Asia Tech Podcast

[00:05] STA2 - ATP The Start with Graham D Brown, Dennis Poh and Gustavo Liu [00:05] Dennis Poh: answering the questions of clients about where they should set up their company in and what things they should take care of after incorporating the company [02:20] Gustavo Liu: former private banker and co-founder of The Hungry Lab, advisor to start-ups on financial aspects [04:25] What tends to go wrong when a Silicon Valley startup wants to incorporate a company in Asia? [07:40] Banking options for startups. The regulations are getting tougher. If you're thinking about where to set up your business, always factor in the banking options it's going to give you. [12:55] What makes Singapore a good jurisdiction to set up a company? Choice of the companies that you can incorporate, good business characteristics, good investor base [16:00] What happens when founders set up a business and raise capital but establish in a jurisdiction that investors won't touch? [19:50] The top 3 jurisdictions in Asia to consider from an investor's perspective: Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam [21:55] People still use a US company to run the business in Asia itself: why does that work? [25:15] It's better to pay a little tax somewhere than no tax nowhere: is this good advice? [27:45] What factors should startup founders think about when they're choosing a place to start a business? [30:50] Advice for startups based in Thailand with regards to banking options [33:35] If I lived in Thailand but my business was all over Asia, is it completely legitimate for me to go to Singapore and set up a business there? Better to be having a relationship with a bank and talk to them about what you intend to do before you jump in [39:50] Banks want your business but the last thing they want is some newspaper investigation like "why does this bank have 10,000 accounts for some gambling fund?" [42:00] Banks have the "high street" and "side street" methods for opening a bank account: having a good relationship with banks is so important and that means the banks understand more about you [44:45] Are there any sort of things that banks don't like to hear? What are the common mistakes startup founders make when incorporating their business? [47:05] What startup companies should look for is a banker who's already dealt with people like them before [51:40] Are there any kind of company incorporation structures in Asia which were once popular but have now become unpopular? New options that people might want to consider [53:45] Doing due diligence search on an individual is a lot easier than doing a search on the company itself, that's why some companies are favoring the register their companies in the owner's name [56:10] Why Hong Kong seems to have become less popular as an option in recent years with people now switching to Singapore [58:05] Going online to offshore services providers and buying a company in BVI for $500: where should startup founders start with this process? Speak to professionals in that certain jurisdiction [01:01:05] Advice from Gustavo on the banking side: there is no easy route, it's how much time you devote to understanding this as a business founder and talking to as many accountants and bankers. Understand who you are dealing with

John Artman, Editor-in-Chief of TechNode and Co-Host of China Tech Talk Podcast joins Graham Brown in a conversation about his interesting life journey to China and the reasons which led him to move there. He talks about how moving around when you're young impacts future life, the kind of skills required to adapt to new places and new people in Asia. He talks about life in China and covers varied topics like people's objections to using technology, difference between WeChat & Whatsapp or between Chinese cities like Beijing & Shanghai. He even shares a 5-day itinerary for visiting must see places in China.

[07:10] The A2A Metatrend - Asia to Asia trade. Asia now does more trade with itself than the rest of the world. The Asian Middle classes will be worth $36 trillion by 2030 [34:52] Why Asian brands have a massive advantage over Western competition. This is bad news for Amazon, especially in high growth markets such as Southeast Asia. [73:20] The rising power of the middle class in Asia and how it is going to shape the future of key sectors like automotive

[02:40] All about the medtech startup TeleCTG that provides pregnant women in remote areas with access to cardiotocography(CTG) services [20:50] Data centralization in maternal healthcare and integrating the data in the mobile app Sehati with the data in the hospital and medical center system [31:21] Abraham Auzan's advice for young entrepreneurs who are trying to initiate social change in Indonesia [33:48] Find out more and get in touch with Abraham via his LinkedIn profile or the TeleCTG website telectg.co.id

[06:45] What's NLP? Critics call it an evil cult, but Owen Fitzpatrick considers NLP a set of tools that can be used for both good and evil. [18:00] Owen Fitzpatrick's advice: Embrace what makes you different if you want to make a real impression. [28:30] If you want people to do business with you, you need to be able to tell stories and to take clients on a journey.

[27:02] What sort of startups are Chinese investors looking for in South East Asia? [33:13] The rapid growth of the middle class in Asia and its implications [46:40] Jean Pierre's advice for those who want to come to Asia - stop talking, start showing up [52:22] To find out more about Jean Pierre, go to his Linked In and Twitter to get in touch

[22:00] Importance of sales experience for entrepreneurs and why every Founder should enjoy making sales calls. [37:00] Overview of the Insurance market in Southeast Asia. How most insurance companies compete and what Frank does differently to win customers long term. [45:00] The importance of surrounding yourself with the right people that share the same quality. How to know when to give up and when to never give up.

[09:13] Why has Linkedin become so important for business owners? [32:14] The elusive LinkedIn Power Profile Award and how to get it [35:18] Chris J Reed's top tips for entrepreneurs on Linkedin to get engagement - get a headline, use a background picture, personalize your summary section

[17:30] Remote workers are more productive and efficient, and less likely to change jobs than office workers - companies can save costs employing remote workers according to studies [32:25] The "I'll get around to traveling the world someday" thinking - challenging the dominant mode of thinking and take a leap of faith regarding the digital nomad lifestyle [40:05] What is Reboot Life's program? Can you live a life you don't even know you want right now? [50:15] Please check out Reboot Life at www.reboot-life.com

[24:44] The population fundamentals of Japan and how demographic changes shape the startup ecosystem [36:29] Start up founders in Tokyo tend to get bank loans by default instead of seeking angel investors - does this present a challenge to Japan? [40:48] The city of Fukuoka and its top down approach to building an ecosystem. Is it sustainable long term? [55:26] Go to fastx.jp to out more about FASTx and sign up for the upcoming competition in April.To get in touch with Simon, email info@fastx.jp

[08:21] Gil Petersil's recipe for success as an entrepreneur - the circles of people around you, having passion for what you do and open communication [19:45] Gil Petersil's lessons learned from meetings with Tony Robbins, Richard Branson, Brian Tracy and Steven Seagal [61:45] The importance of having a mastermind group - case study launching a mastermind group with business marketing guru Jay Abraham to help local businesses scale globally

[24:50] Do we own our identity? Who owns "me"? What will the distribution of our identity on the blockchain mean for finance, contracts and our relationship with government? [28:11] Will intermediaries (bank loans, credit cards companies, credit agencies) exist in a world where block chain is the dominant form of wealth distribution? [37:33] Financial inclusion in Asia and how blockchain will affect access to new forms of payment or capital in rural areas

[09:35] Graham will be traveling from Japan to mainland China, then Hong Kong and Thailand over 4 days [28:10] One of Asia's most exciting projects is the $5000 Billion One Belt One Road Initiative - OBOR is about China exerting its soft power in the world - the world needs the connectivity - just as we needed American soft power back in 1915 World Fair in San Francisco [42:05] The opportunity to 10X your skills is right here in Asia - this is the untapped, frontier - real talent isn't motivated by money but by challenge and the ability to work on something that makes a big difference means heading East

[16:43] Are there parallels between AI, the second machine age, and the Industrial Revolution in how the nature or work was fundamentally changed? [21:35] Singularity and the concept of work. How do we make ourselves irreplaceable? What kind of work would humans be doing if the machine can click the mouse? [32:50] Can a machine or algorithm write The Race for Work and do it better than Bhoopathi did? Can machines be creative in the same way as humans? What's left for humans if machines can do everything we do only better? [46:10] To find out more about about escaping automation, career transformation and thriving in the second machine age, get a copy of The Race for Work by Bhoopathi Rapolu

[32:51] Disruptive technologies like blockchain. What is it and what are the general trends in Asia? Are populations that lack access to traditional financial infrastructure the right markets for blockchain? [40:44] Asian countries like Vietnam, Indonesia and China clamping down on digital currencies. [51:48] What is there to look forward to in the next 20 years regarding Fintech in Asia? Where does Jame see Asia in terms of global finance in the future?