These 10 M’sian ecommerce brands beat 1,000+ applicants to win Sidec’s ECM 2024 awards
For the ninth time, the Selangor Information Technology and Digital Economy Corporation (Sidec) has hosted its Malaysia Top E-Commerce Merchant (Top ECM) Awards to recognise top players in the local ecommerce space. A total of 516 merchants were shortlisted this year, which is a significant 43.3% increase from the 360 participants in 2023. These merchants […]
8 features & perks of the newly launched AEON Bank, Malaysia’s first Islamic digital bank
AEON Bank, Malaysia’s first Islamic digital bank, has officially launched in Malaysia on May 26. It’s the second digital bank to launch in Malaysia, following GXBank, which we’ve covered here. With over four decades of history in Malaysia, you likely recognise the AEON brand as the supermarket chain with outlets across the country. One of […]
There is no funding winter, M’sian entrepreneurs just have the wrong approach
The sentiment of a funding winter has been pervasive, particularly when seeking capital from traditional venture capitalists (VCs) in the landscape of Malaysian startups. For those who haven’t heard of the term funding winter, it is a challenging environment characterised by reduced venture capital investments, stricter due diligence processes, and heightened risk aversion among investors. […]
This ex-flight attendant transformed an abandoned house in KL into a now-viral bagel cafe
Having garnered millions of views, there’s a chance you might have come across Claire Tan Zhy Sin’s videos before. To refresh your memory, she makes content on being a budding business owner of a new cafe in KL called Grumpy Bagels. Before starting Grumpy Bagels, though, Claire had worked as a flight attendant with Emirates […]
Graduate salaries in S’pore: $6000 in your first job is no longer rare. Here’s who gets it.
You may have already read that the median salary for a fresh graduate in Singapore has crossed S$4,300. However, these statistics are quite broad and don’t really provide much information for each and every student. Median, after all, is just the middle value — you may just as well fall considerably below or above it, […]
Hawker food prices in Singapore rose by 6.1% in 2023, marking the highest increase since 2008
Hawker food prices rose by 6.1 per cent in 2023, the highest since 2008, according to a new study by the Singapore Department of Statistics (SingStat). Common food items driving the price increases at these establishments were economical rice, chicken rice, fishball noodles and coffee/ tea. Noodle-based cooked food items exhibited the most substantial average […]
Meet 2 companies keeping Malaysia on the world map as a leading semiconductor hub
[This is a sponsored article with MDEC.] Did you know that Malaysia is consistently placed among the top 10 leading countries in semiconductor manufacturing? In 2023 alone, approximately 35.23 billion semiconductors were produced here. Malaysia’s semiconductor industry is projected to continue its growth trajectory, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7%. According to […]
Lazada settles Singapore layoffs as Alibaba invest another $310 million
Lazada has finally settled the severance package it offered to former employees who were suddenly laid off in early January 2024, just in time to receive a $310 million capital infusion by parent company Alibaba. You can read our coverage of the initial event, but to sum things up, Lazada initially offered its former staff […]
No shade to foreign brands but this S’porean biz makes sunglasses that actually fit Asians
“Asian Fit. Won’t Bounce. Ultra Light.” That’s the promise that Singaporean brand Sunday Shades assures customers. The idea might seem like a no-brainer since sunglasses are such a universal accessory, but it’s actually not as common as you’d think. The international brands you usually think of like Ray-Ban and Oakley are made in Spain with […]
Malaysia’s quest for 5 unicorns by 2025 is now in the hands of MDEC’s game plan
[This is a sponsored article with MDEC.] It’s been known that Malaysia has set a goal to identify five unicorns by 2025, which was announced in 2021, in line with the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint or MyDIGITAL. In a promising turn of events, the nation witnessed the rise of Carsome announced as the first unicorn […]
This S’porean mother-son duo left corporate jobs to open a coffee shop together in Chinatown
“After being let go, I was a bit bummed out. It was something you always see in the news but I never believed that something like that could happen to me,” Esmond Toon shared. He was only a couple months into his employment at a new company when it happened. Prior to that, he was […]
New data shows Singaporeans enjoy the most affordable apartments in the entire Asia-Pacific
Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed below belong solely to the author. It seems like there isn’t a day when a news story covering another million-dollar HDB transaction is making headlines in Singapore. The reality is, however, that these prices are reached in just 1 to 2 per cent of all HDB transactions each year. These are […]
To save their batik souvenir shop from dying, this M’sian biz started offering experiences
Tucked away in a cosy corner in Jalan Inai, KL, one family-owned business has been weaving stories and preserving heritage for decades, evolving with time yet staying true to its roots. The journey of Jadi Batek is a tale of heritage passed down through generations, entwined with a modern entrepreneurial spirit. It all began in […]
Beyond Silicon Valley: How startup hubs like Singapore have evolved to lead the way globally
Ask any startup expert, and they’ll tell you that the best place to launch a company is the United States (U.S.). This would have been sound advice— around 10 years ago. In 2012, six of the top 10 startup hubs were based in the U.S., and nearly two-thirds of early-stage funding was concentrated in North […]
Singapore partners with Microsoft to accelerate AI adoption in SMEs
Singapore SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) have more avenues to adopt AI with new programmes that result from a collaboration between Enterprise Singapore, AI Singapore (AISG), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Microsoft. These initiatives, announced at the launch of Microsoft Copilot for SME event, which was attended by Mr. Gan Kim Yong, Deputy […]
This M’sian couple traded their careers in oil & gas to grow their muslim prayer wear biz
Growing up, Erina’s life path was pretty much paved before she hit the ground running. She was raised by a father who worked as an engineer and had his own engineering consulting firm. Whose steps would she have followed if not his? So she joined the oil and gas industry upon graduating from the University […]
Why Malaysia still needs women-only communities, according to this woman who’s building one
Championing a cause doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing endeavour. The drive for more equality is one such instance. “We’re not suggesting that having women-only events and communities is the only way to go,” Kate Sarginson, the lady behind female-founder group On The Rise stated. “However, conventional [mixed-gendered] conferences and business gatherings have historically leaned […]
Why this M’sian HR management system is trusted by 1.5k companies, including CTOS & A&W
[Written in partnership with PubliCT.io, but the editorial team had full control over the content.] You don’t have to be a HR professional to know that many HR processes can be quite finnicky and even inefficient at times. Someone who knew this well was Bryan Un, who did happen to work with HR professionals. He […]
Is Google using AI Overviews to sabotage AI development and save lucrative search business?
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed below belong solely to the author. After a year in beta, Google’s Search Generative Experience, i.e. Google’s Gemini AI model providing direct answers or auto-generated summaries for selected search queries, is now being deployed to users around the world as “AI Overviews”. And the early feedback isn’t good, with media outlets rushing […]
More than just a brilliant idea: What does it take for your startup to be the next success story?
There are 150 million startups in the world today. 50 million new startups launch every year, which means that an average of 137,000 startups emerge every day. Yet, only a handful them manage to achieve significant success. Statistics reveal a daunting reality: nine out of ten startups ultimately fail, and navigating the path to success is far from […]
AstraZeneca plans $1.5 billion biotech facility in Singapore
Pharmaceutical multinational AstraZeneca intends to build a $1.5 billion manufacturing facility in Singapore to produce antibody drug conjugates (ADCs). ADCs are used in next-generation cancer treatment. Supported by the Economic Development Board (EDB), this greenfield facility will be AstraZeneca’s first end-to-end ADC production site, fully incorporating all steps of the complicated ADC manufacturing process at […]
Received a job promotion offer? The Peter Principle tells you to reconsider, here’s why
If you are on CareerTok – the content side focusing on career advice and job market trends on TikTok, you may have come across this viral video: With a staggering 8.1 million views and nearly 925,000 likes, this TikTok video has sparked a massive debate on the platform. Many netizens have shared similar experiences, and […]
Singapore Airlines is paying big bonuses but has it returned billions from Covid-19 aid?
Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed below belong solely to the author. One of the major stories of the past few days was the generous bonus package to Singapore Airlines’ staff, following the best results in the company’s history, having posted a near S$2 billion profit in the financial year ending on Mar. 31. SIA’s employees are […]
Not for people who just want to kill time: MPH’s new CEO on the bookstore’s growth trajectory
Remember the days when bookstores were a haven for book lovers, a place to get lost among shelves stacked high with literary treasures? In Malaysia, this scene has seen significant changes over the years. But fear not, the story of Malaysian bookstores is far from over—instead, it’s one of resilience, reinvention, and a love for […]
Why this studio that’s worked on AAA games moved from the Netherlands to M’sia 13 yrs ago
Malaysia’s gaming industry is still pretty nascent, all things considered. There is certainly a number of indie startups in the scene, as well as bigger, more established studios like Passion Republic, but all things considered, it’s still a growing market. And one company that has been growing with this local ecosystem since 2010 is Streamline […]
He’s pioneering Singapore’s wave of “pop-up” shipping container hotels that are movable
Most people look at shipping containers and see a transportation medium for large objects. They belong on the back of ships or stacked tall and proud at ports. But Seah Liang Chiang sees them as vacation spots, a place where you can go to get away from life’s hecticness. Part of this inspiration comes from […]
Subang Jaya Medical Centre bags 8 global awards, elevating Malaysia’s medical tourism sector
According to a May 20 press release, Subang Jaya Medical Centre (SJMC) has won a series of coveted global and regional healthcare awards recently. In specific, it won awards at the Frost & Sullivan Awards 2024, GlobalHealth Asia-Pacific Awards 2024, and Healthcare Asia Awards 2024. “These accolades are proof of our pioneering efforts in the […]
5 yrs in, this M’sian grew his kombucha biz into a full-fledged “fermentory” with workshops
Did you know that mankind has been practising fermentation for over 10,000 years? In the days before refrigerators and artificial preservatives, fermentation was the best way to make food last through a dreaded cold winter or an unexpected drought. In this day and age, however, things are a little different. Today, we ferment to add […]
Ryde leverages AI to speed up user booking experience
Ryde is growing from strength to strength. In April 2024, the Ride-Hailing startup was listed on the NYSE, and announced last Friday (May 17) that it has redesigned the Ryde app, including the inclusion of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The Ryde app now includes significant improvements to usability and personalised trip recommendations driven by AI, all […]
This M’sian & his decked-out van bring car detailing services straight to people’s doorsteps
Amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the movement control order (MCO), everyone found themselves heavily reliant on online deliveries for everything from food to parcels, and more. Observing the convenience of home delivery, Azwan Alias felt a spark of inspiration. This newfound appreciation for getting things done from home planted the seed of […]
