2022

Marketing Interactive

Influencer marketing has become a driving force in the industry. An industry report by Partipost and Quest Ventures found that the number of brands in Southeast Asia spending more than 30% of their total marketing budget on influencer marketing has increased to 25.4% in 2022, up from 21.4% last year. Meanwhile, 69.4% of brands are spending 1% to 30% of their total marketing budget on influencer marketing.

While influencer marketing has become popular among brands, another up-and-coming engagement strategy is NFTs, which has seen more brands jump on board the trend. Metaverse-linked NFTs, for example, will be the fastest-growing NFT segment over the next five years, according to Juniper Research, increasing from 600,000 transactions in 2022 to 9.8 million by 2027.

More

The Business Times

STARTUPS in Singapore continued to attract strong investments despite macroeconomic headwinds, with venture funding increasing 54 per cent to S$8.18 billion in the first half of 2022.

A total of 388 deals were closed during the period compared with 355 a year ago, according to figures from Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG). The agency referenced internal data and information from DealStreetAsia, PitchBook, Preqin and Crunchbase.

Singapore, a hub for venture capital (VC) flows in South-east Asia, has seen a booming tech scene in recent years amid a rise in entrepreneurship and inflow of foreign investors. The city-state is now home to over 400 VC investors, according to Pitchbook.

James Tan, managing partner at Quest Ventures, noted that Singapore has been a recipient of capital inflows owning to US-China geopolitical tensions.

Technology and VC is emerging as a viable asset class for sophisticated institutional investors, and while largely untapped, presents a growing opportunity in South-east Asia. Few universities and institutes of higher education have endowments funds, and only some have VC allocations, he said.

More

Channel NewsAsia

Start-up investment in Singapore has grown exponentially each year since 2017, even through the COVID-19 pandemic. The billions invested – including more than S$8 billion in the first half of 2022 – are a sign of strong investor confidence.

“We are seeing, with all the different macro trends happening, that Singapore, having emerged well, having a very stable, and having a very viable ecosystem not just for here but for the entire region, thereby anchoring ourselves as the very logical hub for any venture capital firm that wants to expand into the next big region, to be based here”, said James Tan, Chairman of the Action Community for Entrepreneurship.

More

Marketing Interactive

Earlier this year, we reported that the number of brands spending more than 30% of their total marketing budget on influencer marketing has increased to 25.4% this year, up from 21.4% in 2021. According to The Southeast Asia Influencer Marketing Industry report by influencer marketing and commerce platform Partipost and Quest Ventures, the percentage of brands that did not try influencer marketing decreased from 16.9% in 2020 to about 5.1% this year.

In fact, the trend is so popular that many marketers we speak to are choosing to work directly with influencers or their agencies rather than work with intermediary creative agencies. Reasons largely include direct access to the influencer, alignment of target demographic and reach, higher campaign or promotional awareness, and occasionally, of course, budget friendlier options.

More

VietNamNet Global

Vietnam’s large workforce, lower labor costs, and sizeable markets are factors drawing Singaporean startups to the country.

Strait Times cited the assessment from venture capital company Quest Ventures, discussing potential destinations for Singaporean companies that are looking to venture abroad through its Government’s Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) acceleration program, estimated at over 400 in less than five years.

“The labor force in Vietnam is increasingly well educated and still relatively cheap compared to Singapore,” James Tan, managing partner of venture capital company Quest Ventures, was quoted by Strait Times as saying.

Tan also pointed to the country’s tech-savvy population and burgeoning middle class, making it a potential pool of customers.

More

Vietnam+

With a large workforce, lower labour costs and sizeable market, Vietnam is one of the popular destinations for Singapore’s start-ups, according to The Straits Times newspaper.

“The labour force in Vietnam is increasingly well educated and still relatively cheap compared to Singapore,” James Tan, managing partner of venture capital company Quest Ventures, was quoted by the newspaper as saying.

Vietnam has a tech-savvy population and a burgeoning middle class, making it a potential customer base, he added.

Singapore has been one of the strongest partners of Vietnam both before and during the pandemic. Vietnamese sectors that venture capital firms are looking at include health technology, food processing and blockchain.

More

Dan Tri

Straits Times đưa tin, theo các chuyên gia, Việt Nam là một trong những điểm đến đầu tư hấp dẫn nhất với các nhà đầu tư khởi nghiệp Singapore trong nhiều năm trở lại đây. Lực lượng lao động dồi dào, chi phí nhân công giá rẻ cùng thị trường lớn là những nguyên nhân chính dẫn đến sự chuyển dịch này.

“Lực lượng lao động ở Việt Nam đang được đào tạo ngày một bài bản và giá nhân công hiện vẫn khá rẻ so với Singapore”, ông James Tan, đối tác quản lý cấp cao của Quỹ đầu tư mạo hiểm Quest Ventures, nhận định.

Bên cạnh đó, ông Tan cũng cho rằng tầng lớp trung lưu đang phát triển và hiểu biết công nghệ của người dân ngày càng tăng biến Việt Nam trở thành một thị trường tiềm năng cho các công ty khởi nghiệp Singapore, qua đó giúp việc tìm kiếm vốn đầu tư tại Việt Nam trở nên dễ dàng hơn.

More

The Straits Times

SINGAPORE – The number of start-ups from Singapore venturing overseas through Enterprise Singapore’s Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) acceleration programmes has ballooned to more than 400 in less than five years.

One of the more popular destinations is Vietnam, with its large workforce, lower labour costs and sizeable market, say experts.

“The labour force in Vietnam is increasingly well educated and still relatively cheap compared to Singapore,” said Mr James Tan, managing partner of venture capital company Quest Ventures.

Vietnam has a tech-savvy population and a burgeoning middle class, making it a potential pool of customers as well, Mr Tan added.

Since the expansion of the GIA network to Vietnam in 2019 via EnterpriseSG’s partnership with Quest Ventures, more than 45 Singapore-based start-ups across sectors such as edtech (educational technology) healthtech and information technology have participated in the Vietnam GIA acceleration programme, said Mr Jonathan Lim, director for Global Innovation Network at EnterpriseSG.

More

The Business Times

The city state was Vietnam’s top foreign investor for the second straight year in 2021, and still holds the pole position for H1 2022 with direct investment contributions totalling S$4.1b.

Just months after Vietnam reopened to international visitors, some Singapore companies are wasting no time heading to the South-east Asian country in search of opportunities, in areas from tech to lifestyle.

To get a head start on these plans, the company participated in the Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) accelerator programme in Vietnam in August. Formed by a partnership between Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) and venture capital firm Quest Ventures, the programme is curated for “high-potential” startups and companies, with masterclasses, market immersion programmes and ongoing mentorship.

More

KrASIA

It seems Shopee isn’t the only company facing economic headwinds. James Tan, the managing partner of Quest Ventures, said in an interview with CNBC that business costs are getting higher as loan interest rates continue to rise. According to Tan, businesses in Southeast Asia are in for a rough ride that will last the next 18–36 months.

Other platforms such as Malaysia-based iPrice, Indonesia-based JD.ID, and mobile wallet LinkAja have also announced their own layoff plans.

More