. Regulated markets attract capital and require accountability; unregulated markets attract profiteers. A 2018 study by Statis Group suggested that more than 80 per cent of ICOs conducted in 2017 were in fact scams.

Also Read: Inside the changing landscape of Asian cryptocurrency exchanges

What regulations do is create trust across the entire ecosystem. Investors bring capital, businesses allocate resources, and startups work free of stigma. Singapore is a shining example. In April 2020, there were at least 397 cryptocurrency startups in the country. Entrepreneurs have chosen Singapore because of its forward-thinking approach to regulation. Far from being restricted by regulation, startups know what they are getting and thrive as a result.

Where do we go from here?

Regulation is a difficult balance to strike. It has to be both fair to business and protect consumers. Some countries have chosen to ban cryptocurrency outright. I would not consider this to be regulation. Fair regulation happens at the confluence of cryptocurrency’s value to the future of money and the willingness of consumers to trust it. If countries continue to treat cryptocurrency as a black box, consumers and businesses will lose out.

For cryptocurrency companies, mainstream adoption is not coming simply as a result of better usability or skyrocketing bitcoin prices. Acceptance by large fintechs such as PayPal help, but will only take us so far. Adoption will happen because governments have put in place the frameworks that allow us to trust cryptocurrency the way we do fiat.

The best and most trusted cryptocurrencies and other cryptocurrency-based services will then rise to the top, allowing consumers to choose those that fit their needs best while feeling safe in the knowledge that protections exist.

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Pulsifi, a Singapore and Malaysia-based HR tech startup, announced it has raised US$1.8 million in an angel round. Investors such as Kairous Capital; Aaron Chen, Founder of KVC group of companies; and Rajesh Lingappa, Co-founder & Former CTO of RedMart, joined the round.

As per a press release, this investment brings Pulsifi’s total funding to US$4 million. The fresh funds will be utilised to boost expansion to new markets in Europe and accelerate product development.

“Aside from Europe being a large market for HR tech, many of our customers are globally headquartered in Europe. Therefore, it is a natural market for us to expand into, in order to grow the global relationships with our customers,” said Jay Huang, Co-founder & CEO of Pulsifi.

“With COVID-19, we had to adapt our plans for 2020. We are fortunate to still hit the goals we set out to achieve. During the pandemic, we expanded to serve customers in the healthcare, high-growth manufacturing and telco sectors,” he remarked.

“As employers became more selective in hiring, we took the opportunity to enhance our platform to better support our customers with their existing employees as well,” he further added.

“As a strong believer in bringing out the potential of people, I was struck by how the Pulsifi team is also so passionate about that vision. Pulsifi benefits any company that values its people, and I am keen to support its growth among my businesses and around the world,” Chen opined.

“Pulsifi is a unique B2B company that built a compelling product that is relevant globally, not only in its home markets,” added Joseph Lee, Partner at Kairous Capital.

“Talent acquisition and management at scale is very hard, and I experienced this first hand. Pulsifi is solving this problem in a very unique way, and the team has built a strong technology platform to do so at scale,” remarked Lingappa.

Also Read: What will the next wave of VC investment in HR tech look like?

With operational bases in Singapore and across the causeway, Pulsifi has customers across six Southeast Asian countries. Notable clients include Nestle, Singtel and Heineken.

Its platform unifies multiple hard skills and soft traits data on each candidate or employee, and accurately predict each person’s work styles, role fit, culture fit, and other outcomes. The company remarked its methodology is backed by over 50 years of organisational psychology research.

Pulsifi claims its platform has over 90 per cent accuracy when predicting the outcomes of people at work, helping their clients improve quality and efficiency in talent acquisition and management.

Building on its recent win at the HR Tech PitchFest 2020, Pulsifi is expanding its market coverage through a network of partners, from Southeast Asia to Europe.

Having graduated from the inaugural SAP.iO Foundry in Singapore last year, the HR tech startup has also strategically partnered with SAP SuccessFactors, a global leading human capital management software platform.

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Image Credit: Pulsifi

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While recent forecasts have shown pockets of optimism, they continue to paint a bleak outlook for the global economy and the state of international trade in the months ahead. The International Monetary Fund’s global economic outlook update in October was more positive than its June forecast, but still predicted a contraction of 4.4 per cent for the global economy in 2020, while the WTO’s October forecast expects world trade will fall by 9.2 per cent in 2020. This is an improvement on the 12.9 per cent drop it predicted in April, but still not good news.

One positive for trade in ASEAN is that amidst the global uncertainty, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its major trading partner countries have reiterated their commitment to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Once enacted, the trade deal will cover close to one-third of the world population and global GDP, injecting strong impetus to the continued development of global trade, regional integration as well as economic development across the region.

The continued support for global trade will be important for ASEAN governments in protecting the region’s important Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector. SMEs are the backbone of the ASEAN economies, making up around 97-99 per cent of the enterprise population and accounting for more than 60 per cent of employment.

Despite their contributions and importance to the region’s economy, SMEs continue to face significant barriers that prevent them from being adequately represented in international trade.

One of the foremost challenges that prevent SMEs from participating in international trade is the lack of access to finance. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the current global trade finance gap is estimated to be at US$1.5 trillion, with half of this figure attributed to SMEs in developing countries in Asia and Africa.

Also Read: Investree receives US$15M from Accial Capital to provide loans to Indonesian SMEs

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has estimated this funding gap could well reach US$2.5 trillion by 2025, although this estimate predated the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic which has since weighed further on global trade.

How can we help ASEAN’s SMEs overcome rising barriers?

From Open Banking and platforms to the Internet of Things (IoT) and data analytics, technology is coming together to help create opportunities for greater access to international trade and break down barriers to funding for SMEs.

Take the example of Nguyen Van Son and his coffee farm, Son Pacamara, in Da Lat, Vietnam. Son Pacamara uses natural, organic processes that are sustainable for the environment, but growing coffee this way is difficult and expensive. Obtaining the funds needed to sustain the business was a problem for Nguyen and he approached his local Vietbank.

Leveraging technology, Vietbank was able to look beyond past financial performance when assessing Nguyen’s suitability for finance, instead considering all aspects of his business, including previous crop yields. It then combined this information with predictive analytics and data such as weather patterns and currency fluctuations, to better model the business’s potential and viability, meaning Nguyen was successful in securing finance he needed for his business.

In addition, Nguyen also received critical advice and support in optimising other aspects of his business. Using a cutting edge fintech trade solution, Vietbank also has access to a huge network of potential global customers for its clients like Nguyen, which helps to identify any risks of doing business with them.

Today, Son Pacamara is selling coffee to customers across the world, including in Korea, the UK and the USA, delivering products to wider distribution chains. Both Nguyen and his buyers have full visibility of the end-to-end supply chain to track the location of the goods, as well as physical factors such as the temperature and humidity of the cargo, so everything is delivered to the highest possible standard.

The collaboration between Nguyen and Vietbank clearly shows it is possible for SMEs to build a successful, entrepreneurial and international business through smart technology and informed decision making.

Also Read: How startups can aid Southeast Asia’s Open Banking landscape

As well as technology being used by financial institutions, it is also important to help SMEs digitise their operations. Earlier this year, Finastra partnered with Mastercard and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to help build a new digital pathway to credit for wholesalers.

Through the application of technology, the programme aims to help SMEs digitise trade, making it easier for them to participate in global supply chains. The programme will start in Indonesia with 500 retailers and aims to build to 5,000 retailers by the end of Q1 2021.

Post-COVID-19, the WTO has warned that the MSME trade finance gap is likely to increase as financial market confidence will take some time to recover from the negative effects of the pandemic. Governments in the region have introduced national stimulus packages which provide liquidity support to address cash flow issues, but SMEs continue to face an existential risk as they have less resilience and flexibility in dealing with the shocks brought on by the crisis.

While governments and businesses in Southeast Asia remain eager to support and participate in multi-lateral trade, it is imperative to accelerate the application and adoption of new technologies to help local enterprises improve access to trade finance, and build successful, sustainable businesses amid the new environment.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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As ASEAN countries recommitted to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), our contributors were quick to share its impact on SMEs and the startups in the region.

As we draw closer to the end of the year, the battle against COVID has intensified and all ‘online-only’ life has given rise to other challenges like data management, customer retention, the traditional role of sales guys, etc. Thankfully our contributors have shared some of their tips on how to handle these.

Read on for a full lowdown!

Impact of ASEAN’s trade agreement

Leveraging new tech to propel SME trade in ASEAN  by Luc Hovhannessian, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Finastra

“One positive for trade in ASEAN is that amidst the global uncertainty, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its major trading partner countries have reiterated their commitment to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Despite their contributions and importance to the region’s economy, SMEs continue to face significant barriers that prevent them from being adequately represented in international trade.”

How a multilateral agreement will have important ramifications for Asia’s trade fraud landscape by Jesse Chenard, CEO at MonetaGo

“The establishment of one of the largest free trade deals in history– the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), marks a major step towards a seamless trade landscape in Asia Pacific, akin to the European Union.

With RCEP posed to bring Asia closer to becoming a coherent trading zone, we will see a flurry of activity in trade across the region. While the economic benefits of this are inarguable, another direct consequence of an uptick in activity is an increase in fraudulent activity.”

Role of regulation

Why neo banks are better than digital banks by Vincent Fernando, founder and CEO, Zero One Partners

“Banking has been one of the more slow-moving industries for disruption due to regulation and the type of people historically selected for leadership roles (‘rule-breaker’ personalities aren’t typically favoured to lead banks!). This is an extremely important distinction when one considers how fintech will transform banking in the coming years. ‘Digital banking’ is a widely used term with wildly different definitions.

Traditional banks launch slick mobile apps with a cool new brand and call it digital banking. New online-only banks emerge holding bank licenses and funky names but offer mostly traditional banking services called digital banking.”

Why only regulation can solve cryptocurrency’s perception problem by Vanessa Koh, CEO of Fincy Singapore

“When it comes down to it, the average person just does not trust cryptocurrency enough to integrate it into their lifestyle. And this is by no means an unfair risk assessment. On the contrary, people trust fiat currencies because their value is backed by the issuing authority. Five dollars is five dollars because the government says so.”

Continue to battle the COVID effect

How data can help the global fight against COVID-19 by Geoff Soon, Managing Director, South Asia at Snowflake

“Every day, new data sets become available for free to help ensure a safe society in the months and years ahead after we gain control of COVID-19 and others like it.

However, these data and solution providers are asking their own questions to make this happen: How do we enable the consumers of these data sets, and at what pace? What data security measures do we need to take? What about data governance and data privacy? How much information can we share and how should we do that?”

Paving the way for capital markets in the post-COVID-19 era by Julian Svirsky, CEO of UVAS.COM

“Many companies were struggling to access capital even pre-COVID-19 despite interest rates being at historically record lows globally, meaning that this problem wasn’t triggered, but only exacerbated by the pandemic.

One of the main hurdles standing between companies and investors is their inability to access capital available via public offerings and listing on stock exchanges due to incredibly high listing and maintenance fees, which only the largest enterprises can currently afford.”

How startups can consistently acquire new customers post-COVID-19 by angel investor, Marcus Ho

“Over the last few months, the global crisis has virtually wiped out supply chains, thus crippling most startups. Most startups rely on the latest technology to streamline their operations, and any hitches in supply chains affect operations.

While things are tight in the startups’ business landscape, this also presents an opportunity to rethink business models and find ways to survive. There seems to be no respite in sight even as countries start reopening cautiously.

If you own a startup or you plan to launch one in this environment, there are some factors to consider to acquire new customers. Take a look.”

The startup world

Why Seoul is emerging as Asia’s hottest startup hub by Nathan Millard, founder G3 Partners

“Startupblink ranked the city 21st overall in 2020, up a staggering nine spots from the previous year.

And Seoul might only be getting started as the city aims to become one of the world’s top five startup hubs, and it’s backing that ambition with over US$ 1.7 billion through 2022.

Seoul has clearly become venture capital pay dirt. But why?”

From 30 to 400: TNG Fintech Group founder and CEO Alex Kong shares how to grow your human capital by Billy Yuen, founder of StackTrek

“This week, I chat with Alex Kong, founder and CEO of TNG FinTech Group, Inc – a Hong-Kong based company that provides next-generation financial services to 1.2 billion unbanked individuals throughout Asia.

Kong incorporated the company in 2012 but launched its services in November 2015. At that time they were less than 30 people, and today they have close to 400 employees across 14 countries.”

The only guide to being a remote-friendly salesman every startup needs by Edward Senju, Regional CEO at Sansan Inc

“If there is one function that has been fairly challenged due to the pandemic, it is sales. A recent global Saleshacker report of sales workforce reveals that a majority of respondents are closing approximately 30 per cent lower deals due to the pandemic.

Considering social distancing will be here to stay for a long time and the fact that there is no playbook to do new business in the current times, business managers are now trying to figure out how to attract business interest in the remote age.”

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Better still, if you want to earn one, share your opinions or ideas and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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