Year: 2021

These startups have an appetite for tackling food waste and hunger in Southeast Asia; Here’s an in-depth article about the three different categories of food waste management in SEA — food waste prevention, food redistribution, and food waste recycling.

Flash Express becomes Thailand’s first unicorn after raising US$150M; Investors include SCB10X, Buer Capital, eWTP Capital, TCP Group’s Durbell, Krungsri Finnovate; The group will use the fresh capital for tech development and expansion into Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.

The leading Asian tech players eyeing an IPO in 2021; Asian firms are increasingly opting for IPOs as tech stocks boomed amid the pandemic; Tech in Asia’s analysis shows that 40 tech startups across China, India, and Southeast Asia are reportedly planning for an IPO this year; Out of this number, 22 startups could collectively raise over US$26.78B.

iGlobe Partners closes new US$100M fund; iGlobe Platinum Fund III invests in startups innovating in smart cities, synthetic biology and fintech; It mainly targets pre-Series A to Series C stages firms; The ticket size is between US$500K and US$10M.

Zenyum raises US$40M Series B to accelerate expansion in Asia, deepen product offerings; On this, US$25M came from L Catterton; Zenyum partners with dentists to provide 3D-printed Invisible Braces across seven markets in Asia; In Nov 2019, it raised US$13.6M Series A.

Good Startup launches US$25M fund to invest in alternative protein ventures in SEA; The cross-border VC fund is an investor in Eat Just, TurtleTree Labs, and Avant Meats; It aims to invest in a total of 32 companies.

P2P lender Amartha raises US$7.5M from Norway wealth fund Norfund; The corpus will be distributed as a capital loan to women micro-entrepreneurs in rural areas; Since inception, Amartha has reportedly disbursed loans worth over US$250M to 678,502 women borrowers across 18,9000 villages in Indonesia

EQuest raises funding from KKR to make education accessible for Vietnam’s students; EQuest is focussed on four core segments — K-12 bilingual schools, tertiary institutions, English enrichment courses, and digital learning; EQuest claims to have more than 110,000 students enrolled across its segments each year.

Indonesian P2P lenders face an existential threat as COVID reshapes finance; More than 2 dozen companies are no longer able to operate since the start of 2020; Plus, they are facing a growing challenge from the rise of digital banks that offer far lower interest rates.

Singapore’ GIC leads US$50mn Series C of Locus; It will majorly use the funds for improving geographical reach and building its research and development team to expand the product line; Locus uses deep machine learning and proprietary algorithms to offer smart supply chain solutions to customers.

Deals of less than US$500K up but later-stage deals down in Vietnam in 2020, says Report; The total capital invested decreased by 48% to US$451M in 2020, reveals a study jointly conducted by Do Ventures and NIC; The investments of US$10-50M were the worst hit with a significant 60% fall in the number of deals, followed by a 42% drop in US$3-10M deals.

Red Dot Analytics raises seed funding round; Investors include IMO Ventures, Avior Capital, GSR Ventures; Red Dot Analytics builds AI-driven digital twin solution that helps transform data centre operations and management.

How could you accelerate your fundraising efforts through thought leadership articles; Putting down your own thoughts and words will make it easier for you to take it to investors and establish greater credibility; The added validation to your ideas from other founders and professionals in the community will serve as a great endorsement to your ideas.

Line to roll out digital banking platform in Indonesia; This follows a partnership signed in 2018 between Line and Bank KEB Hana Indonesia, a subsidiary of South Korea’s Hana ZBank; Line had announced the acquisition of a 20% stake in KEB Hana.

Malaysia’s Axiata and RHB Bank team up for digital bank license; A consortium of Axiata’s e-wallet company Boost Holdings and RHB will be formalised with a 60:40 shareholding, respectively; Malaysia’s banking industry has between US$969B and US$1.2B in terms of total assets.

‘Diversity and inclusion aren’t getting enough airtime in SEA’s workplaces’; An interview with Andee Chua, a culture builder at HubSpot and co-founder of Kampung Collective, a community for community builders across Asia.

Reimagining customer engagement for the AI bank of the future; If fully integrated, AT technologies can strengthen engagement significantly, supporting customers’ financial activities across diverse online and physical contexts with intelligent, highly personalised solutions delivered through an interface that is intuitive, seamless, and fast.

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GIC invests US$50M into Locus

Who is Locus: Locus is a US-based company that automates supply chain decisions. It uses deep machine learning and proprietary algorithms to offer smart supply chain solutions to business customers.

Other investors: Qualcomm Ventures, Tiger Global, Falcon Edge, Amrish Rau, CEO of Pine Labs, Kunal Shah, CEO of Cred, Raju Reddy, founder of Sierra Atlantic, and Deb Deep Sengupta, former President of SAP South Asia.

What the funds will be used for: To improve geographical reach, R&D, and expand its product line.

More on Locus: It claims that its scalable solutions have resulted in over US$150 million savings in logistics costs, 70 million kilometer reductions in distance traveled, and 17 million+ kilograms reduction in GHG emissions for clients across sectors like e-commerce, retail, e-grocery, CPG/FMCG, home services, home deliveries, 3PL, transportation, and B2B distribution.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: SEA’s new Unicorn + food waste management startups

Pakistan’s Tajir raises US$17M

Who is Tajir: A B2B marketplace for mom-and-pop stores.

Investors: Kleiner Perkins (lead), YC Continuity, AAVCF, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Flexport, Golden Gate Ventures, Liberty City Ventures, VentureSouq, CEO of Figma Dylan Field, CEO of Flexport Ryan Petersen.

More on Tajir: Co-founded by brothers Babar and Ismail Khan, Tajir helps mom and pop store owners maintain their inventory. Through the app, users can place orders for inventory, compare the prices of goods, and have access to 24X7 ordering with next-day deliveries.

Co-Creation Fund to back startups solving social issues

The story: Four Japanese companies — namely Japan Airport Terminal, Haneda Future Research Institute, Kiraboshi Bank, ICMG Group — have come together to launch ‘Co-Creation Fund’ to support startups aiming to solve social issues.

Fund size: US$20 million

More about the story: This fund aims to invest in six startups with minimum Series A funding.

In addition to venture investing, this fund will support value co-creation efforts between up-and-coming entrepreneurs and large corporations essential to sustaining social infrastructure.

WEH Ventures launches US$13M fund

More on this: The fund plans to invest in 18-20 early-stage startups and would seek to back them over multiple follow-on rounds.

The fund is sector-agnostic and invests in solutions that are built ground up for solving problems primarily targeting the Indian economy.

The company has already started making investments from its fund. Unbox Robotics, a warehouse automation startup, is one of the first beneficiaries. Others include a DTC brand, a community-first app, and a gaming studio.

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Riskwolf, a Zurich-based insurtech startup with an office in Singapore,  announced today it has completed its first external financing round of 750,000 Swiss francs (over US$800,000).

Led by Swiss business angel network SICTIC, the round was also joined by several unnamed angels and professional investors in Europe, the US and Asia.

Also Read: The future of insurance isn’t just digital — it’s efficiently digital

The startup will use this capital to expand its product line, turbocharge its real-time, data-driven technology platform and accelerate its growth while building out its remote-first team.

Started in 2020, Riskwolf is building a technology platform to deliver customised, parametric insurance to fill this significant protection gap and create innovative, untapped markets for the insurance industry. Its platform is capable of detecting internet outages, modelling the insurance risks and making payouts in real time.

“Riskwolf was founded at the beginning of 2020 to unlock large, innovative insurance markets built on the newly emerging digital economy risks,” said CEO Thomas Krapf, who co-founded the company with CTO René Papesch. “The idea is to bring parametric insurance to any insurer and give them the capabilities to underwrite internet downtimes and outages on a global scale.”

The insurtech firm said in a press note that it is currently piloting its first outage benefit product in Southeast Asia, in partnership with a leading global reinsurer.

Also Read: ‘Microinsurance will play a pivotal role in accelerating financial inclusion in SEA’: Raunak Mehta of Igloo

The team currently has members in Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Slovakia, the UK, Singapore, and India.

Jan Kastory, founding partner and LP at astorya.vc, a Paris-based insurtech VC fund, said: “When claim payouts are pre-agreed, objective and instant, the most ungrateful insurance process suddenly disappears. This is the beauty of parametric insurance. For the underinsured digital economy, the telco and internet outages are only umbrella use cases. Defaulting payment APIs, SaaS companies, telemedicine or e-learning platforms will follow. Riskwolf allows any (re)insurer to enter the space.”

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Image Credit: Riskwolf.

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Japanese messaging giant Line Corporation will roll out a digital banking platform in Indonesia this month, says a TechCrunch report.

This follows a partnership signed in 2018 between Line and Bank KEB Hana Indonesia, a subsidiary of South Korea’s Hana ZBank.

Line had announced the acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in KEB Hana back then, and said it would work on online banking services, including deposit accounts, microcredit products and remittance and payment services.

Also Read: Grab, Sea and Ant Group amongst 4 selected for Singapore digital banking licenses

Line already offers digital banking services in Thailand and Taiwan, two of its largest overseas markets.

Indonesia presents massive opportunities for digital banking services companies as a huge chunk of its population still remains unbanked or underbanked. Conventional banking services are still beyond the reach of a big chunk of its people.

The digital banking industry has kicked off in the archipelago. As per a Momentum Works report, downloads of digital banking apps in the archipelago grew 7 per cent in 2020. Southeast Asia’s tech honchos like Sea, Grab and Gojek are working on their own neobank services.

In Southeast Asia, the concept of digital-only banking has been gaining momentum for the past two to three years. Singapore has already awarded two digital full bank (DFB) licenses to a consortium comprising Grab and national telco, Singtel and a wholly-owned entity by tech giant Sea.

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Image Credit: Line Indonesia

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EQuest Education Group (EQuest), an educational services provider in Vietnam, has raised an undisclosed amount of investment from American global investment company KKR through its Global Impact Fund.

The fresh funds will be used to support EQuest’s expansion and advance its mission to provide students in Vietnam with affordable access to quality education.

Founded in 2013, EQuest operates a diversified portfolio across the educational sector in Vietnam, focusing on four core segments including K-12 bilingual schools, tertiary institutions, English enrichment courses, and digital learning solutions.

The firm offers iSMART Education, which provides programmes that enable students to learn English through Math and Science lessons, using digitised lessons and learning apps and platforms. These programmes are accredited by the Education Research Center of HCMC University of Education and have been running in almost 400 primary and secondary schools nationwide.

EQuest claims to have more than 110,000 students enrolled across its segments each year.

Additionally, Annabelle Vultee, the former China COO of Education First, has joined EQest’s board of directors. In the new role, Vultee will bring with her experience in the education sector across fast-growing markets such as China and the US.

Also Read: Geniebook, an edutech startup that identifies students; strengths and weaknesses using AI, expands into Vietnam

“Access to high-quality education and intensive English-language training is crucial for Vietnamese students to achieve their full potential. By making the access affordable at a disruptive cost, EQuest is committed to delivering world-class education and bringing accredited, world-class curriculum to more Vietnamese students to improve their competitiveness in the global arena,” Nguyen Quoc Toan, co-founder of EQuest, said.

“Investing in Vietnam and supporting the growth of the country’s businesses and industries is a key part of KKR’s strategy in Asia. As Vietnam continues to elevate on the world’s economic stage, access to affordable, high-quality education solutions plays an important role in meeting the nation’s objectives. We are excited to invest in EQuest and to support aspiring Vietnamese entrepreneurs like Toan – as well as EQuest’s talented team – to help realize their vision for closing the education gap in the country,” Ashish Shastry, Head of Southeast Asia at KKR, remarked.

“We believe lifelong learning starts at an early age and EQuest is supporting the development of the next generation through its high-quality affordable education programs with strong outcomes. KKR aims to leverage our operational experience, global network, and education expertise to strengthen EQuest’s market-leading position, further build on its tech solutions, and implement industry best practices,” Chee-Wei Wong, Head of KKR Global Impact for Asia, added.

Vietnam has 17 million K-12 students, making it a massive market for edutech. Adding to that, with students made to stay home for months due to COVID-19 safety measures, home-based learning has become a big part of 2020, giving a boost to the edutech sector.

A few months ago, English Learning Speech Assistant (ELSA), an app that helps by using speech recognition technology to correct pronunciation, raised US$15 million in Series B, led by Vietnam Investments Group and SIG.

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Singapore-headquareterd cross-border VC firm, iGlobe Partners, today announced the closing of its third fund at US$100 million.

iGlobe Platinum Fund III seeks to back startups building solutions in smart cities, synthetic biology, and fintech.

With the fund, iGlobe aims to continue investing in growth-stage tech startups, from pre-Series A to Series C, over the next three years.

Ticket sizes will range from US$500,000 to US$10 million.

The fund has already invested in Matterport (US), C2i Genomics (US), NerdWallet (US), Streetbees (UK), Docquity (Singapore), and Tonik (the Philippines).

“Over the next six months, we will also benefit from two upcoming portfolio exits (Unity Software, Twist Bioscience) in the US stock exchange, allowing us to deliver strong early returns to our investors. The pandemic is accelerating the adoption of technology across multiple industries, and this is a strong validation of our fund thesis to invest in game changers globally,” said Soo Boon Koh, Founder, and Managing Partner of iGlobe Partners.

Originally founded in Silicon Valley in 1999, iGlobe helps its portfolio companies expand beyond their national footprints, as it aims to bridge the gap between Western and Asian startup ecosystems.

Also Read: Expansion and exposure: iGlobe talks about the traits necessary to succeed in local markets

Since its founding, iGlobe has managed funds exceeding US$500 million for its investors.

Its 2010 vintage-year fund, iGlobe Platinum Fund I, claims to have delivered 13 times capital return with a net IRR (Internal Rate of Return) of 33 per cent.

Some of its successful and upcoming exits include Unity Software, Twist Bioscience, ACSL, Matterport, Hippo Enterprises, Ginkgo Bioworks, and Nerdwallet.

“Our picks for smart cities are based on the convergence of deeptech and engineering with verticals that will redefine industries, such as healthcare, logistics, mobility, and robotics,” said Dr. Yoke Sin Chong, iGlobe Partners Managing Partner.

“Our bets on synthetic biology are based on the confluence of deep tech, biology, and chemistry, creating new sustainable materials, foods, and therapeutics that leverage on the discoveries and inventions in this field. For fintech, we are looking at innovative business models that will provide access to banking, payments, retail, insurance, and financial services in novel ways, across huge populations of users,” she added.

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Good Startup, a cross-border VC firm seeking to remove animals from the global food ecosystem, has launched a US$25-million fund to invest in alternative protein startups.

Called ‘Good Protein Fund I’, the fund aims to invest in a total of 32 companies.

Its notable investors are Anil Thadani (Chairman, Symphony Asia Holdings), Tan Kim Seng (Chairman, Kim Seng Holdings), and a consortium of angels.

The fund has already invested in six startups, namely Eat Just, TurtleTree Labs, Avant Meats, Rebellyous Foods, Cultured Decadence, and Novel Farms.

The VC firm will actively work with these companies in areas such as IP protection, organisation design, scaling-up, hiring, and fundraising strategies.

The fund’s strategic location is within Southeast Asia, which is experiencing a demand surge for protein alternatives due to growing health and environmental consciousness.

Good Startup recently secured its VC fund management license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

Also Read: SGProtein to launch large-scale production facility to accelerate Singapore’s alternative protein market

The VC firm believes that sustainable innovation must happen in the global food ecosystem. This is not just to feed the world’s estimated 10 billion population by 2050 and a simultaneous 70 per cent increase in protein demand, but to also use methods that are also less environmentally demanding.

The continued reliance on animals for food has raised human exposure to zoonotic diseases. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) found that most human diseases originate in animals and most antibiotics globally need to be administered to animals. 

“For years, food ecosystem stakeholders had to balance the need to meet food security needs while also balancing the toll that animal food production takes on our world. Yet, the growing role of the biotechnology sector in producing alternative proteins can give us the same food we enjoy with less impact on our environment. This can only be achieved by supporting biotech food companies to scale globally, especially in markets that still depend heavily on meat,” Gautam Godhwani, Managing Partner of Good Startup, said.

“The future of the world’s food ecosystem rests on these next-generation companies. In order for them to meet their sustainable food production goals, they require investors and partners that can guide them throughout their journey,” said Jayesh Parekh, Managing Partner, Good Startup.

“Being a cross-border fund that invests in alternative protein companies globally, we are especially excited about the alternative protein ecosystem’s potential in rapidly emerging markets like Southeast Asia, where we currently have a rich pipeline of deals that we are actively working on and expect to make announcements soon,” Parekh added.

Conscious consumption or a more healthy way of diet has been the driving trend in the foodtech sector for the last five to ten years, according to White Star Capital study.

This is largely due to a shift in people’s values of food consumption towards a healthier lifestyle.

According to Pitchbook, a private market data firm, a significant chunk of the market share will be taken away from the US$350-billion annual meat market.

Food innovation and bio-engineered food have been predicted to continue growing annually by 10 per cent with the possibility of reaching US$104.6 billion by 2025,

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Since the pandemic began roughly 12 months ago, distributors have reported a 20-30 per cent shift in business to online platforms across Southeast Asian countries. A  2020 study conducted by Bain & Company, monthly active users for select mobile apps have increased by 53 per cent, 43 per cent and 73 per cent in Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, respectively.

The increase in acceptance of cashless payments beyond Tier One cities has been largely driven by fintech companies. Numerous fintechs offering greater inclusion, hassle-free onboarding, and affordable services have boosted both adoption and use of digital financial services in the last two to three years especially in markets such as Indonesia and the Philippines.

Today, more than 70 per cent of the new merchants being on-boarded by fintech digitalising payments are micro and small businesses (MSMEs), a segment that makes up over 99 per cent of businesses in these economies.

It is only a matter of time before mobile devices will become the default Point of Sale (POS) device for small business owners. The ubiquity of smartphones has expanded the ability to reach underserved communities easily. Today innovative embedded finance solutions offered by fintech that can leverage this mobile technology has eliminated the need for costly hardware and digitalise previously outdated payment acceptance points at a faster pace.

Fortunately, the transition is occurring at a time when moving online has never been easier. ASEAN governments have championed efforts to invest in core digital infrastructure in both rural as well as urban settings, where the vast majority of the region’s small and micro businesses are located.

The push towards improving internet speeds and bandwidth has also coincided with the rise of digital tools and technologies that can support small and micro entrepreneurs.

Also Read: How fintech startups can fast forward their growth

Beyond the development of infrastructure and proliferation of cloud-based software services, the pandemic has also served to dramatically accelerate awareness and adoption. In fact, suppliers have seen inquiries for online selling increase five times this past year.

Government agencies have also had to embrace this new normal. Governments across the world are increasingly partnering with fintech providers to better service the small and micro businesses through policy, regulation and infrastructure development. In 2020, we saw that the governments provided emergency financial assistance to millions of small business owners by using fintech services such as PayPal and Square in the US to PayMaya and Gcash in the Philippines as a reliable and secure disbursement channel.

I expect the share of the disbursement by governments through these channels to continuously grow from existing low five to 20 per cent in next five years making fintech a vital partner in facilitating the distribution of critical financial services.

Beyond government, various business groups are also starting to realise that fintech is no longer a matter of convenience but a necessity. There is an addressable market of at least 20 to 25 million retailer/consumer focused SMEs that will need digitalisation support in the next five years in countries such as Indonesia.

Fintech companies that are able to empower small business owners with the knowledge, tools, and support to help facilitate the transition from offline to online in all aspects of business, from procurement to book-keeping, and working capital financing and e-commerce will be at an advantage.

By enabling small and micro businesses to recognise, consolidate, and track their financial data, fintech mobile applications are able to provide an assortment of basic financial services digitally — such as non-collateral-based lending — by developing credit scores through alternative means. This assumes significance as most micro businesses are not able to pass basic Know Your Customer requirements of traditional financial institutions.

Also Read: Malaysian fintech startup Finology wins Seedstars World Competition

Fintech companies, on the other hand, are able to resolve information asymmetry that these business face, by connecting numerous data parameters from various sources to onboard business remotely, create a digital financial identity, and provide risk-based pricing for credit products to such businesses.

For small business owners, who were previously undervalued and ignored by banks, the solutions offered by fintech are a boon in an increasingly digital economy that they are now empowered to participate in.

In fact, after partnering with numerous online and offline distributors we have seen that approval rates for credit for purchases made by small and micro businesses have increased by 2-3x as compared to the low-teen percentages currently offered by traditional financial institutions. This is agnostic of the purchases made by the micro businesses through offline or online channels.

While working with distributors across industries such as telecom, consumer goods, health care in Indonesia and the Philippines, I see more of them willing to partner with fintech company that has the widest network of offline partners including chains of Indomaret, Seven Eleven, business centres, through which loan repayment channels can be easily accessed by borrowers.

This assumes significance when specific types of locations are not accessible, especially during this COVID-19 times. Such distributors keep their retailer network at the core of their strategy and offer fintech -powered solutions to their retailer network without any investment in licenses or technology It’s a win-win for all involved.

In fact, fintechs working alongside banks (large, cooperative and rural) as well as regulators are increasing transaction velocity within the digital ecosystem. Banks provide the most effective cost of capital while effective regulatory framework can help ring fence the defaults in repayments by micro businesses and instill confidence to lenders.

Also read: Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam the most attractive fintech hubs in SEA: Study

I believe that at least 10 new fintech solution, with valuation in excess of US$100 million, will emerge in Southeast Asia by 2025. Just as Amazon did it retail industry, the fintech addressing one or more pain points – lack of credit bureaus, access to credit, high share of cash transactions, and lack of identity cards- will do it in micro and small business industry in the region. The journey has just begun.

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Diversity and inclusion are two topics that are rarely discussed at workplaces in Asia.

In many countries in the continent, for instance, neither society nor the law of the land has recognised and accepted the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) community.

This minority community is still facing discrimination and harassment in public places and workplaces. Their voice is not heard even by the concerned authorities.

Things are changing, although slowly. Several people and organisations in Asia have taken up the LGBTQ cause. They are working to promote diversity and inclusion at workplaces and public places and to bring them into the mainstream.

Singapore-based Andee Chua is one championing the D&I cause in Asia. He is a culture builder at HubSpot and co-founder of Kampung Collective, a community for community builders across Asia.

Also Read: Being geek and gay in Southeast Asia: What startup ecosystem can do to foster diversity and inclusion

e27 sat with Chua, who is an avowed gay man, for an interview as part of Pride Month. Pride Month, celebrated every June mainly in the US, is dedicated to the uplifting of LGBTQ voices, a celebration of their culture and the support of their rights.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

How do you describe yourself?

I’m someone who is passionate about community building, diversity, and inclusion.

I believe in empowering, educating, and inspiring the ‘misfits’ to discover their true potential and find alternative paths to success through the power of community, collaboration, self-discovery, and personal development.

What is community building and why is it important? Why is there a need for a community for community builders?

Building communities is a crucial process that fosters connections among people and creates infrastructure for these connections to happen. It is all the more important in a pandemic situation like this. This is a time for people to come together to find support from their community and stay connected.

Community builders are often givers to their communities. They often do a lot for their community but lack avenues to talk about their feelings or don’t have a place to seek help. The idea of having a community for community builders is to bridge this gap.

What are the different aspects of community building? How are your initiatives helping during the COVID-19 crisis?

The pandemic may have forced us to restrict ourselves at home and keep a safe distance from one another, but it has also united the community in unprecedented ways.

The pandemic has caused severe disruptions to our economy, livelihoods, and way of life. However, it has also fostered a strong spirit of care, cohesion, and active citizenry in our society.

We have seen community builders in our community coming together, sharing resources, and collaborating to show their support for the migrant workers in Singapore. They pulled together their great network of resources to realise various initiatives, calling for volunteers and donations, which have received tremendous support and overwhelming responses.

Crisis or no crisis, community building is here to stay.

Could you talk about Kampung Collective? What are the different causes it is championing?

Kampung Collective is a community for community builders across Asia. It seeks to educate, gather, connect and build. These are our key drivers to achieve our vision of elevating community building as a credible professional career.

Also Read: How this SEA VC is rising to the challenge of gender inequality

We serve as a support network, a safe space for community builders to connect, share best practices, learn, grow and uplift one another in the community-building journey.

We have over 500 community builders in the group, from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China, to India.

In Kampung Collective, we have community builders building communities around topics like startup ecosystem, mental health, environmental sustainability, LGBTQ+ issues, women empowerment, and the ageing population.

Do you conduct any specific programmes for the LGBTQ community?

In my day job as a culture builder at HubSpot, we have the LGBTQ+ Alliance group. It aims to empower HubSpotters through the creation of a safe, respectful community.

We further envision a more thoughtful, informed, and inclusive environment for all HubSpotters through meaningful engagement and conversation with our peers. We also commit to improving the living experiences of others in the communities we inhabit.

On a personal front, as an openly gay man in Singapore, I advocate for change and create awareness around LGBTQ+ topics on my personal social media platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, and Youtube.

I see myself more as a representative, sharing my life with my partner publicly as any straight couple would do, than an ‘activist’.

Do you think Southeast Asia’s employers have embraced/are embracing gender inclusiveness in their workplaces? Are these minority communities still looked down like in many parts of the world?

Honestly, I don’t think diversity and inclusion receive enough airtime in workplaces in Southeast Asia. You rarely see this as a topic being discussed in workplaces within the Southeast Asian region. You may not find specific roles within a company focusing on D&I.

Also Read: How to make gender equality training work

This is unfortunate and rather ironic, given the exceptionally rich breadth of people, ethnicities, and creeds in the region.

One of my core beliefs is that it is a moral imperative for us to champion diversity and inclusion within our organisations and workplaces. This is simply the right thing to do.

I am personally committed to ensuring that my employer allows people of all identities — in terms of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, age, and national origin — to thrive.

Is there still an unwillingness/fear among LGBTQ communities to openly admit their sexual orientation? If so, why? How do you think we can address this as an educated society?

I see more people coming out as LGBTQ+ individuals in their social lives but not many in workplaces. There are a few factors for that. In Singapore, there is still a law, Section 377A, that criminalises sex between consenting male adults.

In that context, there isn’t a point of safety for gay people to come out and live their lives openly or simply express their love publicly as there is still discrimination.

In a workplace, the importance of a supportive social environment plays a huge role in a person’s decision to openly asset his/her identity. Leadership makes all the difference. Research shows that employees whose leaders publicly support LGBTIQ+ issues are 50 per cent more likely to be out to everyone at work.

Organisational policies and strategies that recognise the specific needs of, and sometimes just the existence of LGBTIQ+ people, are also key to creating an inclusive environment.

Also Read: This gay founder is creating a safe media platform for LGBTQ community in SEA

When LGBTIQ+ people work in a safe environment, they are more willing to come out.

Anything else to share with the startup communities in SEA?

Diversity and inclusion are essential in business today as a healthy variety of people from different backgrounds and cultures provides us with the balance of voices and diversity of thought that we need.

As the future generation of the workforce is getting more aware of the social injustice happening around the world and are already looking at companies they work for through such a lens, I think it’s time for startups to take a more proactive stance on employing a diverse workforce that reflects the real people of society today.

It’s becoming clear that when workers can bring their authentic selves to work, they are more productive and engaged. In a diverse and inclusive workplace, employees will be happier in their job roles; new ideas will arise, and productivity will increase. This will lead to greater successes within the business and allow the business to flourish and stand out amongst competitors.
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Image Credit: Andee Chua.

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