Blockchain burst into the mainstream five years ago as a secure platform for Bitcoin transactions, but the technology’s use today is extending well beyond cryptocurrency to transform industry sectors on a holistic ecosystem basis.
Healthcare, banking and insurance are just three industries that anticipate tens of billions of dollars in cost savings from the blockchain’s permanent decentralized ledger. As a result of blockchain, banks, for example, expect to generate more than $27 billion in cross-border settlements alone by 2030, according to a 2018 study.
At its most basic, a blockchain is a distributed, digital ledger with built-in security that records transactions among the network participants in real-time. Every 10 minutes, these transactions are verified, permanently time-stamped and stored in a block that is encrypted and inextricably linked to the preceding block — creating a blockchain.
Participants don’t need to trust that the ledger has not been tampered with because entries are trackable and irrevocable. Another advantage of blockchain technology is business efficiency. Participants can execute smart contracts without a central controlling authority. The contracts trigger when pre-arranged terms and conditions are met.
These benefits and others — like data quality and transparency — have made blockchain the go-to technology for digital transformation, explains David Uhryniak, blockchain competency leader at the accounting, consulting and technology firm Crowe. “Blockchain is the underlying technology that fosters the required trust to enable companies and entire industries to transform around data and successfully implement other transformative technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT),” he says. It’s already disrupting multiple industries in tangible ways.
In the property-casualty insurance industry, real progress is being made to create ecosystems that speed up the automobile insurance claims process — and the potential payout is huge.
Take, for example, the Institutes RiskBlock Alliance, a collaborative experiment in which dozens of insurance companies plan to share specified automobile policyholder data in a blockchain network. Other participants with access to the secure environment include third parties like car repair shops, tow truck companies, state motor vehicle departments and law enforcement agencies. This type of ecosystem would streamline tedious and costly processes. Consider the following scenario: After a minor two-car collision, sensors in the vehicles would send alerts to the blockchain network, triggering pre-arranged smart contracts among the parties to dispatch tow trucks, which would take the cars to designated repair shops. At the same time, other sensors measuring the speed and braking of both vehicles, as well as data on weather and road conditions, could send this information to the blockchain, whereupon it would be instantly determined which party is likely at fault.
All that data is a goldmine from an analysis standpoint. “A smart contract between the two insurers of the vehicles may eliminate the need for a claims adjuster to go to the scene of the accident,” says Uhryniak. “The claims process would automatically spring into motion, possibly with the claim being filed and paid that day or the next one.”
That’s just one industry. Uhryniak cites four key benefits of blockchain that have transformational potential across business sectors — enhanced transparency, revenue, efficiency and engagement. “There’s friction within every process related to the various interactions with counterparties, customers, regulators and even the gathering of data,” says Uhryniak. These inefficiencies are costly, he explains, but blockchain networks obviate these challenges.
A case in point is the healthcare sector, an industry that Uhryniak projects will be a vastly different enterprise in the next five to 10 years. Today, payers like health insurers each have specific contract terms and conditions that must be met in order for a procedure or treatment to be deemed medically necessary and, therefore, covered by the insurer’s health plan. These terms and conditions could be turned into smart contracts and added to blockchains, eliminating the inefficiencies involved in verifying permissible insurance coverages, Uhryniak says.
Another benefit of this transparency in healthcare is streamlined and reliable billing. “Blockchain helps ensure a patient isn’t charged for the same medical procedure by two different physicians or hospitals,” Uhryniak says. “The technology verifies the accuracy of each transaction, which becomes a permanent, immutable record.
Health insurers benefit in other ways. For instance, an insurer can verify the necessity of medical treatments prior to execution and re-validate that they were in fact performed. Blockchain also addresses the problem of rising insurance claim denials. According to a 2017 analysis by Crowe of more than 300 hospitals, 9.6 percent of all medical insurance claims are denied. Used as a billing tool, blockchain could instantly ferret out whether or not an insurer’s claim matches its specified contract terms and conditions, reducing delays and human error.
Banks are also poised for blockchain-enabled transformation. Only 3 percent of bank executives surveyed by Crowe expect “minimal change” from blockchain technology in the next 10 years, with the remaining 97 percent anticipating modest to significant change. In addition to streamlining the mortgage approval and closing processes, blockchain technology proposes similar process enhancements in the disbursement of funds for commercial loans and syndicated loans, Uhryniak says.
As businesses initiate blockchain strategies, Uhryniak advises that they pursue a measured approach that begins with an evaluation of how the technology will provide a competitive advantage. Firms like Crowe can help with this assessment by guiding companies to identify the right blockchain platform for their needs and in some cases may be able to build this infrastructure as a “proof of concept” prior to implementation.
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Blockchain, as one of the proposed technologies that will drive the world into the fourth industrial revolution, was at first seen as a direct conflict with the age-old banking system; cryptocurrencies posing the biggest threat.
It was a case of the old institutionalized financial system being fronted with a decentralised system that could essentially cripple the entire grip that the banks, and others, had over the world’s finances. However, the new technology blockchain and crypto has not always clashed with the more established way of doing things.
The art world, also one grounded on history, tradition and institutionalism, has had a strong and somewhat surprising affiliation with blockchain and cryptocurrency since the latter became popularised through 2017.
Now, with those foundations laid, the art world may well be leveraging the technology further to make sure it remains relevant. From the artist themselves being tech-forward, to buyers and sellers of precious artworks, the blockchain offers a lot of advantages for the ecosystem.
The link between art and blockchain
Looking back just at 2018, there are many instances where the art world and the blockchain ecosystem crossed paths. The art world has gleefully accepted the disruptive manners of the blockchain in the hopes of propelling itself forward, and the effects have been promising to watch.
Art and blockchain’s affiliation has often cropped up in mainstream media and this bubbling interest has sparked tangible results for the two sides of the coin. For example, 2018’s Ethereal Summit, a global conference about blockchain technology, emphasized the art world, even concluding the event with a live auction.
Art even faced one of the blockchain’s most promising uses, its ability to tokenize assets. In July 2018, blockchain platform Maecenas partnered with London gallery Dadiani Fine Art to offer fractional stakes in Andy Warhol’s 14 Small Electric Chairs (1980). 31.5 percent of the Warhol work went up for sale in cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. Christie’s New York has also broken ground by becoming the first major auction house to record its sales along the blockchain when the $318 million sale of the Barney A. Ebsworth collection, saw its transactions recorded entirely on the blockchain.
So, apart from helping artists, art buyers, and sellers, the technology is even inspiring artists as was evident during the recent Art Basel Miami Beach event, which showcased nearly a dozen different panels on art and blockchain.
This inspiration to capture the essence of the blockchain and its cryptocurrencies is one thing, but as Malo Girod de l’Ain, co-founder and president of Monart, a blockchain company looking to further the technology and art world’s affiliation through art experiences and new business models, explains this inspiration was always going to strike. “Artists live and feel the latest trends,” explains Girod de l’Ain. “As it has always been, artists explore the latest tech paradigms, include them in their art, play, create with it. It is a source of inspirations for them. Besides, with the end of 2017 – beginning of 2018 blockchain craze, it could only attract their attention!”
How can blockchain push the boundaries of the art world further?
A lot of the groundwork and pioneering has been done in this partnership between the old of the art world and the new of the blockchain tech space, but a lot more lies on the horizon. Girod de l’Ain explores further how he believes the blockchain space can aid the art world. “It is Important to note, among many various press reports, that in its ten years, the Blockchain itself has never been hacked. A copy of all transactions since the beginning of the chain is stored on thousands of computers making it impossible, at this stage, to hack. So we can see the value in storing proof of ownership on the blockchain." “Each artwork can be securely stored on the Blockchain with its basic information and provenance. At Monart, we include high definition pictures on a proprietary algorithm to certify the artwork.”
More so, the art world is an active market place in its own right, but as Pauline Houl, Monart co-founder and CEO adds in explanation, the smart contracts can aid in efficiency with these transactions.
“Smart contracts allow a transaction to proceed including predefined automatic conditions. It allows, for example, a sale to proceed without human intervention, the seller being automatically credited.” As mentioned already, tokenization of art is already happening, to significant effect, and it is also allowing the art world to be opened and made much more exclusive. “Artwork or a collection of artworks can be split between various owners, something that has never been easier to do before or even sought after. We are even working on creative new business models based on the Blockchain including securing artworks and transactions on the Blockchain plus sales of shares of artworks and shares of collections of artworks,” said Houl. “Even more though, we want the art world to look and feel a little more futuristic, we want it to be reinvented somewhat. From innovative art experience which allows viewers to better discover artist’s universe with 3D virtual exhibitions, 3D tours of artists’ studios visible on PC, phone, VR headsets, Augmented Reality tools, Artificial Intelligence creations and more, these steps can open up the art world to a bigger audience.“
Crossing the boundaries
Of course, the art world is one that likes to jump on trends and have a go at immortalising their interpretation of life and its surroundings, but at its heart, it is not a tech-savvy space. Thus, the introduction of full scale, mass adopted blockchain technology would not be an easy sell to the majority of those who inhabit the space. “The art industry at large is not too tech-oriented, it is a different culture, with a few exceptions. It will take some time for those latest tech possibilities to be generalized as a global feature for the art world. Also, some art professionals and their clients do not always feel comfortable with more transparency,” said Houl Still, the foundations that the art world has laid in terms of its initial adoption of blockchain is remarkable and praiseworthy. For an institutionalized and traditional space such as it is to be doing good work with the technology is a testament to an inclusive and adaptive manner form the art world.
MANILA: A Qatari fund’s bet in one of the world’s most beautiful islands is driving this year’s hottest property stock rally.
Premiere Horizon Alliance Corp, which is building one of the largest Philippine tourism estates, has more than tripled this year, beating all of its global peers with more than US$15mil in market value. And more gains may be coming, said chief executive officer Augusto Serafica Jr. Just wait until Qatar’s Sama Global Investment releases the funds to develop Premiere’s 850-hectare property in the western island of Palawan, he said.
Investors are hoping the money will revive the former film-making company, whose stock fell in seven of the past 10 years. Sama is ready to lend Premiere more than US$280mil, about 16 times the builder’s capital and 23 times its market value of 647 million pesos (US$12.2mil) as of December, as soon as Premiere completed its requirements - it needed to provide documents including a business plan, said Serafica, declining to give a timeline.
“It’s a game-changing deal,” he said in an interview. “This will get our tourism project off the ground. It will be our crown jewel.”
Sama could be Serafica’s biggest coup since the investment bank that took Premiere public more than two decades ago brought him in in 2010 to “clean up the mess” from a failed gaming partnership with a South Korean investor. After restructuring the company, he sold that venture in 2014.
Palawan is home to the Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River, a Unesco World Heritage Site, and is dotted with pristine beaches, limestone rock formations, forests and reefs teeming with marine life. It was voted No. 1 in Conde Nast Traveler’s list of the world best islands in January 2016. While Premiere’s rally is stellar, the shares have lost 27% since a high in February. The volatility indicates the stock remains a speculative play, according to Rachelle Cruz, an analyst at AP Securities Inc. It’s one of the many Philippine companies that aren’t covered by analysts, and its debt was three times its equity at the end of the third quarter. Its valuation of about 60 times earnings is almost three times that of Philippine Stock Exchange Property Index members.
“It’s a huge and attractive project, but because of the absence of details, many investors are cautious,” Cruz said.
Premiere’s Palawan plan includes building five hotels, a golf course and three malls in three years. The developments could generate US$248mil in revenue from lot sales and memberships, plus an annual US$86mil income from hotels and leasing, Premiere estimates. And talks are ongoing with a global luxury brand to come in as both resort operator and co-developer, with an agreement that could be signed at the end of June, Serafica said. The executive is also looking at improving Premiere’s debt-to-equity position to attract institutional investors. He planned to sell 15% of the company later this year and use the proceeds for a push into mining, infrastructure and renewable energy once the Palawan project gains momentum, he said. “It’s offending that some think the stock is purely speculative, but once everything pans out this issue of credibility will be put to rest,” Serafica said. “Somebody believed in our concept. Eventually, money will come in and we will deliver. Serendipitous things can happen.” Sources: Bloomberg Hong Kong’s infatuation with multimillion-dollar shoebox homes is over as quickly as it began3/24/2019
Hong Kong’s infatuation with micro-apartments, some of which hold the world record as the smallest living space constructed for humans, has ended almost as quickly as it began.
Known variously as nano flats, micro-apartments and shoebox homes, these abodes are specifically designed to be small, typically less than 200 square feet (18.6 square metres) in size.
Two of every three of these homes built in Hong Kong since 2016 were constructed this year. Of these 976 units that were added, 461 units remain unsold as of this week, according to calculations by the South China Morning Post using data by Dataelements, which monitors the sale of new flats in the city.
The unsold homes, backed by some of Hong Kong’s biggest developers, are what remains of a bull market that until August was the world’s most expensive urban centre to live in.
The infatuation began in late 2014. A supply shortage, combined with mortgage rates that hadn’t budged for a decade, had caused home prices to spiral. Until nine months ago, it was not uncommon for a dozen buyers to submit bids for every new home on sale. That gave developers the reason to raise prices, sometimes by up to 14 per cent within weeks between different phases of a launch.
As spiralling prices put more homes beyond the reach of first-time buyers, the smallest units – and the only ones within budget – became popular.
Sensing a trend and seizing the opportunity, savvy developers piled in and subdivided what’s already small into the minuscule, setting one record after another for diminution .CK Asset Holdings, the flagship company of retired tycoon Li Ka-shing, set the trend in motion in 2014 when its Mont Vert project in Fanling sold out in a massive success. The smallest unit, at 165 sq ft, was available for HK$1.29 million after a 15 per cent discount. A record 976 of these were offered for sale this year in Hong Kong, more than double the 452 last year, and an 18-fold increase from 2013, according to data by Dataelements.
The high-water mark for this segment of the market was set in May, when a 190-sq ft flat at New World Development’s 30-storey Artisan House in Sai Ying Pun sold for HK$6.52 million, or a record HK$34,315 per sq ft.
Here’s how Hong Kong let the air out of its property bubble without popping it The bull market began to lose stride in August, after Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor introduced a vacancy tax to force developers to add to the city’s housing supply, while banks began raising mortgage rates for the first time in 12 years. Faced with a surplus of available homes, developers began offering discounts across all property types, by up to double-digit percentages, to attract buyers, causing prices to spiral downwards.
That changed the consideration for buyers, as larger flats that previously seemed out of reach are now affordable. In such a market, the smallest abodes became the first casualties.
“Whatever comes on during a bull market sells like hot cake, whether it’s a nano flat, or a larger unit, but when the market corrects, those buyers with the budget will prefer to trade up,” said Asia Allied Infrastructure Holdings’ chairman Dominic Pang Yat-ting. “Quality homes with decent sizes of around 600 square feet to 700 square feet” are now the preferred options, he said.
Pang should know. Known as Chun Wo Development until 2016, his company was the mastermind behind the T-Plus apartment complex in Tuen Mun.
Founded in 1968, Chun Wo paid HK$230 million (US$29.4 million), or HK$1,530 per sq ft, in 2014 for the Tuen Mun site. Pang had wanted to build flats smaller than 100 sq ft, selling them for HK$1 million plus each to students at the nearby Lingnan University. He was persuaded by colleagues to change his plan only because they could not get their construction crew and their tools into the tight space for the interior fit outs, he said.
Work began in 2015, squeezing 356 units into the 19-storey tower, for a staggering 29 apartments on every floor.
Most of them were between 130 and 140 sq ft, while the smallest few measure 128 sq ft. That’s smaller than the footprint of a standard Hong Kong car parking space (134 sq ft), or a 20-foot shipping container (158 sq ft). Midway through construction in 2017, Pang sold T-Plus to 84-year old veteran investor Tang Sing-bor for HK$1.2 billion, or HK$7,900 per sq ft. Asia Allied would stay on as contractor to build the project, scheduled for completion in 2019. A year later, Tang sold 70.1 per cent of T-Plus to Jiayuan International Group for HK$938 million, or HK$8,790 per sq ft. The project would go for sale to the public at more than HK$20,000 per sq ft, with a 131 sq ft flat going for HK$2.85 million.
Criticised by civil advocacy groups as “inhumane,” T-Plus received its comeuppance two weeks ago, when just two apartments managed to find buyers in a sales launch of 27 units.
“We are unlikely to go that extreme in unit size again,” Pang said, after learning of the dismal sales performance. It was the worst sales campaign Hong Kong had seen in four years. It received such scant demand that sales agents ended the proceedings halfway through the day.“That was a painful lesson for the developer,” said Prudential Brokerage’s associate director Alvin Cheung. “There is a huge risk in building micro flats, because once the market shows sign of turning, this type of property will be the first to be abandoned by the market.” T-Plus wasn’t the only tiny home development to get the cold shoulder. At The Esplanade in the same neighbourhood, Chuang’s China Investments sold four out of 150 nano flats two weeks earlier. One buyer paid HK$2.88 million for a 162 sq ft unit, while the remaining three that sold ranged from 201 to 343 sq ft.
Two sales slumps over a fortnight was a clear sign to developers that the trend had changed.
“Micro-apartments were the story of a booming market, but now it is different,” said CGS-CIMB Securities’ property analyst Raymond Cheng, adding that developers would get “burned” if they do not slash the prices of these tiny flats. To be sure, the signs were already there. In mid-November, Hong Kong’s Lands Department ordered Filipino tycoon Lucio Tan’s Eton Properties to put a hard stop to leasing its co-living space at 53 Shouson Hills. Eton had converted three luxury projects into more than 500 subdivided units, each measuring between 60 and 1,200 sq ft to rent out to young professionals, starting from HK$4,000 each. The authorities ordered Eton to return all 18 flats to their original design.
This week, Lam’s administration offered 2,545 subsidised housing in Cheung Sha Wan for sale, at discounts of up to 58 per cent to market price, offering the smallest 184-sq ft unit for HK$930,000. To qualify for the government’s subsidies, an applicant cannot earn more than HK$11,540 per month or own more than HK$249,000 in assets while the threshold for a couple is HK$17,600 in monthly income and combined assets of HK$338,000.
“Prospective buyers can now take a wait-and-see attitude because the market’s correction allow them to buy a bigger size, up to 300 sq ft, with the same budget,” said Angus Chan, chief financial officer of Far East Consortium International, whose Aspen Crest project in Diamond Hill comprises flats from 198 to 654 sq ft. For those who did jump into the market, it’s a case of buyer’s remorse as they must now deal with the combination of declining resell prices and rising mortgage rates. Negative equity, where the value of a property is less than the loan amount, has returned to Hong Kong, after the last round took more than a decade to stamp out.
For Joshua Lin, 27, and his wife, his biggest worry now is how to squeeze his possessions into his new home at One Prestige in North Point. He took out a 30-year loan to pay for half of the HK$4 million cost of his 160-sq ft flat, after his parents helped him with the remainder. Monthly mortgage payments are about HK$8,500, he said.
“It’s a challenge to fit a bed and a wardrobe into such a tiny apartment,” Lin said, looking at a living room that measures 97 sq ft. Up to 80 per cent of the 128 units in that 30-storey tower are micro-apartments. Some property agents have suggested that Lin should turn his studio into a loft, by elevating his bed above the floor to fully utilise the space underneath as living quarters.
Hong Kong’s property prices are heading for steep declines of between 10 and 20 per cent in 2019, according to forecasts.
Micro-apartments are poised for the steepest slumps of up to 30 per cent, as there are an estimated 20,000 “shoebox sized” flats in the pipeline to weigh on the market, according to the same developer that got the whole trend going. “The price of the smallest flats would suffer the most because the segment is already saturated,” said CK Asset’s executive director Justin Chiu Kwok-hung, stressing that he is merely expressing his personal viewpoint. That may be too late for Mandy Smith, who will be leaving Hong Kong next June after a two-year stint as a teacher, because she finds the living conditions in the city way too dismal. “I could not imagine Hong Kong’s homes being so expensive, where people live in such tiny space, before I set foot here,” said Smith, who looked at 32 flats around the city before finally settling on a 227-sq ft apartment at AVA128 in Kennedy Town. She is paying HK$15,000 a month in rent, more than double the US$900 (HK$6,200) she used to pay for a 1,500-sq ft space. “I hate it because it is too small,” she said. “I cannot have a couch, it’s hard to cook here and I cannot get friends to come over.” Source: SCMP
The provision of accurate sales information is a basic right for consumers. Unfortunately, this is not the case for property advertisements in Hong Kong. It was not until late last year that the Estate Agents Authority introduced more comprehensive rules against misleading publicity by property agents. Belated as they are, the new requirements are an important step towards protecting buyers in our highly distorted market.
Regrettably, three months have passed since the order was made and yet compliance remains an issue, as reflected in a study by the Post on ads posted online and in the shopfronts of property agencies. Most of the alleged breaches involved failing to give an identification number for the ads and not removing or updating the ads when the properties were no longer available. Inspections by the authority also found nine suspected breaches, out of 362 online and site visits since the new rules came into force in December.
Needless to say, misleading sales tactics have made flat hunting more frustrating. It is not unusual for potential buyers and renters to comb through heaps of online or shopfront advertisements to find the right ones, and then to be told by property agents that they have just missed out. Indeed, the ads are usually just bait-and-switch tactics to lure people to consider other less attractive offers. The emergence of online platforms matching property owners and multiple tenants under the so-called “co-living” concept has also posed new challenges for enforcement. Such websites do not always have property agent licences and are liable to prosecution.
Due to a slowdown in property transactions last year, there was a 28 per cent drop in complaints. But the number of agents struck off climbed 1.15 times to 41. So far, no one has been punished under the new rules, for which non-compliance is liable to reprimand, a maximum fine of HK$300,000 or having the licence suspended or revoked. An authority member told the Post that it would be a long war to weed out fake ads in the industry. We hope it does not mean violations will be tolerated. The authority needs to strengthen enforcement lest flat hunters continue to fall prey to fake ads by unscrupulous property agents.
Jetspree, the Malaysian Cross-Border Shopping Platform
The concept of cross border shopping is a confusing one, but as defined by the OECD it is “the activity where in private individuals buy goods abroad and import them for their own consumption”. In simple terms, it’s when someone buys international goods for a cheaper price then brings it into the country, which in this case, is Malaysia.
Many Malaysians are still very new and sceptical of the concept of letting a stranger get your products from overseas at a cheaper price for you. However, they should take note that cross-border shopping gives an opportunity for us Malaysians to have a greater access to a variety of overseas brands. If that interests you, then read on to find out how Jetspree utilises cross-border shopping to benefit both buyers and travellers to get what they want!
Travellers Can Make Money When They Join Jetspree’s Platform
Making money has never been easy especially when on your holiday. You’re most likely burning through your bank account during this period but what if there was a way you could control and minimize the damages? By using Jetspree on your holiday, you can earn money by simply having extra luggage space on your flight back home. Simply register as a Jetspree Traveller at our website and claim items which you could help buy for someone back home. The more you claim the more you can earn! Just be sure you’re able to bring back the goods in excellent condition and you will be on your way to planning your next holiday. Want to learn more? Head over to our Traveller’s Guide to learn the specifics to making money on your next holiday.
Buyers Buy Cheaper International Goods
With the intense modernisation that is sweeping through Malaysia, the younger generations just like the ones that may be reading this blog post is proof of the increase in tech savviness in consumers nowadays. With that in mind, cross-border shopping has become a staple in consumer’s buying behavior with more and more Malaysians looking to buy goods from foreign brands due to exposure to the media. We at Jetspree, aim to serve as a platform to get those products for these in-fashion users who know the best brands to buy overseas. By using Travellers as our mode of delivery of products, we are considerably cheaper compared to the options available to a typical Malaysian. As such, potential Buyers like you can benefit from using Jetspree as we utilise Travellers to help you get things that you want from overseas. This is why you will be able to save on ridiculous international shipping rates and enjoy the product at lower prices. A great example would be our current Xmas promotions where our shipping is only RM1 for all products which will only last til 17/12/2018! If you are having troubles thinking about what to get your partner then check out our ideas on gifts for Him & Her!
SPREES!
One thing that definitely differentiates Jetspree from any other cross-border e-commerce is our SPREES which are currently on promotion for a limited time and thus are free of shipping cost, have faster delivery and are guaranteed fulfilment! Currently ongoing as of 10th of December 2018, we have 5 unique products that can’t be bought in Malaysia which includes Jenny Bakery Butter Cookies, Irvins Salted Egg Chips, Ichiran Ramen, Golden Duck Salted Egg Crisps and Starbuck Korea Tumblers & Mugs Collectibles! *Products from the SPREES are always changing to ensure diverse options for buyers to choose from, so make sure you’re up-to-date with our latest SPREES if you don’t want to miss out on great deals!
Unique Starbuck Collectibles
Jetspree also serves as one of the very few platforms that enable customers to get their hands on an array of unique Starbucks collectables that are ONLY AVAILABLE OVERSEAS! With Christmas fast approaching us, check out our recent post on Starbucks Christmas 2018 Collectibles only available in Taiwan, Korea and Japan and are currently running low on stock. If you are unsure on the options that are out there, you can read up on the Top 10 most gorgeous Starbucks Tumblers & Mugs so you can have a better idea on what you want!
Cross-Border Shopping Made Easy
To sum it up, Jetspree is probably the easiest solution for you to get goods from overseas to your doorstep and earn money as a traveller. By being the middlemen, we take the trouble out from both buyers and travellers from having to negotiate with one another about pricing, logistics and potential problems with conditions of the products. The process has been simplified for ease of use of both buyers and travellers making transaction seem seamless. Buyers simply request for the products they want while travellers buy it and bring it home. Simple as that. Head on to over to our Buyers or Travellers Guide article if you want to learn how to save money on your next purchase or earn money on your next holiday!
Entrepreneurs often have to make difficult decisions about how to fund their business. If you plan on building a long-term independent company, at some point, you can no longer rely on the friends and family who invested in your angel round. You need to attract the attention of professional investors, who themselves get money from large limited partners. Those investors are in the home run game–they only bet on grand slam ideas.
Some founders choose (and aim to) raise capital continuously, while others are continually asking, “Should I raise more money?” In this week’s episode of Zero to IPO, we spoke with four entrepreneurs about what it’s like to be hooked on capital and why sometimes, more money can actually lead to less innovation (and why turning it down can bring success to the company).
Here are the questions we asked the founders of Workday, Domo, Eventbrite, and ServiceNow, and what we learned from their experiences.
WHAT DO INVESTORS LOOK FOR?
Aneel Bhusri, CEO and cofounder of Workday and advisory partner at Greylock Partners, has seen it all when it comes to venture capital–he has raised money as a founder and written checks as a VC. He has a unique perspective into how both sides work together, what investors look for, and what founders can do to convince VCs they’re worth betting on. According to Bhusri, the biggest misconception entrepreneurs hold when raising money is that their solution only has to be 10% better than what’s on the market. In reality, it takes a disruptive idea to pique investors’ interest. And being that innovative is only half the battle. You also have to create entirely new metrics and educate investors on how to analyze and judge your business in this new market.
WHEN SHOULD YOU LEAN ON INVESTORS?
For Josh James, the founder of Domo and cofounder of Omniture, VC funding was the lifeblood of building Domo from the ground up. Domo’s product is complex, and James leaned on funding to ensure he could grow fast enough to stay ahead of the competition. He raised round after round and saw signs that he was making the right decision to continue accelerating. One customer, a CEO of a Fortune 50 company, said he used James’ product up to 17 times a day and it changed the way he ran his business. This encouraging review gave him the confidence to continue raising capital to develop the product and fund more significant growth.
An investment from a VC will not only enable businesses to scale but can also provide entrepreneurs with valuable mentorship and support. Although James admits that VCs can sometimes “bug the heck out of you,” they usually harp on the right things and have unique perspectives into your industry.
CAN TOO MUCH CAPITAL BE A BAD THING? For many entrepreneurs, outside capital is not the path to prosperity. Julia and Kevin Hartz, cofounders of Eventbrite, saw the value in being incredibly scrappy with cash from the get-go. Staying frugal enabled the Hartzes to build a durable business model–they created a ticketing platform that allows event creators to sign up for the service on their own. By offering this service at an affordable price, they could amass an enormous number of creators and events. While they could have built a sales-driven model with extra money, the unique model they created instead led to a significant competitive advantage.
Bootstrapping helped Eventbrite maintain focus–Julia compares that discipline to the strong “power core” of a Pilates-goer during the first few years. While funding later enabled them to reach the next inflection point, they also experienced a decrease in efficiency every quarter following each raise. If she had to do it all over again, she said that she would have raised even less. Eventbrite was able to do more, (with greater innovation and efficiency) because they learned to operate on limited funds.
HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHEN TO SAY NO TO MONEY? Sometimes, saying no to a tempting offer can turn out to be the best decision you’ll ever make. In December of 2010, Fred Luddy, founder of ServiceNow, received an acquisition offer of $1.5 billion. He could’ve taken the cash right then and walked away with a nice Christmas bonus. But, while going on a walk with his son, he received a significant, life-altering phone call from Doug Leone of Sequoia Capital, ServiceNow’s largest VC backer. Leone told Luddy that ServiceNow was worth far more than the current offer and taking it would be a huge mistake. He urged him not to sell.
Although Luddy at first resented his decision to listen to Leone’s advice, he soon understood the importance of waiting. Doing so enabled him to run and grow an impactful, independent business with happy customers and enduring value, and he successfully took the company public in June of 2012 at a $2.2 billion valuation. Today, ServiceNow’s market cap is over $40 billion.
When it comes to raising money, there are no clear-cut, right or wrong answers. Raising capital can build the foundation for a sustainable, long-term business, but sometimes building a cash flow business or raising a small amount of money with the goal of selling is the best course of action for the company. The key is staying true to your original vision. You’ll be less likely to regret your decision that way. What Hong Kong can learn from Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu’s openness and flexibility in politics3/21/2019
“Sell goods! Welcome people! Prosperous Kaohsiung!”
This was the viral campaign slogan for Han Kuo-yu, the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party candidate who, against all odds, won a landslide victory in last November’s mayoral election in Kaohsiung, for decades a stronghold of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has rebuffed any talk of Taiwan’s reunification with mainland China.
Over the weekend, Hongkongers saw Han doing his part to fulfil that election promise during a whirlwind visit to the city , which will be followed by trips to Macau, Shenzhen and Xiamen.
Han’s short stay here was significant as he was the first Taiwanese official to make the trip since pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016, prompting Beijing to scrap all official cross-strait exchanges, including those between Hong Kong and Taiwan. Even more significantly, Han enjoys higher popularity ratings than Tsai, and is seen as the KMT’s likely presidential hopeful for next year’s election.
An intriguing aspect of the phenomenon described as the “Han wave” by Taiwan’s media was that he was never afraid of losing the support of pro-DPP voters in such a “deep green” city – referring to the party’s symbolic colour – by openly recognising the One China Consensus of 1992, which is the bottom line for Beijing in conducting any cross-strait communication.
With his personal charm and down-to-earth demeanour, Han has also established himself as an impartial politician when it comes to matters relating to citizens’ livelihoods and a leader who will do his best for Kaohsiung and its people, regardless of party affiliation or ideology.
His critics gave him credit for the simple yet catchy and powerful campaign slogan focusing on the twin planks of trade and tourism.
Han was well aware of the political significance and sensitive timing of his visit to Hong Kong, as it coincided with Tsai’s Pacific tour to meet Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies, which ends with a transit in Hawaii. Beijing has strongly objected to Washington’s decision regarding that stopover on American soil, painting it as tantamount to creating “two Chinas”.
With that in mind, Han deliberately and deftly played down the political implications by projecting himself as a super salesman on a mission to sell Kaohsiung’s quality agricultural produce and its many tourist attractions.
He was happy to meet Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, which was arranged by Beijing’s liaison office, and also held talks with Wang Zhimin, the central government’s top man in Hong Kong. “I’m the guest; a guest should suit the convenience of the host,” was his simple explanation earlier, citing a Chinese saying, to anyone trying to read more into the meetings.
He could suit the convenience of the host in more ways, though.
Beijing, which decides Hong Kong’s official interactions with Taiwan, is obviously hoping he will have something to take away from his first-hand look at the city’s “one country, two systems” governing formula, which was originally designed for Taiwan. And in the longer run, Beijing expects Han to help with the reunification drive. But his enthusiasm for economic and trade issues while staying clear of political talk made it clear that he had his own agenda: economy first. Han once described the Taiwan-mainland relationship as a “prenatal betrothal”, and Taiwan-US ties as a matter of “friends first, marriage later”. He was rebuked by Tsai’s office and warned that cross-strait affairs were the prerogative of the president, not a mayor.
Pineapple politics: Beijing-friendly Taiwan mayor comes bearing fruit
However, he is smart enough to understand that without a “prosperous Kaohsiung”, or a “prosperous Taiwan” for that matter, no Taiwanese leader will have any bargaining power in dealing with the mainland. Han’s pragmatic approach serves as a useful reference for Hong Kong’s opposition politicians, who have long been caught in a “to talk or not to talk” dilemma when it comes to dealing with Beijing. The choices made when faced with this dilemma have sometimes hardened into intransigence; it has not helped that they have set red lines for themselves, such as rejecting invitations to the liaison office’s receptions, refusing to even set foot on its premises.
FastGo, a Vietnamese ride-hailing application will launch in Singapore next month as it looks to expand in South-east Asia.
Drivers can register with FastGo from April 1 and customers will be able to book rides from 30 April, the company said in a statement on Wednesday (20 March).
Singapore is the third country for FastGo after Vietnam and Myanmar. The company plans to enter Indonesia next via Jakarta, followed by Thailand and the Philippines. FastGo aims to be in the six South-east Asian nations by this year.
FastGo, part of technology start-up NextTech Group, began its ride-hailing service in Vietnam in June last year after Uber withdrew from the region. It has nearly 60,000 driver-partners in Vietnam.
Six months later it entered Yangon, Myanmar, with Asia Sun Group.
Unlike some ride-hailing apps, FastGo will charge its driver-partners a fixed daily subscription fee instead of collecting commission fees. It expects to charge a fee of below US$5 (S$6.80) if a driver’s income exceeds US$30 a day, and there will be no fees if the driver makes less than US$30.
“Despite being a follower, FastGo’s model brings the best economic benefit to the drivers and customers,” said Nguyen Huu Tuat, FastGo’s founder and chairman. FastGo received Series A investment from VinaCapital Ventures last August. The company is aiming to raise more funds in its Series B investments for expansion.
(Reuters) - American whiskey exports slumped in the second half of 2018, taking a blow from higher duties by the country's trading partners following President Donald Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, an industry group said on Thursday.
Canada, China, Mexico and the European Union slapped import duties ranging from 10 percent to 25 percent on U.S whiskey and bourbon last year, resulting in a 11 percent drop in U.S. whiskey exports in the second half, according to a report from the Distilled Spirits Council.
For the first six months of 2018, whiskey exports grew 28 percent compared to the same period in 2017, partly helped by companies like Jack Daniels maker Brown-Forman Corp, fast-tracking shipments overseas, especially to Europe, before the tariffs kicked in. Overall for the full-year 2018, whiskey exports rose 5.1 percent to $1.18 billion (£893.40 million), a significant drop from the 16 percent rise seen in 2017.
Exports to the European Union fell 13.4 percent in the second half of the year, after rising 33 percent during the first six months.
The European Union, which imposed a 25 tariff on American whiskey, is the largest market for the liquor, accounting for nearly 60 percent of total exports, according to the Council. Earlier in March, Brown-Forman said absorbing the costs of tariffs in key European markets was the primary reason for the decline in its third-quarter gross profit margin.
The company also said its sales would take a hit in 2019 if the tariffs were to remain in place.
"The damage to American whiskey exports is now accelerating, and this is collateral damage from ongoing global trade disputes," Distilled Spirits Council Chief Executive Officer Chris Swonger said. Total U.S. spirits exports rose 9.5 percent to $1.8 billion in 2018, but also slowed from 2017, the report showed. |
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