The fourth annual Hong Kong Venture Capital Forum (HKVCF), organized by the Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HKVCA), was held on Monday, July 10, 2017. Hosted at KPMG’s impressive conference rooms at Hysan Place, the Forum proved to be an overwhelming success with over 230 industry professionals in attendance.
Welcoming remarks were delivered by Darren Bowdern, Partner, Tax, KPMG Hong Kong, while memorable keynote address was provided by Matt Dill, Senior Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships in Visa.
The first panel of the day was on India, with a panel that featured Varun Bery, Senior Advisor at Latitude Capital; Annand Prasanna, Managing Partner at Iron Pillar; Amit Annand, Founding Partner at Jungle Ventures; and Ben Mathias, Managing Director & Head of India at Vertex Ventures.
The second panel discussed the venture investment trends in ASEAN and featured KO Chia, Director at Grace Financial; Amit Anand, Founding Partner at Jungle Ventures; Kay-Mok Ku, Partner at Gobi Ventures; Peng Ong, Managing Director at Monk’s Hill Ventures; Markus Gnirck, Co-founder & Managing Director at tryb Capital; and Jeffrey Chi, Vice Chairman at Vickers Venture Partners.
The third panel of the afternoon focused on Japan and Korea and featured a lively discussion with Melissa Guzy, Co-founder & Managing Partner at Arbor Ventures; Han Kim, Managing Director at Altos Ventures; Emre Yuasa, Principal at Globis Capital Partners; Yo Nakagawa, Executive Director at Monex Group; and Ben Takeuchi, Vice President at Sumitomo Corporation Equity Asia.
The fourth panel was addressed technical issues in Hong Kong and featured James Savage, Founding Partner at demetr Ventures; Darren Bowdern; Partner, Tax at KPMG Hong Kong; Rocky Lee, International Partner and Head of the U.S. Corporate Practice at King & Wood Mallesons; and Stephen Tang, CFO at Lunar Capital.
The final panel discussed the LP sentiments and featured Eric Mason, Managing Director – Asia Investment at The Church Pension Fund; PV Wang, Co-CIO at Noah Holdings; Jie Gong, Partner at Pantheon Ventures; and Pokman Yiu, Executive Director at Royal Fund Management.
Apart from the panels, there were two fireside chat sessions: Introducing HKSAR Venture Co-Investment Program by Annie Choi, Commissioner for Innovation and Technology, HKSAR and Denis Tse, Managing Partner at Asia-IO Advisors; and Lightning Round: HK Startup and Venture Capitalist by Duncan Chiu, Managing Partner at Radiant Venture Capital and Steven Lam, Co-founder & CEO at GoGoVan.
The Forum ended with a lively cocktail reception, hosted by our sponsor KPMG, and all the participants – investors, advisors and entrepreneurs – were able to be part of a valuable networking opportunity.
We would like to thank most sincerely our generous sponsors, specifically our Platinum Sponsor, KPMG; and our Venture Forum Sponsor King & Wood Mallesons. Finally, we would like to thank the Association’s Venture Committee and all the participants for their continued support and contributions that helped make this special event possible.
Melissa Guzy, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Arbor Ventures
13:48 – 13:50
Welcoming Remarks
Darren Bowdern, Partner, Tax, KPMG Hong Kong
13:50 – 14:10
Keynote
Matthew Dill, Senior Vice President, Innovation & Strategic Partnerships, Visa
14:10 – 14:50
India Panel
Moderator Varun Bery, Senior Advisor, Latitude Capital Management
Panelists Anand Prasanna, Managing Partner, Iron Pillar Amit Anand, Founding Partner, Jungle Ventures Ben Mathias, Managing Director & Head of India, Vertex Ventures
14:50 – 15:10
Fireside Chat: Introducing HKSAR Venture Co-Investment Program
Annie Choi, Commissioner for Innovation and Technology, HKSAR
Panelists Kay-Mok Ku, Partner, Gobi Ventures Peng Ong, Managing Director, Monk’s Hill Ventures Amit Anand, Founding Partner, Jungle Ventures Markus Gnirck, Co-Founder & Managing Director, tryb Capital Jeffrey Chi, Vice Chairman, Vickers Venture Partners
15:50 – 16:00
Coffee Break
16:00 – 16:20
10 in 10 Lightning Round: HK Startup and Venture Capitalist
Steven Lam, Co-Founder & CEO, GoGoVan Duncan Chiu, Managing Director, Radiant Venture Capital
16:20 – 17:00
Japan and Korea Panel
Moderator Melissa Guzy, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Arbor Ventures
Panelists Han Kim, Managing Director, Altos Ventures Emre Yuasa, Principal, Globis Capital Partners Yo Nakagawa, Executive Director, Monex Group Ben Takeuchi, Vice President, Sumitomo Corporation Equity Asia
17:00 – 17:40
Technical Panel
Moderator James Savage, Founding Partner, Demetr Ventures
Panelists Rocky Lee, International Partner, Head of the U.S. Corporate Practice, King & Wood Mallesons Darren Bowdern, Partner, Tax, KPMG Hong Kong tephen Tang, CFO, Lunar Capital
17:40 – 18:20
LP Panel
Moderator Eric Mason, Managing Director – Asia Investments, The Church Pension Fund
Panelists PV Wang, Co-CIO, Noah Holdings Jie Gong, Partner, Pantheon Ventures Pokman Yiu, Executive Director, Royal Fund Management
18:20 – 20:00
Cocktail Reception
Keynote speaker
Matthew Dill
Senior Vice President, Innovation and Strategic Partnerships, Visa
Matt Dill is Visa’s Senior Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships. He leads a team that manages large-scale commercial programs in the technology sector and guides Visa’s strategic partnership activities with technology companies and fintech. show more…
Matt Dill is Visa’s Senior Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships. He leads a team that manages large-scale commercial programs in the technology sector and guides Visa’s strategic partnership activities with technology companies and fintech. In 2016, Dill and his team set up Visa’s AP Innovation Centre, a facility that in its first year of operations was ranked the number one fintech lab in Singapore. Dill is also a principal patent-holder to Visa’s digital token system, which was donated to the EMVCo standards body and adopted by MasterCard, American Express and China Union Pay.
Dill has recently returned to Visa’s headquarters in San Francisco, after being based in Singapore for two years. During this time he led Visa’s innovation and co-creation programs in the Asia Pacific region. His team has led hundreds of hands-on experience sessions in Visa’s AP Innovation Centre, resulting in the first payment solutions co-developed by Visa and its partners.
Prior to relocating to Singapore in 2016, Dill was based in San Francisco and led Visa’s commercial and product collaborations with Apple, Google, Facebook, PayPal and Square, among others.
Over 2013 and 2014, he led the special project teams that deployed Visa Token Service and Apple Pay, Apple’s payment platform that leverages tokenised Visa credentials for compatibility with financial institutions and merchant locations globally.
Dill joined Visa in 2010 from the Western Union Company, where he served as Senior Vice President, Global Head of Digital Ventures. In this capacity Dill led the formation of Western Union’s mobile practice and was responsible for building a Mobile Money Transfer system connecting Western Union agents, Mobile Network Operators and Banks in more than 200 countries. Prior to Western Union, Dill served as a corporate development executive with eONE Global, a strategic investment fund focused on emerging payments models formed by First Data Corporation, Boston Consulting Group, General Atlantic Partners and Goldman Sachs.
Dill has held a variety of strategic development and hands on operating roles in the financial services, consumer technology and media fields throughout his 20 year career. Dill is based out of Singapore and has a family of five, including his wife Lydia and their three children Baker, Mary Rowe and Spencer.
Annie Choi
Commissioner for Innovation and Technology, HKSAR
Ms Annie Choi joined the Hong Kong Government in 1986. She has served in a number of policy bureaux and departments, including the Home Affairs Department, Civil Service Bureau as well as the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau. show more…
Ms Annie Choi joined the Hong Kong Government in 1986. She has served in a number of policy bureaux and departments, including the Home Affairs Department, Civil Service Bureau as well as the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau. Before joining the Innovation and Technology Commission, she was the Commissioner of Insurance, responsible for driving a number of regulatory reforms for the insurance industry in Hong Kong. Ms Choi assumed the post of Commissioner for Innovation and Technology in August 2015.
Ms Choi obtained her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Laws as well as Postgraduate Certificate in Laws from the University of Hong Kong. She also did postgraduate studies in Public Administration at Oxford University, UK and Tsinghua University, PRC.
Steven Lam is the Co-Founder and CEO of GOGOVAN, which was founded in 2013. Steven is responsible for the development of the overall business strategy and driving the growth and profitability of the business across the region. This also includes establishing business partnerships and securing funding.
Steven Lam is the Co-Founder and CEO of GOGOVAN, which was founded in 2013. Steven is responsible for the development of the overall business strategy and driving the growth and profitability of the business across the region. This also includes establishing business partnerships and securing funding.
GOGOVAN is committed to making daily lives easier, through decreasing idling time of drivers by efficiently connecting drivers and customers using its mobile app platform. GOGOVAN has expanded rapidly since, having raised over US$16.5 million of funding with more than 150,000 registered drivers operating in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Mainland China and India.
Steven brings with him a wealth of entrepreneurial skills. Prior to founding GOGOVAN, Steven started BoxAd in 2010, an advertising company which advertises on lunch boxes in Hong Kong.
Steven earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a focus on global management from the University of California, Berkeley – Walter A. Haas School of Business.
Han Kim is a Managing Director and co-founder of Altos Ventures, focusing on investments in the areas of mobile and software services. He also concentrates on companies with significant business in Asia, leveraging the firm’s substantial contacts in the region, particularly in Korea. Han currently serves on the boards of numerous Korea based private companies. show more…
Han Kim is a Managing Director and co-founder of Altos Ventures, focusing on investments in the areas of mobile and software services. He also concentrates on companies with significant business in Asia, leveraging the firm’s substantial contacts in the region, particularly in Korea. Han currently serves on the boards of numerous Korea based private companies. Before co-founding Altos Ventures in 1996, Han worked at Booz Allen & Hamilton solving strategic and operational issues for global media, retail and distribution companies. Previously, he was at Procter & Gamble. Han also served as a Captain in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Han served two years in Korea, commanding both U.S. and Korean soldiers. Han received an MBA from Stanford University and a BS from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Melissa Guzy
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Arbor Ventures
Melissa, who is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Arbor Ventures, has more than 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur and as a venture investor. Prior to founding of Arbor, Melissa was the Managing Director, member of the Investment Committee and head of VantagePoint Asia. During her tenure at VantagePoint, she invested in early stage technology companies in both Asia and in Silicon Valley. show more…
Melissa, who is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Arbor Ventures, has more than 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur and as a venture investor. Prior to founding of Arbor, Melissa was the Managing Director, member of the Investment Committee and head of VantagePoint Asia. During her tenure at VantagePoint, she invested in early stage technology companies in both Asia and in Silicon Valley.
Arbor Ventures is focused the intersection of Financial services and Digital Commerce including trading, credit scoring, data analytics, alternative lending and payments across Asia and Oceania. Arbor Ventures has a presence in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo and Jakarta and prefers to invest in companies that have a regional or global reach.
Melissa is a frequent guest lecturer on Venture Capital at the University of Florida, HKUST, Chinese University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong University. In 2010, Melissa published an academic paper titled “Venture Capital Returns and Public Market Performance”. Melissa serves on the HKVCA Venture Committee.
Melissa attended Wellesley College and received a Master’s degree in Finance from the University of Florida. She is the author of the paper “Venture Capital Returns and Public Market Performance”. She has been a guest lecturer on the Venture Capital Industry at the University of Florida, Hong Kong University and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Melissa is a Hopkins Fellow and participated in the Women’s Leadership Program at Harvard University.
Denis Tse is the Managing Partner of Asia-IO Advisors Limited. Most recently he was the Head of Asia – Private Investment with Lockheed Martin Investment Management Company. He has 15 years of private equity direct and fund investment experience in Asia, having worked with J.H Whitney, CDIB Capital, and HSBC Private Equity (Asia), where he became the first Kauffman Fellow from an Asian venture firm. show more…
Denis Tse is the Managing Partner of Asia-IO Advisors Limited. Most recently he was the Head of Asia – Private Investment with Lockheed Martin Investment Management Company. He has 15 years of private equity direct and fund investment experience in Asia, having worked with J.H Whitney, CDIB Capital, and HSBC Private Equity (Asia), where he became the first Kauffman Fellow from an Asian venture firm. Denis is one of Chief Investment Officer “2014 Forty Under Forty”, and was named one of “Asia’ 25 most influential people in private equity” by Asian Investor in 2013. He is the Chairperson of the Business Committee of the Advisory Council on Innovation & Technology to the Chief Executive of HKSAR. A Hong Kong native, Denis has an MBA from INSEAD and a BSc (Hon.) from Northwestern University.
Eric Mason
Managing Director, The Church Pension Fund
Eric Mason is a Managing Director of The Church Pension Fund. He joined the Church Pension Fund in 2009 as the head of the Fund’s new Asian office based in Hong Kong and has been based in Asia for almost 25 years. Mr. Mason and his team are responsible for the Fund’s investments in Asia across all asset classes with a focus on private equity, real estate and hedge funds. show more…
Eric Mason is a Managing Director of The Church Pension Fund. He joined the Church Pension Fund in 2009 as the head of the Fund’s new Asian office based in Hong Kong and has been based in Asia for almost 25 years. Mr. Mason and his team are responsible for the Fund’s investments in Asia across all asset classes with a focus on private equity, real estate and hedge funds. The team manages approximately $1.5 billion in investments in Asian based managers.
Prior to joining the Fund, Mr. Mason was the head for the Carlyle Group’s Asia Leverage Finance Fund and before that spent 13 years at JPMorgan most recently as Asian regional head of Leveraged Finance. In these roles, Mr. Mason has developed experience in structuring, underwriting and investing in private equity and credit transactions. Mr. Mason first came to Asia in 1990 to teach in China with Princeton-in-Asia and before that worked in Washington DC for U.S. Senator Bill Bradley. Mr. Mason received a B.A. in International Relations and Economics from the University of Delaware and earned a Masters in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. Mr. Mason speaks Mandarin Chinese.
The Church Pension Fund is a private tax exempt organization based in New York City with approximately US$12 billion in assets under management. The Fund has been in continuous operation since 1917 and provides pension benefits to those serving the Episcopal Church. The Church is an extensive investor in alternative assets and has been investing with many of the global leaders in venture capital and private equity for decades.
James has over 20 years experience as a financial investment professional in the technology sector in Asia, with asset management, professional services and industry experience. Based in Hong Kong since 1994, he has built up an extensive knowledge of the technology industry in the Asian region including Japan, Korea, Greater China, SE Asia and India. show more…
James has over 20 years experience as a financial investment professional in the technology sector in Asia, with asset management, professional services and industry experience. Based in Hong Kong since 1994, he has built up an extensive knowledge of the technology industry in the Asian region including Japan, Korea, Greater China, SE Asia and India. He started his career in Private Equity at HSBC in 2000. James was made a Partner when the firm span out of HSBC in 2010. Having been an Investor Representative on the board of investee companies for over 10 years, he has a sound grasp of the problems faced by and common weaknesses of venture firms around Asia. James was also successful at expanding the firm into new geographies.
James takes an active role in the development of the local Venture Capital industry. He is currently the Chairman of the Venture Committee of the Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association. He was a Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong Licenced Investment Representative from December 2000 and Fellow Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) having first qualified in 1994.
Emre is Principal at Globis Capital Partners, leading investments mainly in Fintech, AI, Blockchain, drones and internet media. He sits on the board of GLM (electric car), V-Cube Robotics Japan (drone service), MFS (mortgage and personal credit scoring), Global Mobility Service (auto loan, IoT), Tabi Labo (vertical digital media) and also work closely with Money Design (roboadvsior) and other unannounced investments. show more…
Emre is Principal at Globis Capital Partners, leading investments mainly in Fintech, AI, Blockchain, drones and internet media. He sits on the board of GLM (electric car), V-Cube Robotics Japan (drone service), MFS (mortgage and personal credit scoring), Global Mobility Service (auto loan, IoT), Tabi Labo (vertical digital media) and also work closely with Money Design (roboadvsior) and other unannounced investments.
Prior to joining Globis Capital Partners, Emre worked for Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting (Tokyo) and KPMG Management Consulting (Tokyo), where he specialized in overseas expansion and Post Merger Integration.
Emre graduated from Harvard Business School (MBA Class of 2014) and Ohio State University (magna cum laude).
Kay-Mok joined Gobi in 2010 as Partner (ASEAN). Prior to Gobi, he worked at MediaCorp, the national broadcaster of Singapore as well as the Infocomm Media Development Authority, which managed a $500 million digital media venture fund on behalf of the National Research Foundation. He has worked in Silicon Valley for over 10 years, where he co-founded Private Express Inc. show more…
Kay-Mok joined Gobi in 2010 as Partner (ASEAN). Prior to Gobi, he worked at MediaCorp, the national broadcaster of Singapore as well as the Infocomm Media Development Authority, which managed a $500 million digital media venture fund on behalf of the National Research Foundation. He has worked in Silicon Valley for over 10 years, where he co-founded Private Express Inc. He started his career with the National Computer Board, and has a Computer Science degree from UC-Berkeley, and an MBA from San Jose State University.
Mr. Wang is a senior global private equity specialist who has directly overseen the deployment of over US$3 billion through fund, direct, co-investment and secondary investments. show more…
Mr. Wang is a senior global private equity specialist who has directly overseen the deployment of over US$3 billion through fund, direct, co-investment and secondary investments.
As the Co-Chief Investment Officer of Noah HK, Mr. Wang is responsible for its private market investments. Prior to this, he was a Partner with Adams Street Partners for 17 years where he was involved in formulating the firm’s private equity fund investment strategy for Asia and was a member of its Primary Investment Committee.
Prior to joining Adams Street, he was a Manager in the Global Corporate Finance Division of Arthur Andersen LLP, Investment Manager at Nikko Capital Singapore and Investment Officer at Indosuez Asset Management Singapore.
Mr. Wang is a member of the Singapore CFA Institute and was a founding executive member of the Limited Partners Association of China. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst and holds a Bachelor of Accountancy from Nanyang Technological University.
Anand Prasanna is a Managing Partner at Iron Pillar, a fund manager focused on mid-stage technology investments in India. He spends his time working with new generation of Indian technology entrepreneurs, building global technology businesses out of India or domestic consumer tech companies. show more…
Anand Prasanna is a Managing Partner at Iron Pillar, a fund manager focused on mid-stage technology investments in India. He spends his time working with new generation of Indian technology entrepreneurs, building global technology businesses out of India or domestic consumer tech companies.
Previously, he was with Morgan Creek, a global investment management firm, where he helped to build their Asia team and portfolio. He has had extensive work experience in India and rest of Asia, including firms like Sequoia Capital, McKinsey & Co and Squadron Capital.
Anand earned an MBA from the Fore School of Management in New Delhi, and earned his BBA from the University of Kerala.
Amit Anand is the Founding Partner of Jungle Ventures, a Singapore based Venture Capital Firm that invests in and helps build tech category leaders from Asia. Jungle has a dedicated team of operating partners and functional experts to support startups as they scale across the region or globally. The firm recently closed its second fund at US$100M, backed by leading institutions and family offices. show more…
Amit Anand is the Founding Partner of Jungle Ventures, a Singapore based Venture Capital Firm that invests in and helps build tech category leaders from Asia. Jungle has a dedicated team of operating partners and functional experts to support startups as they scale across the region or globally. The firm recently closed its second fund at US$100M, backed by leading institutions and family offices.
Amit brings 15 years of experience in Asia having played go-to-market and corporate development roles for startups and corporations alike. He later presided as Deputy Chairman for Business Angels Network South East Asia (BANSEA). A Kauffman Fellow, Amit is passionate about creating global companies from Asia and currently works with Founders at companies such as TradeGecko (Singapore) , Livspace (India). Kredivo (Indonesia) and Pomelo Fashion (Thailand) amongst others.
Rocky Lee
International Partner, Head of the U.S. Corporate Practice, King & Wood Mallesons
Based in Beijing, Rocky Lee is a well-known deal lawyer with nearly two decades of experience in China cross-border transactions. He is widely recognized as one of the top legal advisors to funds and founders with numerous awards and accolades from the likes of Asia Law & Practice, Chambers Asia, China Business Law Journal, the Financial Times, and Legal 500. show more…
Based in Beijing, Rocky Lee is a well-known deal lawyer with nearly two decades of experience in China cross-border transactions. He is widely recognized as one of the top legal advisors to funds and founders with numerous awards and accolades from the likes of Asia Law & Practice, Chambers Asia, China Business Law Journal, the Financial Times, and Legal 500.
Mr. Lee has particular expertise in China’s “restricted industries” which often involves the use of “VIE” structures, as well as complex regulations governing foreign investment to and from China. Amongst his many China transactions Mr. Lee led Xiaomi’s financing, breaking ground for billion-dollar tech deals in Asia and multi-billion dollar valuations. Didi, Tujia, Grab, Lufax and OFO are some of the unicorn deals Mr. Lee managed for investors.
Darren is a partner in KPMG’s Hong Kong tax practice. He has more than 20 years experience of serving institutions in a wide range of industries in Hong Kong and Asia Pacific.
Darren is a partner in KPMG’s Hong Kong tax practice. He has more than 20 years experience of serving institutions in a wide range of industries in Hong Kong and Asia Pacific.
Darren has been involved in developing appropriate structures for investing into the Hong Kong and other countries within Asia Pacific, along tax and financial due diligence reviews in connection with M&A transactions and advising on cross border transactions. Many of these projects comprise of tax effective regional planning including consideration of direct and indirect taxes, capital and stamp duties, withholding taxes and the effective use of double taxation agreements.
Darren also advises on establishing direct investment, private equity and other investment funds in Hong Kong and advises clients in a wide range of industries. Darren’s experiences in the retail sector includes advising a leading Asian jewelry retailer in respect of the tax efficiency of its existing operating model, as well as leading tax due diligence engagements on major retail targets.
Darren specializes in cross-border buy-and sell-side M&A tax services (e.g. Tax Due Diligence, Tax Vendor Due Diligence), tax structuring, tax planning and optimization and international corporate tax issues, restructuring and optimization. Darren has extensive experience in working with the mainland Chinese market, including structuring acquisitions of investments in China.
Darren is also a Member of the Technical Committee of the Hong Kong Venture Capital Association, a Member of Tax Committee of Alternative Investment Management Association, the Chair of the Finance, Legal and Tax Committee of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Treasurer of the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong.
Varun Bery, Senior Advisor, Latitude Capital Management
Varun Bery is a Senior Advisor to Latitude Capital Management, an emerging market private equity firm focused on the power sector. He is also currently a Senior Advisor to StormHarbour Securities (Hong Kong).
Varun Bery is a Senior Advisor to Latitude Capital Management, an emerging market private equity firm focused on the power sector. He is also currently a Senior Advisor to StormHarbour Securities (Hong Kong).
Mr. Bery has been involved in Asian private equity since 1995 and previously headed TVG Capital Partners and also the Private Capital Asia Group at JP Morgan. Mr. Bery started his career at McKinsey and Company (NY) and also was formerly a Director of Investment Banking at CS First Boston (NY) and a Director at the Asian Infrastructure Fund (HK). Mr. Bery received an MBA with High Distinction from Harvard Business School and a BA (summa cum laude) from Yale University. show less…
Yo Nakagawa
Executive Director, Monex Group
Yo Nakagawa is an Executive Director at Monex Group, Inc., a financial holding company with online brokerage businesses in Japan, US, Hong Kong and Australia. show more…
Yo Nakagawa is an Executive Director at Monex Group, Inc., a financial holding company with online brokerage businesses in Japan, US, Hong Kong and Australia.
Yo is responsible for planning, developing and implementing strategic business opportunities across the group. Within that capacity, Yo also is an advisor to Monex Ventures, a Corporate Venture Capital for Monex Group.
Upon graduation from Keio University, Tokyo, Japan, Economics B.A., he started his career as a fixed income trader JPMorgan and since been involved with the start-up community as an angel investor until joining Monex Group in 2011. show less…
Peng T. Ong
Managing Partner, Monk’s Hill Ventures
Peng is an entrepreneur who invests in entrepreneurs. He does so primarily through his role as Managing Director at Monk’s Hill Ventures — a technology venture fund based in Southeast Asia that he co-founded. Peng is an independent board director of YY Inc.[NASDAQ:YY], IE Singapore, IMDA, and Solve Education!. show more…
Peng is an entrepreneur who invests in entrepreneurs. He does so primarily through his role as Managing Director at Monk’s Hill Ventures — a technology venture fund based in Southeast Asia that he co-founded. Peng is an independent board director of YY Inc.[NASDAQ:YY], IE Singapore, IMDA, and Solve Education!. He is a trustee of the Singapore University of Technology & Design (SUTD) where he chairs the Investment Committee of SUTD’s Endowment Fund.
Venture Funds. Peng was the chair of Infocomm Investments from 2006 through 2013. He was also Venture Partner at GSR Ventures in Beijing from 2010 to 2013 and was Chairman of Jungle Ventures from 2011 to 2013.
Companies. Peng founded Encentuate in 2002. From 2008 through 2009, he was an executive at IBM, after Encentuate’s acquisition. Prior to founding Encentuate, Peng was the founder and chairman of Interwoven, Inc. (now part of HP), the leading provider of content infrastructure. He was the president and CEO of Interwoven through 1997, and its chairman through 2002. During his tenure at Interwoven he led the company to a successful IPO [NASDAQ: IWOV]. In 2002, for his leadership in building Interwoven into the world’s leading provider of enterprise-class content infrastructure software, Peng was awarded the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Engineering’s Alumni Award for Distinguished Service. Before Interwoven, Peng was co-founder and chief architect of Electric Classifieds, Inc.—the creators of Match.com (now part of IAC). The three businesses he started now generate annual revenues that total more than US$1 billion.
Peng has also held various engineering and management roles at Sybase, Inc. (now SAP), Illustra (now IBM Informix), and Gensym Corporation. Peng co-authored numerous patents for technologies developed at his companies.
Boards and Committees. In 2001-2002, Peng served as one of the twenty members of Singapore’s Economic Review Committee. The ERC was a high-level committee whose task was to review the economic plans for the future of Singapore. He was a founding vice-chairman of the Action Committee for Entrepreneurship, and a former board director of JTC Corporation. Peng served on the board of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore from 2003 through 2009, and on the board of COMPASS (Community and Parents in Support of Schools) in 2007 through 2010. He was also chair of the Industry Advisory Council of the School of Computing at the National University of Singapore through March 2013, and on the the board of National Research Foundation of Singapore from 2009 till early 2014. Peng was on the board of SingTel from 2009 through 2013, and chaired SingTel’s Group Enterprise’s Advisory Committee till 2015. He was on the board Ele.me from 2011 to 2013 and also sat on the Strategic Advisory Board of the Chancellor of the University of Illinois from 2013 to 2015.
Education. Peng was born and grew up in Singapore. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and received his Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Peng is also a passionate music lover and digital hifi fanatic with his house being one giant experimental studio.
Jie Gong is a Partner at Pantheon and a member of the Asia Regional Investment committee and the Global Co-investment Committee, and is involved in all aspects of Asian investment activity, with a focus on China. Ms Gong joined Pantheon from Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners’ private equity fund of funds group, where she led Asian investment activities and was a member of the global investment committee. show more…
Jie Gong is a Partner at Pantheon and a member of the Asia Regional Investment committee and the Global Co-investment Committee, and is involved in all aspects of Asian investment activity, with a focus on China. Ms Gong joined Pantheon from Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners’ private equity fund of funds group, where she led Asian investment activities and was a member of the global investment committee. Before that she was a Vice President at JPMorgan responsible for leverage finance deal origination, structuring and execution in Greater China. Previously she worked at the International Finance Corporation on emerging market debt and equity investments. Ms Gong received a Master in Finance from London Business School, an MA in Economics from University of Miami and a BA in Economics and International Trade from Shanghai International Studies University.
Duncan Chiu
Managing Director, Radiant Venture Capital Limited
Managing Director of Radiant Venture Capital. With over 20 years of investment and M&A experience in the Greater China region, and has listed several portfolio companies in the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Duncan founded Radiant Venture Capital in 2014 to focus in early stage investments into tech startups. show more…
Managing Director of Radiant Venture Capital. With over 20 years of investment and M&A experience in the Greater China region, and has listed several portfolio companies in the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Duncan founded Radiant Venture Capital in 2014 to focus in early stage investments into tech startups. Since then, Radiant has already invested into more than 30 startup companies in China, United States, Israel and Hong Kong. Duncan has frequently participated and spoke at tech forums and
conferences to promote startup culture in Hong Kong and also help young entrepreneurs with business plan workshops and mentorship. show less…
Pokman Yiu
Executive Director, Royal Fund Management
Mr. Pokman Yiu is the Executive Director for Royal Fund Management, a multi-family office based in Hong Kong which employs a long-term investment strategy similar as those in endowments and pension funds.
Mr. Pokman Yiu is the Executive Director for Royal Fund Management, a multi-family office based in Hong Kong which employs a long-term investment strategy similar as those in endowments and pension funds.
Before joining Royal Fund Management, Mr. Yiu was the Investment Director and Portfolio Manager of Gopher Asset Management. He was primarily responsible for managing the endowment strategy and discretionary portfolios. In addition he drove the firm’s investment and advisory strategy for Gopher and asset management business for its parent company Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH) in Hong Kong.
Prior to joining Gopher in 2014, Mr. Yiu held various investment banking positions in Hong Kong with Citigroup, Bank of American Merrill Lynch and UBS. He has more than nine years’ private equity and investment banking experience and executed a wide variety of corporate finance transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, and debt and equity financings across Asia Pacific region.
Mr. Yiu received both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Engineering from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He is also a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Grace Xia is a Senior Director at Tencent. She is responsible for driving company’s Asia market investment, strategy and partnership. Her mission is to bring exceptional technology companies to Tencent’s product eco-system in Asia through business collaboration and investment. Grace is a technology enthusiastic. show more…
Grace Xia is a Senior Director at Tencent. She is responsible for driving company’s Asia market investment, strategy and partnership. Her mission is to bring exceptional technology companies to Tencent’s product eco-system in Asia through business collaboration and investment. Grace is a technology enthusiastic. Her prior work experience spans corporate venture and internet startups in the functions of investment, product, BD for over 10 years in Silicon Valley, China and Asia. show less…
Markus Gnirck
Managing Director & Co-Founder, tryb Capital
Markus Gnirck is Managing Director & Co-Founder of tryb Capital, a private equity investment company that invests in growth-stage technology and platforms transforming financial services in Asia, based in Singapore. Additionally, he is also the founding committee member of the Singapore FinTech Association, co-author of the Asia FinTech 100 list and is a keynote speaker at global financial technology & innovation conferences. show more…
Markus Gnirck is Managing Director & Co-Founder of tryb Capital, a private equity investment company that invests in growth-stage technology and platforms transforming financial services in Asia, based in Singapore. Additionally, he is also the founding committee member of the Singapore FinTech Association, co-author of the Asia FinTech 100 list and is a keynote speaker at global financial technology & innovation conferences.
Prior to tryb, Markus co-founded Startupbootcamp FinTech, the largest innovation program in the FinTech industry, with startup accelerator programs in London, Singapore and New York. He led investments in more than 20 FinTech startups worldwide and sits on the board of multiple companies in Europe and Asia.
He plays an instrumental role in building up FinTech ecosystems across the region and driving policy change, he is now rated as one of the key FinTech influencers in APAC and voted in Forbes’ Asia list #30under30. Over the last two years, Markus has worked with more than 200 early stage companies in Asia to create partnerships with financial institutions and governments.
Ben Mathias
Managing Director & Head of India, Vertex Ventures
Mr. Ben Mathias is Managing Director and Head of Vertex India, having joined in 2015. While his key focus is in India, he is part of the Vertex team covering India, Southeast Asia and Taiwan.
Mr. Ben Mathias is Managing Director and Head of Vertex India, having joined in 2015. While his key focus is in India, he is part of the Vertex team covering India, Southeast Asia and Taiwan.
Prior to Vertex, Ben was a partner at New Enterprise Associates (NEA) where he launched their India presence and opened their Bangalore office. While at NEA, he led several investments in the Technology and Healthcare sectors including deals such as ValueFirst, Nova IVI, DaVita NephroLife, Reznext, Panacea Medical and FirstCry.
Prior to joining NEA, Ben held senior positions at E2open (NASDAQ: EOPN) and i2 Technologies (acquired by JDA Software). Previously, Ben spent a number of years at PwC Consulting (acquired by IBM) as member of their retail consulting practice. In his early career, he was at Open Environment Corporation and built application development tools for Distributed Computing.
Ben received his Master of Science in Engineering Sciences from Dartmouth College and his Bachelor of Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
Jeffrey Chi
Vice Chairman, Vickers Venture Partners
Dr. Jeffrey Chi is a Managing Director of Vickers Venture Partners, Vice Chairman of Vickers Capital Group and a member of its Investment Committee. He is also currently Chairman of the Singapore Venture Capital & Private Equity Association. show more…
Dr. Jeffrey Chi is a Managing Director of Vickers Venture Partners, Vice Chairman of Vickers Capital Group and a member of its Investment Committee. He is also currently Chairman of the Singapore Venture Capital & Private Equity Association.
Dr Chi has investments in China & SE Asia in online games, education, online travel, e-commerce and financial services (including fintech). He is a member of the board of directors of Jing Jin Electric, Matchmove Pay, Alo7.com, Cardvalue, Roomorama, Tenfen Technology and CoAssets. He was formerly a board member and was instrumental in the successful exits ofCambridge Real Estate Estate (IPO SGX: J91U & Trade Sale, Singapore), Sunfun Info (IPO TT:5278, Taiwan) and UUCUN(trade sale, China) and the Asian Food Channel (Trade Sale, US – alternate director). He was also involved in the partial exits of Real Time Gaming Asia (Trade Sale, Netherlands) and TWG Tea (Trade Sale, Singapore).
Dr. Chi’s experience covers a variety of industries including information technology, healthcare and media. Formerly a corporate finance specialist with and Executive Director at Pegasus Capital, he has managed engagements for large and small clients in both the public and private sectors. Prior to Pegasus Capital, Dr. Chi was a senior consultant with the Monitor Group. Dr. Chi’s operational background includes seven years on the management team of an engineering group with operations in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, China and Indonesia. As its Managing Director, he led the group into the Enterprise 50 in 1997 in Singapore.
Dr. Chi is a C.F.A. Charter holder and graduated from Cambridge University with 1st Class Honours in Engineering. He earned his PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in organizational knowledge and information technology.