If you are interested in social enterprises, impact investing, start-ups, Asia, empowerment, and stories of unreasonable people committed to make the world a better place, then you may decide to read on.


I will explore the intersection of many different worlds that typically don’t intersect. At this intersection where traditional finance meets non-profit, start-up meets government, Silicon Valley meets Dhaka, there is a new type of ecosystem being built. I have found beauty in such contrasts, where in one conference room, the lady to my left may be a Goldman Sachs executive, to my right, an Indian market weaver, across the table, a member of the Singapore ministry.


This all occurs in a city called Singapore, which I have found to be quite a surprising intersection of many different worlds itself. Often referred to as the “benevolent dictatorship”, one might wonder whether Singapore might just be the ideal place to build a “benevolent capital markets”, a capital markets organized for the purpose of doing good.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Why Singapore?


The second question, I often get is “why Singapore”? I believe this question requires a much deeper understanding of how things work around here, so I hope to be able to answer this at a later point in time. I understand that the location for the IIX exchange has been of much debate, and considerable analysis was conducted to identify the most attractive location.

One compelling piece of information that I have learnt so far involves the desire and commitment of the Singapore government to make Singapore the hub for the social sector in Asia-Pacific. Operating with a U.S. mindset, this commitment of the government would not weigh in as heavily into decision-making, but in the local context where social enterprise really does require the support of the three legged stool (private sector, government, and citizens), the Singapore government’s strategic commitment to become the hub for the social sector in Asia as well as their powerful banking infrastructure makes a good sell.
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