Beware the insider in data privacy protection: Infowatch

Internal violators are the most serious threat to data privacy in Southeast Asia.  Data leaks in ASEAN countries are mainly caused by the negligence of top-level executives and employees with access to sensitive and confidential data, according to the latest research by cybersecurity and data leak prevention expert InfoWatch Group.

Just over 56% of Southeast Asia incidents of compromised data were caused by executives, employees, IT administrators and other authorised personnel, the company said. The other 44% were the result of external attacks and former employees. The global figure is higher at nearly 60%.

Source: Infowatch. Up to 56% of Southeast Asia incidents of compromised data were caused by executives, employees, IT administrators and other authorised personnel.

“It is a disturbing sign to see that a relatively high percentage of leaks stem from top managers and system administrators who fall into the category of ‘privileged users’,” said Vladimir Shutemov, Chief International Business Development Officer of the InfoWatch Group.

Shutemov, who also heads InfoWatch SEA operations based in Kuala Lumpur, added, “Leaks due to blunders, intentional violation of rules or malicious activities of privileged users are the most destructive as they have more access to sensitive data compared to rank-and-file employees.”

Shutemov was citing the latest findings of InfoWatch research unit InfoWatch Analytics Center, on data leaks reported by governments and commercial and non-commercial organisations in Southeast Asia, South Korea, India and Bangladesh. The research was based on information sources in the media and other public domains between July 2016 and July 2017.

Shutemov said users with advanced permissions either unwittingly or deliberately cause the leakage because they were “unhappy” with any attempt by their organisations to control their PCs, laptops and mobile phones.

By industry category, the research also pointed out that up to 43% of leaks in Southeast Asia stemmed from public institutions including government, military and law enforcement agencies, compared to only 13% worldwide.

Source: Infowatch. Southeast Asia stood out for the number of leaks stemming from the public sector. 

In Southeast Asia, South Korea, India and Bangladesh, the report found that personal data comprised almost 77% of the leaks, followed by payment details at 15%, trade secrets or knowhow at 5%, and state secrets contributing 3%.  In comparison, 62% of data leaked globally was personal data, while up to 31% of data stolen were of payment details.

Source: Infowatch. Almost 77% of leaks were around personal data in Southeast Asia.

“In line with global trends, Southeast Asia and other Asian countries are striving to improve cybersecurity. Their governments have toughened up personal data laws, while enterprises more and more often use information security tools against external and internal intruders. But more needs to be done as technology advances and the intruders become more sophisticated,” said Shutemov.

In terms of channels, browsers and cloud storage turned out to be the most common places where data is leaked, accounting for almost 74% of all cases, while equipment loss, such as stolen laptops, and the popular use of instant messaging apps together caused 14% of leaks. Globally, browsers and cloud storage figured in 61% of data leaks, followed by email (23%), and paper documents (8%).

InfoWatch currently serves more than 1,500 large customers worldwide with its proprietary and patented cybersecurity technologies. Its suite of data leak prevention and cybersecurity solutions can analyse content in Asian languages for the prevention of data leaks, including in Malay, Bahasa Indonesia and Vietnamese.

Established by Natalya Kaspersky in 2003, InfoWatch pioneered the data leak prevention (DLP) market. InfoWatch products are available in the Middle East, India and Southeast Asia.

Bosch calls for more vehicles in SEA to be equipped with safety features

 Road traffic fatalities in ASEAN member countries estimated at 117,000 per year, with more than half attributed to motorcycles 

 Increasing number of countries and territories such as Japan, Taiwan, and India are mandating motorcycle antilock braking systems (ABS) for new vehicles 

 Malaysia is the first and only ASEAN member country to mandate all new cars to be equipped with electronic stability control (ESC) from 2018 onwards


Bosch believes that more can be done to improve road safety in Southeast Asia. Each year, there are approximately 63,000 reported road traffic deaths in the ASEAN member countries, although the World Health Organization believes that the actual number lies at around 117,000 per year due either to inaccurate data or undocumented accidents. While Singapore has one of the fewest traffic-related deaths worldwide per capita, Thailand has one of the highest rates.

“We need to find sustainable solutions for a problem that is the leading death cause among young people in the region, taking the lives of thousands of citizens, and costing the governments a tremendous amount of money, every year,” said Martin Hayes, President of Bosch in Southeast Asia in a keynote address at the EU-ASEAN Business Summit in Manila, the Philippines."The loss of lives, and cost of damage to property and safety reputation pose an extensive threat to the social and economic progress of the ASEAN member countries.

“For Bosch, every traffic-related death is one too many. As an automotive supplier, we believe that the most substantial impact the auto industry can make is to produce safer vehicles equipped with modern safety systems.”

The world’s first antilock braking system (ABS) for passenger cars, the technology that prevents a car’s wheels from locking up during an emergency braking scenario, dates back to 1978. This innovation allows the driver to maintain steering control and in most situations, shortens the braking distance without skidding. In 1995, Bosch improved the technology by developing the world’s first electronic stability program (also known as ESP or ESC) which is today equipped in 64% of all new cars worldwide. In Europe alone, ESP has saved more than 8,500 lives and prevented more than a quarter of a million traffic accidents to date.

Southeast Asia, the third-largest two-wheeler market in the world, also sees motorcycle riders constitute more than half of all road traffic fatalities. Every year, 21,000 fatal motorcycle accidents occur in Indonesia and Thailand alone. A key technology to enhance motorcycle safety is ABS, which enables hard braking without the wheels locking, so that the vehicle remains stable and the rider stays upright. Introduced in 1995, the motorcycle ABS significantly reduces the risk of falling, shortens the stopping distance, and therefore the risk of collision. Bosch research estimates that if every powered two-wheeler was equipped with ABS, around one in four of all motorcycle accidents in the ASEAN countries could be prevented. Worldwide, an increasing number of countries and territories such as Japan, Taiwan, and India are mandating motorcycle ABS for new vehicles. 

“It is the governments that play a crucial role in the adoption of safety systems. Legislative measures to mandate safety features have been introduced in nearly all developed and many developing countries all over the world,” said Hayes. "Countries that have yet to make safety features such as ABS, ESC, and Motorcycle ABS mandatory – neither in passenger cars nor in motorcycles – can be found in Africa, some parts of South America, the Middle East, and most of Southeast Asia. To date, Malaysia is the first and only ASEAN member country to mandate all new cars to be equipped with ESC from 2018 onwards."

Vehicles with high safety standards, equipped with airbags, ESC, or ABS for instance, do not only protect passengers, they also help local manufacturers realise export opportunities into major automotive markets. “It is our view that governments should have a strong interest in promoting these safety features if they want to develop ASEAN into a world-class automotive manufacturing hub that is globally competitive, and can contribute positively to the economic and social progress of the region,” said Hayes.

“The improvement of road safety is not something that will happen overnight. We understand that it’s a gradual process that needs the involvement of various stakeholders including governments, the scientific community, NGOs, and the industry.”

In November 2015, ASEAN transport ministers adopted the ASEAN Regional Road Safety Strategy which provides a framework of strategies and actions to halve the number of road fatalities in the region by 2020. The strategy also received the commitment of the economic ministers of ASEAN and the ASEAN Economic Community Council in February 2017, who will also be working towards improving road safety policies and programmes, and harmonising the region’s safety regulations in line with UN regulations. The UN General Assembly has proclaimed the period from 2011 to 2020 as the Decade of Action for Road Safety with the goal to stabilise and reduce the level of road traffic fatalities around the world. 

Affluent Southeast Asians sticking to regional travel

According to the UOB Affluent Consumer Survey 2016*, travel is a significant part of the lifestyle s of affluent Southeast Asians. On average, more than nine in 10 of the respondents from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand go overseas on holiday at least once a year.

Yet, in the light of slow global economic growth and as their financial considerations grow more pronounced, well-heeled travellers are opting to holiday within the region. The survey found that more than six in 10 polled have chosen Asian destinations for their vacations. In fact, Asian countries, with the exception of Australia, have been the top five travel destinations in the past 12 months.

Francis Tan, UOB Economist, noted that Asian countries benefit from Southeast Asian travellers who are looking to keep within a travel budget as well as increased intra-regional air connectivity. “Given the weak regional currencies, Southeast Asians with a yen for travel could be choosing Asian destinations to maximise their purchasing power. This is aided by the increasing number of flights within the region, resulting in more competitively-priced flights to these destinations,” he said.

The survey also found that travel expenses are a top consideration for respondents when planning their next holiday destination. Jacquelyn Tan, Managing Director and Regional Head of Cards and Payments, UOB, said that to stay relevant in serving the affluent Southeast Asian population, businesses must provide cost-efficient products and solutions that suit travellers' needs today. “From credit cards such as the UOB PRVI Miles that help customers earn frequent flyer miles faster to travel deals, wealthy customers in the region want products and services that can meet their lifestyle needs and this includes their travel habits.

“To match the travel expectations of the affluent in Southeast Asia, we have embarked on regional partnerships with strategic travel-related brands to strengthen our offers to these customers. These partnerships continue to enhance our suite of offerings as we increase our market share in this segment,” said Ms Tan.

To meet its regional cards growth ambitions, UOB has partnered established names in the travel sector such as Singapore Airlines and Kaligo, a booking site, for the Bank’s first-ever region-wide travel campaign. The campaign aims to help customers stretch their vacation dollar. With Singapore Airlines, UOB cardmembers across the region stand a chance to receive up to 60,000 KrisFlyer miles** which can be redeemed for a round-trip ticket to London or Los Angeles by spending S$300 in a single receipt***.

UOB is also giving away a n equivalent of 10 million KrisFlyer miles in total until 31 January 2017 which can also be redeemed for SilkAir, Scoot and Tigerair flights. This means that customers will be able to derive more value out of their year-end shopping and travelling, which is traditionally when they spend the most****.

Earlier this year, UOB also introduced the UOB Privileges Passport, a regional rewards programme that offers cardmembers access to exclusive local benefits while travelling in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. For example, through partnerships with premier shopping malls such as Bangkok’s Siam Paragon, Siam Centre, The Emporium Thailand and EmQuartier, a Singapore cardmember can enjoy the same suite of benefits and rewards available to a Thai-issued UOB credit card.

Ms Tan added, “As Southeast Asia’s affluent continue to strike a balance between their wanderlust and their economic sensibilities, we anticipate that intra-regional travels will continue to grow among this segment. As such, we will continue to explore partnerships with relevant brands to ensure a robust suite of regional offerings that are relevant to our customers.”

*The UOB Affluent Consumer Survey 2016 polled 2,030 respondents aged 25 years and above with a minimum assets under management of S$150,000 from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. 

**Customers will be given the equivalent of KrisFlyer miles won in UNI$, a type of bonus point used for UOB credit cards.

***This is part of UOB’s first-ever regional year-end campaign. From November to January 2017, customers can win over 10 million Krisflyer miles that are up for grabs as well as more than 500,000 prizes, including flights to popular destinations like Bali and Tokyo.

****Source: UOB card data

Indonesia wins UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year Award

Indonesia has taken the UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year Award for the third year running. The United Overseas Bank (UOB) revealed that 36-year-old Gatot Indrajati has won the award for Right or Wrong My Home, a relief acrylic painting. Indrajati also picked up the 2016 UOB Painting of the Year, Indonesia award.

Judges commended his innovative use of wood, a traditional art medium in Indonesia combined with paint to create a visually compelling and contemporary artwork. They said Indrajati’s treatment of composition and layering to create a range of perspectives in the painting emphasised a sense of space while reflecting a typical Southeast Asian cityscape. The judges further noted that his application of light-hearted iconography invites the audience to contemplate the artist’s intent.

Indrajati said, “ I was inspired by the passion that Indonesians have for their country and how that attitude is such an inherent part of the Indonesian identity. Indonesians also have a wry sense of humour and we often use humour as a way to demonstrate the love for our country. I wanted my painting to portray that passion and patriotism."

Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, UOB, said that the Bank remains committed to supporting the development of art in Southeast Asia for the long-term.

"We recognise the important role art plays in strengthening the fabric of a society. It connects people and communities, celebrates cultures and enriches lives. What is also distinctive about the UOB art programme is our focus on giving back. Beyond nurturing and profiling artistic talents, we also connect our artist alumni and our community partners to bring art appreciation to underprivileged and special needs children, " Wee said.

In the Established Artist category Carey Ngai, 49, won the UOB Painting of the Year (Singapore) Award. Ngai's entry was an oil on canvas painting, Industry 2.0 III. The judges were impressed by Ngai’s use of shades and colours in his realistic art piece. His painting draws a parallel between the obsolescence of industrial machinery and that of human abilities as societies evolve and as artificial intelligence becomes integrated into daily life.

For the Emerging Artist category: Yoko Choi Chi Mei, 38, was named the Most Promising Artist of the Year (Singapore). Choi created a diptych piece, City Wandering. Using ink marker on Chinese ink paper to create intricate, overlapping and multi-directional patterns, the artist explores how the search for change can reshape one’s perception of order and certainty.

The annual UOB Painting of the Year competition is held across four Southeast Asian countries. In Singapore, it is the longest-running art contest and is also the Bank’s flagship art programme. UOB’s focus on championing art as a key pillar of its corporate social responsibility programme began in Singapore more than 40 years ago. Over the years, the UOB Painting of the Year competition has launched the careers of artists in Singapore and the region including Singapore Cultural Medallion winners Raymond Lau, Chua Say Hua and Hong Sek Chern.

The regional panel of judges comprised representatives from each of the four participating countries: Agung Hujatnika Jennong, an independent curator and lecturer at the Faculty of Art and Design at the Bandung Institute of Technology in Indonesia; Choy Chun Wei, an award-winning contemporary artist from Malaysia; Dr Bridget Tracy Tan, Director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Arts and Art Galleries, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in Singapore; and Amrit Chusuwan, an artist and Dean of the Faculty of Painting, Sculpture and Graphic Arts, Silpakorn University in Thailand.

Other winners of the 35th UOB Painting of the Year competition include:

+2016 UOB Painting of the Year, Malaysia: Yim Yen Sum, The Floating Castle 
+2016 UOB Painting of the Year, Thailand: Jongjit Moolmat, Awaiting Enlightenment 2

+Established Artist Category (Singapore), Gold Award: Tang Kok Soo, Elephants Crossing the +Water Established Artist Category (Singapore), Silver Award: Yeo Tze Yang, Ah Ma’s Kitchen
+Established Artist Category (Singapore), Bronze Award: Kobayashi Satoshi, The Producer 

+Emerging Artist Category (Singapore) Gold Award: Ariel Dong Zixin, Self-portrait 
+Emerging Artist Category (Singapore) Silver Award: Shirly Koh Li Qing, Gentle Shade of Blue Beyond... 
+Emerging Artist Category (Singapore) Bronze Award: Ryan Lim Ding Xuan, Smithereens


Interested?

The winning paintings from the 2016 Painting of the Year competition will be exhibited at the UOB Art Gallery, UOB Plaza 1 at 80 Raffles Place. The exhibition will run till the end of February 2017.

New type 2 diabetes medicines to boost market in Southeast Asia

Late-stage pipeline products have the potential to change how type 2 diabetes is treated today, says GBI Research. The business intelligence firm forecasts that the Southeast Asian type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) market, covering South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia, will rise from US$1.7 billion in 2015 to US$2.7 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 7.1%.

Aswini Nath, Analyst for GBI Research, explains: “Unmet needs relating to patient convenience and ease of use will be addressed significantly over the forecast period. Higher levels of innovation are apparent in the early-stage pipeline, which may lead to considerable improvements beyond the existing range of products, in terms of safety and efficacy in the long term.

“In terms of recently approved therapeutics, GLP-1 receptor agonists, DPP-4 inhibitors, and SGLT-2 inhibitors* have already achieved strong market uptake and are all expected to increase their market shares over the forecast period. In comparison with many previously marketed therapies, these new products provide improved weight control and lowered hypoglycemia risk.”

The company named Novo Nordisk’s NN-9535 (semaglutide subcutaneous formulation) and OG-217SC (semaglutide oral formulation) and Eli Lilly’s Trulicity (dulaglutide), which are GLP-1 receptor agonists; as well as Merck’s ertugliflozin and Theracos's bexagliflozin, which are SGLT-2 inhibitors; and Merck’s omarigliptin, which is a DPP-4 inhibitor, as products close to commercialisation which "stand out as offering superior safety, efficacy, and patient compliance".

Of these products, GBI Research believes that OG-217SC, being a first-to-market oral formulation in the GLP-1 agonist class of drug, has the most potential to change the treatment paradigm due to its improved administration route compared to other drugs in the same class.

However, Nath added that popular treatment metformin (Glucophage) will continue to dominate treatment options. “Although increased uptake of branded drugs is expected, metformin – a low-cost generic drug – will maintain its pivotal role in the T2DM treatment algorithm in Southeast Asia. Due to its well-characterised safety and efficacy profiles, wide availability and low cost, metformin will continue to be prescribed as the first-line pharmacotherapy and also remain the favored option for use in combination therapies,” he said.


Interested?

Buy Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Therapeutics in South-East Asia Markets to 2022 – Increasing Usage of Newer Therapies and Expanding Treatment Population to Encourage Robust Growth

*GLP-1 stands for glucagon-like peptide-1 and DPP-4 is short for dipeptidyl peptidase 4. Both GLP-1 receptor agonists improve glycemic control while reducing body weight while DPP-4 improves glycemic control. Both also improve systolic blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes. Read more about GLP-1 receptor agonists in Diabetes Care.

SGLT-2 or sodium-glucose linked transporter refers to the SGLT for the proximal convoluted tubule, a part of the kidney system, as opposed to SGLT-1, which affects the proximal straight tubule. Read more about SGLT-2 inhibitors in Diabetes Care.

Internet of Things to overtake mobile phones by 2018: Ericsson

• Sixteen billion connected devices forecast to join the Internet of Things (IoT) by the end of 2021
• Smartphone subscriptions to surpass those for basic phones in Q3 this year
• Teenage use of cellular data for smartphone video grew 127% in 15 months

The latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report* reveals that the Internet of Things (IoT) is set to overtake mobile phones as the largest connected device category by 2018.

Between 2015 and 2021, the number of IoT connected devices is expected to grow 23% annually, of which cellular IoT is forecast to have the highest growth rate. Of the 28 billion total devices that will be connected by 2021, close to 16 billion will be IoT devices.

Rima Qureshi, Senior Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer, Ericsson, says: “IoT is now accelerating as device costs fall and innovative applications emerge. From 2020, commercial deployment of 5G networks will provide additional capabilities that are critical for IoT, such as network slicing and the capacity to connect exponentially more devices than is possible today.”

Source: Ericsson. New mobile subscriptions in India
equalled the number of new mobile subscriptions in
Asia Pacific excluding China and India. China rated
a negative number after China Unicom removed
inactive subscriptions.

Smartphone subscriptions continue to increase and are forecast to surpass those for basic phones in Q3 this year. By 2021, smartphone subscriptions will almost double from 3.4 billion to 6.3 billion. Also revealed in the report, there are now 5 billion mobile subscribers – unique users – in the world today.

Detailed in the report is a dramatic shift in teen viewing habits: use of cellular data for smartphone video grew 127% in just 15 months (2014 to 2015). Over a period of four years (2011 to 2015) there has been a 50% drop in the time teens spend watching TV/video on a TV screen, and in contrast an 85% increase in those viewing TV/video on a smartphone. This, and the fact that the upcoming generation of mobile users are the heaviest consumers of data for smartphone video streaming (Wi-Fi and cellular combined), makes them the most important group for cellular operators to monitor.

In 2016, a long anticipated milestone was reached: commercial LTE networks were measured supporting downlink peak data speeds of 1 Gbps. Devices that support 1 Gbps are expected in the second half of 2016, initially in markets such as Japan, US, South Korea and China, but rapidly spreading to other regions.

Mobile users will enjoy extremely fast time to content thanks to this enhanced technology, which will enable up to two thirds faster download speeds compared with the fastest technology available today.

Further highlights from the Ericsson Mobility Report include:

• Mobile broadband subscriptions will grow fourfold in the Middle East and Africa between 2015 and 2021; and mobile data traffic in India will grow fifteen times by 2021.
• Global mobile data traffic grew 60% between Q115 and Q116 due to rising numbers of smartphone subscriptions and increasing data consumption per subscriber. By the end of 2021, around 90% of mobile data traffic will be from smartphones.
• LTE subscriptions grew quickly during Q116: there were 150 million new subscriptions during the quarter, driven by demand for improved user experience and faster networks for a total of 1.2 billion worldwide.
• LTE peak data speeds of 1 Gbps are anticipated to be commercially available in 2016.
• 5G is expected to start more quickly than anticipated, but additional spectrum harmonisation is needed between countries planning early 5G deployment: This is in addition to the current process for WRC-19, which focuses on spectrum for commercial 5G deployments beyond 2020.

• Singapore leads Southeast Asia in both smartphone and mobile broadband subscriptions penetration, at more than 100% and more than 140% respectively.
• The Asia Pacific region is set to fuel growth with 1.7 billion new smartphone subscriptions recorded, exceeding the total combined subscriptions from the rest of the world.
• IoT to overtake mobile phones as the largest category of connected devices by 2018

The Ericsson Mobility Report also highlights Singapore and Asia Pacific’s leadership position in the adoption of smartphones, mobile broadband and IoT growth.

Singapore continues to lead in Southeast Asia in both smartphone and mobile broadband subscriptions population penetration, with more than 100% and more than 140% respectively, ahead of the Southeast Asia penetration levels of around 40% and around 60% respectively for 2015.

Source: Ericsson. India added the most number of
mobile subscriptions in the quarter, followed by
Indonesia and Myanmar.

Globally, mobile subscriptions are growing around 3% year-on-year and reached 7.4 billion in Q116. Indonesia and Myanmar are identified as among the key surge markets in Southeast Asia, with an additional 5 million subscribers in each country for Q116.

Across Asia Pacific smartphone subscriptions will reach 1.7 million by 2021. By the end of 2015, only Singapore had a smartphone subscription penetration above 100% percent in Southeast Asia. Singapore also has the top result overall in Southeast Asia for highest cell-edge downlink speed and lowest latency. By 2021, Singapore is expected to reach almost 130% smartphone subscription penetration.

This growth has, in turn, fuelled a huge demand for rich content from subscribers, with YouTube now the second most popular app in Singapore, behind WhatsApp, and the No. 1 app in Indonesia.

Before the smartphone revolution, most of the attention in mobile network operations was focused on managing voice coverage. Voice now constitutes less than 5% of mobile traffic. Users still expect good voice coverage, but they also expect a good user experience when they access the Internet through apps running on their smart devices.

The report also highlights the huge growth expected in IoT connected devices in Asia Pacific, which globally are expected to surpass mobile phone subscriptions by 2018. This will be driven by emerging applications and business models, and supported by falling device costs. Globally, IoT connected devices are expected to increase to close to 16 billion by 2021. Of this, Asia Pacific will be the region with the highest level of adoption, accounting for around five billion IoT connections.

IoT, which is a fundamental part of Singapore’s pioneering Smart Nation vision, will focus on two major segments - massive and critical connections. Massive IoT connections are characterised by high connection volumes, low cost, low energy requirements and small data traffic volumes - examples include smart buildings, transport logistics, smart meters and agriculture. Critical IoT connections are characterised by requirements for ultra-reliability and availability, with very low latency. These include traffic safety, autonomous cars, industrial applications, remote manufacturing and healthcare, including remote surgery.

Martin Wiktorin, Country Head for Singapore & Brunei, Ericsson, said: “This report highlights the exceptional growth of mobile broadband and smartphone technology in Singapore and across the region. It also demonstrates how IoT promises to change society in the next few years. A recent IDC study predicts that by 2019, we will see US$1.3 trillion worth of investment being poured into IoT technology globally which will empower the digital transformation of all our lives, accelerating our progress towards becoming a truly networked society."

Interested?

The Traffic Exploration Tool which accompanies the report can be used to create customised graphs and tables. The information can be filtered by region, subscription, technology, traffic and device type.

Download the Ericsson Mobility Report, Traffic Exploration Tool and regional reports for South East Asia & Oceania, North East Asia, North America and India

*The Ericsson Mobility Report is one of the leading analyses of mobile data traffic available, providing in-depth measurements from live networks spread around the globe. The report uses these measurements and analysis, together with internal forecasts and other relevant studies, to provide insights into current traffic and market trends in the networked society. The report defines a connected device as a physical object that has an IP stack enabling two-way communication over a network interface.

posted from Bloggeroid

InnoVen invests in e-commerce startups in Malaysia, Thailand

United Overseas Bank (UOB) and Temasek joint venture InnoVen Capital (InnoVen) has signed two venture debt* financing agreements with e-commerce startups in Southeast Asia. The startups are among a list of 20 Southeast Asian, Indian and Chinese companies which InnoVen has identified for venture debt funding in the next six months, in sectors such as e-commerce, financial technology, logistics and big data.

In the first quarter this year, InnoVen signed financing deals with Malaysia-based KFit Holdings, an e-commerce health and fitness company that has raised funding from Sequoia Capital, and Thailand-based Pomelo Fashion, an e-commerce fashion company which is backed by Jungle Ventures. 

Both companies will be using the venture debt loans to develop their business in the region. InnoVen will provide loans totalling US$5 million to help KFit Holdings and Pomelo cater to the fitness habits and fashion trends of Asia’s growing affluent population, which is expected to account for two-thirds of the world’s middle class consumers or about 3.2 billion people by 2030**. 

Pomelo Fashion has been identified by InnoVen as having high growth potential. The company uses e-commerce to market and to sell its brand of apparel, accessories and footwear to the rising affluent in Southeast Asia. Casey Liang, Co-Founder of Pomelo Fashion said, “For a startup such as Pomelo, funding is often critical as we accelerate our growth, expand into new markets and invest in new capabilities. The venture debt from Innoven will help us accomplish these goals more efficiently. Innoven has been a great partner who understands our business dynamics and was able to tailor a financing structure that met our business needs.” 

Eric Tham, Managing Director and Head of Group Commercial Banking, UOB, said venture debt is important in nurturing Asia’s entrepreneurs and in encouraging innovation. “UOB was formed by enterprising minds and has been supporting the growth of SMEs for more than eight decades. We see the importance enterprise plays in economic growth and are committed to ensuring that the best startups have the necessary funding support to develop into world-class businesses. This in turn will help to drive the economies of Asia,” said Tham. 

Chin Chao, CEO of InnoVen, Southeast Asia, said: “The current momentum of InnoVen demonstrates the importance of venture debt as an alternative funding source to traditional equity financing by venture capitalists. As part of InnoVen’s investment mandate, the company is seeking companies with differentiated business models that have the potential to become leading global businesses.” 

InnoVen Capital had announced the start of its operations in Southeast Asia a few days before the venture debt announcement. Ajay Hattangdi, Group COO and CEO India said, “We continue to invest heavily in building our India business but also want to be able to support our clients and their investors across markets. Having one unified platform across the region helps us to work seamlessly with clients who are increasingly looking to expand beyond just one market and therefore have requirements for risk capital across geographies. We are seeking to leverage our experience of working with high-growth startups and close relationships with VC investors in creating a regional platform for InnoVen Capital.” 

UOB and Temasek have each committed up to US$100 million in paid-up capital to InnoVen, which was set up in 2015 to provide high-growth and innovative Asian startups with up to US$500 million in venture debt loans over the next five years. According to an EY report on venture debt***, the potential market size for venture debt in Singapore, China and India between 2015 and 2019 is US$2.2 billion. InnoVen Capital recently announced the completion of over 100 venture debt deals in India by disbursing over Rs275 crore across 27 transactions in 2015. It witnessed 100% growth over the previous year in terms of number of clients and loan volumes. This year, InnoVen Capital aims to provide fresh funding in excess of US$65 million.

Venture debt financing is part of UOB’s commitment to support the growth of Asian enterprises, from startups to listed companies. The bank offers end-to-end financing solutions such as equity crowdfunding, venture debt financing, term loans and capital market solutions. 

*Venture debt is a type of loan provided to venture capital-backed startups to help bridge their funding needs and finance their business growth. 

**Brookings Institution, The New Global Middle Class: A Cross-Over from West to East, March 2010 

***Building a venture debt business in India, China and Singapore, EY, 28 August 2014 

Positive outlook for Singapore jobs in 2016

2016 is expected to be a year of stability and steady growth for Singapore with recruitment activity broadly positive, reports Michael Page’s 2016 South East Asia Salary & Employment Outlook.

Financial companies continue to attract talent particularly for private banking, risk audit and compliance, while the technology, healthcare & life sciences sectors continue to remain competitive, the company predicted.

At one end of the spectrum is the region’s most developed economy, Singapore, where growth is modest, albeit steady, and salary inflation and staff turnover are relatively low compared to other ASEAN countries. At the other end are markets like Indonesia, where a young population and a burgeoning middle class mean that some industries are growing at breakneck pace. That brings with it sometimes large increases in salary and high turnover of staff as companies compete for talent.

Anthony Thompson, Regional Managing Director, Greater China & South East Asia, PageGroup, said, “Despite pressures such as political uncertainty and the persistent low oil prices, Southeast Asia as a region continues on its path of strong growth, with recruitment ongoing across almost all sectors. Professional services such as human resources are increasingly being seen as a critical part of the business to deal with high staff turnover. The current market demands candidates with digital skills and regional experiences as an increasing number of businesses expand across borders.”

Growth for Singapore will be modest compared with Malaysia and Indonesia as low-skilled jobs such as bulk manufacturing and logistics move to other ASEAN countries. While pockets of skill gaps exist in the engineering and healthcare space, most sectors in Singapore are well established as the desired talent is already present in the market.

Sebastian Hampartzoumian, Senior Managing Director, Singapore & India, PageGroup, said, “Singapore is a relatively stable employment market where employees are more focused on their careers, looking to gain experience when changing jobs and not just for a raise in salary. Employers are also more cautious in their hiring approach, selecting candidates that are close to a perfect fit.”

2015 is the year where the region’s economies are due to be integrated into the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), encouraging free flow of trade, investment and people among the 10 member states. With this comes access to a wider pool of talent, but response thus far has been lukewarm, with approximately a third (36%) of the respondents saying they have yet to decide or were not interested in hiring from other countries.

The Michael Page South East Asia 2016 Salary & Employment Outlook is a report based on survey findings of more than 850 employers across a range of industry sectors in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. Insights drawn from a series of roundtable discussions with employers further enriched the report. The report aims to provide an overview on market and employment conditions, wages, and an outlook across the different sectors.

Interested?

View the report

posted from Bloggeroid

Digital marketing works well in Southeast Asia

Source: Adobe website.

New research from Adobe confirms that marketers in Southeast Asia are increasingly focused on mobile as a highly effective form of customer interaction and engagement. The research also reveals that the mobile-first business transformation is being led by Asia Pacific.

The Adobe Digital Index Best of the Best Benchmark 2015 compares the overall average versus the top 20% websites as rated on six key performance indicators across eight regions: Southeast Asia* (SEA), Australia and New Zealand, India, South Korea, Hong Kong, mainland China, Japan and the US. Key performance indicators are smartphone and tablet traffic; stick rate**; visits-per-visitor; time spent; conversion rate; and click-through-rate. The research provides insights to determine how the best digital marketing organisations are performing relative to the average.

“The best digital marketers in Southeast Asia are delivering strong results in some key performance areas,” said Tamara Gaffney, Director, Adobe Digital Index. “Not only did we see the gaps increase for smartphone visits between the best of the best websites and the average websites, we congruently saw the “best of the best” are also moving away from the average in terms of stick rate, indicating the direct correlation between mobile capability and consumer engagement.”

Key findings in the Best of the Best Benchmark for Southeast Asia include:

· SEA saw double-digit increases year-over-year in their share of smartphone visits, with an 18% increase for best of the best websites and 11% increase for average websites

· SEA had among the highest share of traffic from tablets from all regions covered in the research, with a 40% difference between the best of the best websites and average websites

· Loyal return visitors are more prominent in SEA than the US, both from average websites and best of the best websites, which equates to higher loyalty and reduced acquisition costs

· However, some of the weakest conversion rates are from SEA, indicating understanding consumer mobile and desktop activity is lacking and possible friction in the process and experience

· Time spent on websites, which is the best metric for site engagement, and the best of the best websites were 22% higher than the average; all countries in Asia Pacific fared better than the US

· Click-through rate was weak in SEA, showing a lack of alignment between consumer intent and advertising execution

“It’s clear mobile optimisation is no longer an option, and if businesses are under-skilled in mobile development, it will put them at a severe disadvantage,” said Gaffney. “Asia Pacific (APAC) is dominating when it comes to smartphone and tablet visits. We’re seeing the best websites in APAC coming out head of the US, with more than 50% of their visitors coming from smartphones, and increasingly high success rates in areas like consumption and stickiness. The data is telling us that delivering seamless experiences across devices is the key to acquisition and engagement.”

Interested?

The Best of the Best Benchmark is part of Adobe’s strategy to give back to practitioners. To find out where your organisation falls on within the Benchmark take Adobe’s Digital Marketing Maturity Assessment.

*Southeast Asian countries evaluated for this study were Singapore, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia.

**Stick rate is the percentage of visits that last more than one page.