Forbes Asia

Dec. 2 - Second Panel LEADERSHIP: MAKING THE CALL The event’s final panel focused on leadership, and how he said. “Covid-19 gave us a rare opportunity to prove our 49 the panelists led their companies to survive and even loyalty to them.” But Fernandes was forced to make pain- thrive during the pandemic. Their strategies ranged wide- ful cuts. “We’ve let people go who haven’t done anything FORBES ASIA CEO WEBINAR ly—at one end was Adrian Cheng, CEO of Hong Kong- wrong,” he said. “That was very tough. My number one role based property giant New World Development, who fo- now is to protect as many jobs as possible.” cused on increasing market share. “The pandemic forced us to see the crisis as an opportunity,” said Cheng. “We are Vaccines remain essential to economy recovery, the grabbing market share, being socially innovative, more panelists said. “The virus will wear out at some point on creative and ambitious.” its own,” said Razon. “But the vaccine gives confidence to travel, gather and more.” Even with vaccines available, Fer- On the other was Tony Fernandes, CEO of Malaysia- nandes said, it will remain important to focus on testing based AirAsia Group, who focused on survival. “I probably and therapeutics. “If Donald Trump can recover, all of us win the prize for most affected,” said Fernandes. “I’m cer- have a chance to recover as well,” he said. tainly not buying shopping malls like Adrian.” Fernandes’ focus was on restructuring to turn any now underutilized There are likely to be challenges when it comes to dis- part of his company—aircraft, meals, or customer data— tributing vaccines, panelists warned, so caring for essen- into a revenue-generating business of its own. AirAsia has tial workers until they can be immunized remains para- spawned 24 restaurant concepts, for instance, and launched mount. In Indonesia, Rachmat advocated making cash a new business that capitalizes on its customer database. transfers to the poor, and for leaders to act with compas- sion and humility. Arif P. Rachmat, cofounder and executive chairman of Indonesia’s diversified TAP group, and Enrique K. Razon Covid-19 has sparked sharper focus on the community, Jr., chairman of Manila-based port management firm In- said Cheng. He said he had donated 3 million square feet ternational Container Terminal Services, Inc., pivoted into of land to build affordable housing for low-income fami- pandemic-fighting causes. Rachmat repurposed auto-parts lies with small children. More broadly, he said, the crisis factories to make ventilators, and Razon built quarantine had pushed his company to accelerate its efforts to pro- centers where infected people could isolate until they re- mote sustainability and social entrepreneurship. Farming, covered. “We can build faster than the government, so we climate change and food sustainability are among the top decided to do it,” said Razon. “We built the first two centers priorities for his company’s target demographic, he said. in a week.” Cheng cited a Hong Kong residential development New World is developing that will enable residents to farm on Rachmat pledged no layoffs, no pay cuts and—to his site. “An entire farm [is] in the middle of the complex,” he company’s lenders—no defaults. “Loyalty works both ways,” said. “People can farm after work.” —J.K. From top left to bottom right: Adrian Cheng, CEO of New World Development, founder of K11 Group; Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia Group; Arif P. Rachmat, cofounder and executive chairman of TAP Group; Enrique K. Razon Jr., chairman and president of International Container Terminal Services, Inc.; Rana Wehbe Watson, senior editor-special projects, Forbes Asia (moderator). DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION OPENSPACE VENTURES ACCELERATES INTO THE CURVE The Southeast Asian venture capital fund’s deep pool of expertise drawn from its diverse team drives fund outperformance and growing assets under management. Southeast Asia’s technology sector powers is a pioneer in the region. Established in 2014, in Bangkok and Jakarta. The firm made four ahead despite an unprecedented crisis that the fund now manages over US$350 million investments in Indonesia and Thailand in the has affected businesses and ravaged econo- in committed capital, and boasts 32 invest- midst of the pandemic, claiming a return on its mies globally. The value of fundraising deals ments and counting. To date, the firm’s port- dominant geographical advantage. While cur- in the region rose 90% to US$2.7 billion in the folio companies have attracted US$6.5 bil- rently providing coverage out of Singapore, it second quarter from a year earlier, according to lion in follow-on capital. Even in the midst of plans to open offices in Vietnam and the Phil- financial news site DealStreetAsia. Transaction Covid-19, Openspace’s companies raised more ippines in 2021, deepening its long-term com- counts increased by 60% to 184 over the same than US$2 billion in capital in the 12 months to mitment to Southeast Asia. period. September, outpacing its peer average by over seven times. The firm counts institutional pow- Capturing Alpha Technology platforms welcomed healthy erhouses, including sovereign wealth funds, revenue boosts from the pandemic-fueled superannuations and university endowments, Investor interest is expanding beyond fin- reshaping of homes and workplaces. Sectors in its stable of limited partners. tech and surging into newer areas such as such as health, education and online media, in healthtech, edtech, agtech and cleantech. particular, had strong showings as consumers International players are expanding into the Openspace already has substantial expertise here, having entered these sectors and geog- Openspace’s strategy is clearly paying dividends. The VC’s first and raphies ahead of the curve. second funds, launched in 2014 and 2017, respectively, are both per- forming in the top quartile against global peers, according to Cam- The firm attributes its early successes in bridge Associates and Preqin benchmarks, with Fund I in the top 5%. Indonesia, including investments in Gojek, TaniHub, FinAccel and Halodoc, to a strategy and businesses spent big on digital offerings in region to capitalize on Southeast Asia’s poten- of active anticipation. “Our ability to source the face of Covid-19. tial. Lightspeed, an established global venture and analyze data and have conversations with capital (VC) firm, set up shop in Singapore this industry shapers on macroeconomic and Investors are paying attention. EMPEA’s 2020 year, joining other well-known VCs like Sequoia geopolitical trends gives us an edge in pick- Global Limited Partners Survey, featuring the Capital India, 500 Startups and Wavemaker in ing startups that succeed at scale,” says Shane views of 109 limited partners on the attrac- providing great liquidity to the market. But Chesson, Founding Partner at Openspace. The tiveness of current conditions and outlook for while ASEAN is gradually coalescing into an firm consistently evaluates a high number of private capital in emerging markets, saw South- integrated market, it is not homogenous. Firms startups—it assessed over 800 in 2019 alone. east Asia maintain its pole position. and investors must have boots on the ground to leverage strategic local networks for success. While Indonesia is home to many of South- Poised for Regional Growth east Asia’s tech stars, others in the region are Openspace is built for purpose. Its team of also producing winners. The Philippine and Singapore-based Openspace Ventures, an 22 includes 12 nationalities, and it has offices Thai markets have large youthful popula- early investor in Indonesian decacorn Gojek, tions, an emerging middle class, and rising internet penetration. Kumu, the Philippines’ Founding Partners Shane Chesson (left) and Hian Goh met at INSEAD. Openspace’s team members at their Singapore office.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION TaniHub with Teten Masduki (centre), Indonesia’s Openspace led Gojek’s Series A in 2014. FinAccel’s award-winning platform. Minister of Cooperatives and SMEs. Resilient business models with strong revenue growth approach to investments. This drives out per- amid Covid-19 pandemic formance in our portfolio companies,” says Hian Goh, Founding Partner at Openspace. Openspace’s strategy is clearly paying dividends. The VC’s first and second funds, launched in 2014 and 2017, respectively, are both performing in the top quartile against global peers, according to Cambridge Associ- ates and Preqin benchmarks, with Fund I in the top 5%. fastest-growing consumer app, saw average Vice President of Data Science he works with Openspace’s Expansion monthly active users increase by over 500 portfolio companies to develop machine learn- times since 2018 to exceed 1 million users ear- ing models and optimization algorithms to Southeast Asia already has more than 10 uni- lier this year. generate revenue and streamline operations. corns and others are likely to follow suit as Zhao worked with Finnomena, a Thai digital funds flow into the region. With its successful Deep Operations Expertise wealth management platform, to build predic- series A track record, local networks and exten- tive models identifying investment patterns sive operational capabilities, Openspace is in Openspace propels value creation. The team as well as product recommendation models. peak position to capture upside. features full-time, in-house operations experts Finnomena’s account openings tripled to over in the key areas of technology, legal, human 42,000 in the third quarter from a year ago. Chesson sees enormous untapped potential resources, and environmental, social and cor- and believes the region is poised for transfor- porate governance. One notable example is “Our diverse expert team gives us a clear mative growth. On the recent launch of OSV+, Yiliang Zhao, who holds a Ph.D. in computer competitive advantage and we can there- Openspace’s opportunity fund, Chesson says, science (artificial intelligence). As the firm’s fore take a high-conviction and constructive “The regional startup ecosystem is developing at pace. A growth-stage fund like OSV+ puts us in a superior position to accelerate the tra- jectory of mid-stage technology companies strategically expanding across Southeast Asia.” For more information: www.openspace.vc Halodoc's Covid-19 rapid testing initiative with Indonesia-based hospital group Openspace’s tech experts Dr Yiliang Zhao (left) and Wenbo Zong. Mitra Keluarga.

THE LIST INDONESIA’S 50 RICHEST PANDEMIC HEADWINDS 52 In Southeast Asia’s worst-hit country, over half of its 50 richest saw their wealth decline. BY NAAZNEEN KARMALI A s Indonesia’s Covid-19 cases crossed the Muktar Widjaja, half-million mark—the biggest outbreak CEO and executive among Southeast Asian countries—the director of Sinarmas Land country slipped into its first recession since Another pandemic beneficiary was Irwan Hidayat, the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The economy whose family’s Sido Muncul is Indonesia’s largest maker of herbal medicines. Shares of the company rose on higher contracted 5.3% and 3.5% (year-on-year) in the second sales of its products, such as popular cold remedy Tolak Angin, boosting his family’s wealth 41% to $1.55 billion. and third quarters, respectively. The benchmark stock Four from 2019 didn’t make it to this year’s list. Notable index fell more than 10% in the past 12 months. Conse- among them are siblings Kusnan and Rusdi Kirana, whose airline Lion Air suffered as air travel nosedived. quently, over half of the nation’s 50 richest saw their for- Reporting by Megha Bahree, Shintya Felicitas, Pudji Les- tari, Marella Putri, Anuradha Raghunathan, Elisa Valenta tunes decline from a year ago. Despite these downdrafts, and Ardian Wibisono. the collective wealth of Indonesia’s super wealthy was down only 1.2% from last year’s list to $133 billion. R. Budi and Michael Hartono, who were among the mi- nority that saw an uptick in their fortunes, are now worth $38.8 billion. They remain at No. 1, a spot they have held for a dozen years. The Widjaja family of the Sinar Mas conglomerate added $2.3 billion, the most in dollar terms, to retain their status as the country’s second richest. A weak petrochemicals market impacted Prajogo Pangestu’s wealth, which declined 21% to $6 billion, though he re- mains at No. 3 for the second year. The pandemic, a challenge for many, provided a boost to a few. Media tycoon Eddy Kusnadi Sariaatmadja saw his wealth, which he shares with his family, jump nearly 80% to $1.4 billion—the biggest gain in percentage terms this year. Shares of his company, Elang Mahkota Teknologi (Emtek), soared as those housebound used more of its e- commerce and streaming services. Emtek’s rising shares propelled cofounder Susanto Su- warto into the ranks for the first time at No. 50 with $475 million. The Jakarta-born electronics and telecom engi- neer is one of three newcomers to the list. Siblings Wijono and Hermanto Tanoko, who control privately held paint company Avia Avian, make their debut with $700 million. The third new face is that of veteran banker Jerry Ng. He acquired a stake last year in Bank Jago, then called Bank Artos, which he plans to transform into a digital bank. METHODOLOGY SINARMAS LAND This list was compiled using shareholding and financial information obtained from the families and individuals, stock exchanges, annual reports and analysts. The ranking lists both individual and family fortunes, including those shared among relatives. Private companies were valued based on similar companies that are publicly traded. Public fortunes were calculated based on stock prices and exchange rates as of November 16, 2020, and adjustments may have been made for some stocks that are thinly traded or have a low public float. FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

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54 THE LISTHealth is Wealth AHMAD ZAMRONI/HKV/FORBES INDONESIAIRWAN HIDAYAT Indonesia’s largest herbal products maker is tas. Shares have climbed by a third in the past year feeling fit as health-conscious consumers snapped and in September the company split its stock two- up its products during the pandemic. Net profit for-one to increase liquidity. at Industri Jamu dan Farmasi Sido Muncul rose 11% to 641 billion rupiah ($41 million) in the third Hidayat has had a busy year. To boost its e-com- quarter from a year ago on a 6% sales gain to 2.3 merce, Sido Muncul has introduced 14 new products trillion rupiah. “We just tried hard to keep good since January and set up online shops on sites like stock available,” says Irwan Hidayat, head of Sido Tokopedia and Shopee and sold products directly Muncul, who is the third generation to head the on social media. In August, the company officially business started by his grandmother. He ranks No. opened the 2-trillion-rupiah Tentrem complex in 17 with a fortune of $1.55 billion. Semarang in central Java, which encompasses a 211- room hotel, apartments and mall. —Ulisari Eslita Sido Muncul’s full-year earnings are forecast to increase 9% year on year, according to analyst Na- This article was adapted from Forbes Indonesia, talia Sutanto at Jakarta-based Danareksa Sekuri- a licensee edition of Forbes Media. FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

I N D O N E S I A’ S 50 RICHEST 1. R. BUDI & MICHAEL 55 HARTONO INDONESIA’S 50 RICHEST $38.8 BILLION AHMAD ZAMRONI/HKV/FORBES INDONESIA Prime Time BANK CENTRAL ASIA EDDY KUSNADI SARIAATMADJA AGES: 80, 81 Rising digital consumption during the pandemic benefited media firm 2. WIDJAJA FAMILY Elang Mahkota Teknologi (Emtek), lifting the wealth of cofounder Eddy Sariaatmadja by roughly 80% to $1.4 billion. Emtek’s shares have surged $11.9 BILLION nearly 70% since January as the company returned to profitability after a year in the red. For the first three quarters, it posted a 477 billion ru- SINAR MAS piah ($34 million) profit as its streaming service Vidio proved popular with those housebound. Emtek also benefited from exclusive Indonesian 3. PRAJOGO PANGESTU broadcast rights to Liga 1 and UEFA Champions League soccer matches. The share surge also propelled Emtek cofounder Susanto Suwarto into $6 BILLION the ranks for the first time. In November, Emtek’s e-commerce subsidiary Bukalapak raised $100 million from Microsoft and existing shareholders BARITO PACIFIC to support its online services. AGE: 76 4. ANTHONI SALIM $5.9 BILLION SALIM GROUP AGE: 71 5. SRI PRAKASH LOHIA $5.6 BILLION INDORAMA CORP AGE: 68 6. SUSILO WONOWIDJOJO $5.3 BILLION GUDANG GARAM AGE: 64 7. JOGI HENDRA ATMADJA $4.3 BILLION MAYORA INDAH AGE: 74 8. BOENJAMIN SETIAWAN $4.1 BILLION KALBE FARMA AGE: 87 9. CHAIRUL TANJUNG $3.9 BILLION CT CORP AGE: 58 10. TAHIR $3.3 BILLION MAYAPADA GROUP AGE: 68 CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY: UP DOWN UNCHANGED NEW TO THE LIST RETURNEE DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

I N D O N E S I A’ S Wealth Creation 50 RICHEST Fighting Chance 11. BACHTIAR KARIM Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, is facing some challenges. Covid-19 $3.1 BILLION cases continue to rise and the economy has entered a recession for the first time in over two decades. The stock market is down more than 10% since Dec. 31. One positive note: new MUSIM MAS GROUP car sales, an indicator of domestic spending, have rebounded from a May low, but still have AGE: 63 not returned to pre-Covid levels. —Jeanhee Kim THE LIST56 Spiking Up Daily new cases Total deaths 12. MARTUA SITORUS Indonesia is seeing a big rise in new cases. $2 BILLION (JAN. 1 TO NOV. 16) KPN CORP 16,000 AGE: 60 12,000 13. PUTERA SAMPOERNA 8,000 $1.8 BILLION 4,000 SAMPOERNA STRATEGIC AGE: 73 0 Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun 14. KUNCORO WIBOWO SOURCE: EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION $1.75 BILLION Ready, Steady, Oh! ACE HARDWARE INDONESIA AGE: 63 After steady GDP growth around 5%, Indonesia officially entered a recession in April. 15. GARIBALDI THOHIR (QUARTERLY REAL GDP % GROWTH, YEAR-ON-YEAR, NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED) $1.65 BILLION 2018 2019 2020 ADARO ENERGY 5.1 5.3 5.2 5.2 5.1 5.1 5.0 5.0 AGE: 55 Rp Rp Rp 16. THEODORE RACHMAT Rp Rp Rp Rp Rp $1.6 BILLION 3.1 ADARO ENERGY AGE: 76 Rp 17. IRWAN HIDAYAT Q2 Q3 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 $1.55 BILLION Rp INDUSTRI JAMU DAN FARMASI SIDO MUNCUL SOURCE: FACTSET Rp -3.5 AGE: 73 -5.3 18. PETER SONDAKH CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY: UP DOWN UNCHANGED NEW TO THE LIST RETURNEE $1.5 BILLION DECEMBER 2020 RAJAWALI CORPORA AGE: 70 19. DJOKO SUSANTO $1.45 BILLION ALFAMART AGE: 70 20. EDDY KUSNADI SARIAATMADJA $1.4 BILLION EMTEK AGE: 67 FORBES ASIA

Rising Trend 5,335 8,000 21. MOCHTAR RIADY 7,000 While the benchmark stock market 6,000 $1.38 BILLION index dipped this year, it is still up over tenfold since 2000. LIPPO GROUP AGE: 91 (ANNUAL CLOSING PRICE OF THE JAKARTA COMPOSITE INDEX ON THE LAST DAY OF 5,000 22. SUKANTO TANOTO 57 TRADING, IN RUPIAH) 4,000 3,000 $1.35 BILLION 416 ROYAL GOLDEN EAGLE AGE: 70 2000 2005 2010 2015 2,000 23. HUSAIN DJOJONEGORO INDONESIA’S 50 RICHEST SOURCE: BLOOMBERG 1,000 $1.32 BILLION 0 ORANG TUA GROUP Nov 2020 AGE: 71 24. CIPUTRA FAMILY $1.28 BILLION CIPUTRA GROUP Logging In 25. LOW TUCK KWONG Indonesia has the largest internet economy in Southeast Asia. $1.22 BILLION Despite the pandemic, it has grown an estimated 10% this year. BAYAN RESOURCES (GROSS MERCHANDISE VALUE, IN $ BILLIONS) AGE: 72 Philippines 7 2019 2020* 26. HUSODO Singapore 8 ANGKOSUBROTO 12 *ESTIMATE Malaysia 9 $1.2 BILLION Vietnam 11 Thailand 11 GUNUNG SEWU GROUP Indonesia AGE: 65 12 14 27. ALEXANDER TEDJA 16 $1.19 BILLION 18 PAKUWON JATI 40 AGE: 75 44 SOURCE: GOOGLE, TEMASEK AND BAIN & CO. E-CONOMY SEA 2020 Quick Shift 28. WINARKO SULISTYO New car sales in September revved up from a May low, $1.15 BILLION though they remain below their long-term trendline. FAJAR SURYA WISESA (NEW CAR REGISTRATIONS BY MONTHLY TOTALS, IN THOUSANDS) AGE: 74 INFOGRAPHICS: CANNY SUTANTO FOR FORBES ASIA 100 29. MURDAYA POO 80 60 $1.14 BILLION 40 20 CENTRAL CIPTA MURDAYA AGE: 79 0 2000 30. CILIANDRA FANGIONO SOURCE: BLOOMBERG $1.05 BILLION FIRST RESOURCES AGE: 44 2005 2010 2015 2020 31. EDDY KATUARI Oct $1 BILLION WINGS AGE: 69 DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

I N D O N E S I A’ S Pakuwon Mall Superblock 50 RICHEST in Surabaya 32. LIM HARIYANTO WIJAYA SARWONO 58 $960 MILLION HARITA GROUP AGE: 92 THE LIST33. HARY TANOESOEDIBJO PAKUWON JATI$950 MILLION MNC LAND AGE: 55 34. SABANA PRAWIRAWIDJAJA $885 MILLION ULTRA JAYA MILK INDUSTRY AGE: 80 35. SJAMSUL NURSALIM $755 MILLION MITRA ADIPERKASA AGE: 78 36. OSBERT LYMAN Keep Building $750 MILLION ALEXANDER TEDJA LYMAN GROUP Property tycoon Alexander Tedja’s net AGE: 70 worth dropped 18% to $1.19 billion due to a roughly 21% drop in the stock price 37. HAMAMI FAMILY of his developer Pakuwon Jati. With de- mand eroded by the pandemic, the com- $745 MILLION pany reported a 42% decline in sales that dragged net profits down 72% in the first TIARA MARGA TRAKINDO nine months of 2020. 38. HANDOJO SANTOSA Until the Covid-19 outbreak, Paku- won Jati enjoyed strong growth, which $735 MILLION earned it a spot on the 2020 Best Under A Billion list. Despite recent setbacks, JAPFA Tedja is still working to build his com- AGE: 56 pany’s diversified portfolio that includes hospitals, hotels and offices. Already 39. WIJONO & HERMANTO big in malls, the company has commit- TANOKO ted 336 billion rupiah ($24 million) this year to building more mixed-use $700 MILLION developments. AVIA AVIAN CHANGE IN WEALTH KEY: UP DOWN UNCHANGED NEW TO THE LIST RETURNEE AGES: 68, 58 DECEMBER 2020 40. HASHIM DJOJOHADIKUSUMO $685 MILLION ARSARI GROUP AGE: 66 FORBES ASIA

41. SUDHAMEK AGOENG 59 WASPODO SOENJOTO INDONESIA’S 50 RICHEST $635 MILLION STARBUCKS RESERVE: PUTU SAYOGA FOR FORBES ASIA Mitra Adiperkasa owns the license for GARUDAFOOD PUTRA PUTRI JAYA Starbucks in Indonesia. AGE: 64 The Starbucks Reserve 42. KARTINI MULJADI Dewata in Bali (pictured) is the largest $620 MILLION Starbucks by size in TEMPO SCAN PACIFIC Southeast Asia. AGE: 90 Bumpy Road 43. ARINI SUBIANTO SJAMSUL NURSALIM $610 MILLION Covid-19 dragged down Sjamsul Nursalim’s wealth by 24% to $755 mil- ADARO ENERGY lion. Shares of his tire maker Gajah Tunggal and lifestyle retailer Mitra AGE: 49 Adiperkasa plummeted in March and have struggled to return to pre- pandemic levels. Both firms say they were hurt by falling demand. Gajah 44. JERRY NG Tunggal posted a 20% drop in third-quarter revenue to 9.6 trillion rupiah ($680 million) from a year earlier. Mitra Adiperkasa said net sales fell $600 MILLION over a third in the nine months to September. —Shintya Felicitas BANK JAGO FOR MORE INFO, GO TO FORBES.COM/INDONESIA AGE: 55 DECEMBER 2020 45. EDWIN SOERYADJAYA $580 MILLION SARATOGA INVESTAMA SEDAYA AGE: 71 46. SOEGIARTO ADIKOESOEMO $555 MILLION AKR CORPORINDO AGE: 82 47. ARIFIN PANIGORO $550 MILLION MEDCO ENERGI INTERNASIONAL AGE: 75 48. HARJO SUTANTO $530 MILLION WINGS AGE: 94 49. IWAN LUKMINTO $515 MILLION SRI REJEKI ISMAN AGE: 45 50. SUSANTO SUWARTO $475 MILLION EMTEK AGE: 64 FORBES ASIA

FORBES ASIA WEBINAR By Jeanhee Kim 60 Tapping Opportunity On Nov. 23, Forbes Asia held its Best Under A Billion Virtual Forum and Awards Ceremony. The event was tied to the Best Under A Billion list published in August, and included two panels of leading CEOs sharing their experiences on navigating the pandemic. After the discussion, a virtual awards ceremony hosted by Forbes vice chairman Christopher Forbes was held for the members of the list from this year and last year, which were selected from 18,000 publicly listed companies in the Asia-Pacific region with sales under $1 billion. The New Normal panel From top left to bottom right: Chartsiri Sophonpanich, president of Bangkok Bank; Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, group CEO of Frasers Property; and Lim Wee Chai, founder and executive chairman of Top Glove Corporation; Wayne Arnold, executive editor, Forbes Asia (moderator). FORBES ASIA First Panel: THE NEW NORMAL A recurring theme during the webinar was the positive out- look of Asia’s corporate leaders as they recalibrate amid new realities. Bangkok Bank president Chartsiri Sophonpanich de- scribed how his bank is providing working capital to custom- ers to help them restructure and adapt to recent disruptions. “This is the new normal,” he said. Sophonpanich predicted the Thai economy may not recover to pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2022. He believes the incoming U.S. president should be aware of changes in the global community. “A new world order will arrive in the next few years,” he said. “Asia will continue to grow, especially China and India.” DECEMBER 2020

61 Best Practices panel FORBES ASIA WEBINAR From top left to bottom right: Wendy Yap, founder, president director and CEO of Nippon Indosari Corpindo; Goh Peng Ooi, founder and chairman of Silverlake Group; and Cheah Cheng Hye, co-chairman and co- CIO of Value Partners Group; Rana Wehbe Watson, senior editor-special projects, Forbes Asia (moderator). With the property sector hit hard by the pandem- the largest bread company in Indonesia, cautioned that business ic, group CEO Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi of Frasers owners should avoid too much debt. She also emphasized how Property, which is based in Singapore, said he was mercurial consumer behavior had been during the pandemic, not- focusing on adjusting to the new realities. “We are ing that consumers were no longer going out to minimarts and looking at the way people are talking about Covid-19 convenience stores to buy her company's ready-to-eat bread prod- as being most effective at digitizing organizations and ucts popular before the pandemic; her company’s distribution the big thing is the future of work,” he said. “Those channels were completely upended. “When a crisis hits, you have changes will project into new business processes.” to be so nimble, so flexible, and your foundation already has to be in place,” Yap said. “If you don’t have the foundation, you are shot.” Malaysia’s Top Glove is one company that has thrived during the pandemic. The world’s largest As a leading supplier of financial software, Malaysia’s Silverlake maker of rubber and nitrile latex gloves used in Group has long prized flexibility. “We learn from everyone and al- healthcare and sanitation saw demand and its stock ways have to correct ourselves,” said Chairman Goh Peng Ooi. “If price skyrocket in 2020. Executive chairman Lim we are wrong, nobody works with us so we look back, forward, left Wee Chai said one had to be nimble in a fast-mov- and right all day. We are a checking-ourselves business.” That said, ing environment as he rushed to fill orders despite he described the group’s operations as somewhat insulated from a struggle to get raw materials and extra labor. “In the pandemic. “Digital businesses are crisis neutral, we do not de- business, sometimes it’s difficult to predict what will pend on business being up or down.” happen,” he said. (That prognosis seemed to come true, as Top Glove announced on the day of the we- Hong Kong asset-management company Value Partners Group binar that it was temporarily closing 28 factories in saw opportunity in mainland China as it returns to normalcy Malaysia after over 2,000 employees tested positive ahead of other countries, said co-chairman Cheah Cheng Hye. He for Covid-19.) described a “historic opportunity” that came in April when China fully opened its doors to international and Hong Kong-based Second Panel: securities and fund-management firms. “We are allowed to own 100% of our business in China,” Cheah said. “This is going to be BEST PRACTICES the biggest growth driver in the world’s asset management indus- try in the next decade.” A trio of company founders recognized in previous Best Under A Billion lists shared their advice on Overall the business leaders attending the webinar had a san- handling crises. They highlighted their agility as guine outlook. In an online poll, attendees were asked how far the smaller players to survive, even thrive, in the face of pandemic had set them back. Almost 60% said they hadn’t expe- adversity and their drive to be sustainable and digi- rienced any fallout, or if they had, expected to recover within a tal. Wendy Yap, CEO of Nippon Indosari Corpindo, year—evidence of how solid these companies can be under pres- sure. As Yap said: “A crisis accelerates what was brewing before. It just propels you to run faster.” DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

FORBES ASIA WEBINAR62 The resilience of the Best Under A Bil- DECEMBER 2020 lion companies was noted by Forbes vice chairman Christopher Forbes, who has attended nearly every Best Under A Billion awards ceremony since 2002. This year, he joined (vir- tually) to congratulate the winners. In opening remarks, he said: “This event is a celebration of what Forbes is re- ally all about—entrepreneurs who are building great companies. It is never easy to get on the Best Under A Bil- lion list—running a small or midsized company is a big job.” Christopher \"Kip\" Forbes FORBES ASIA

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION THE PHILIPPINES: REVVING UP FOR RECOVERY The country is on track to regain its momentum as its industry leaders ready their businesses for further growth. Skyline of Bonifacio Global City The Philippine central bank governor, Ben- BPO companies to expand. The pandemic to keep our brand front and center,” says jamin Diokno, in a recent speech affirmed has prompted greater work flexibility in the SM President and CEO Frederic DyBuncio. that the country’s economy remains sector, with almost 70% of its labor force “This assures our customers that they can robust, characterized by strong funda- now working from home, according to the count on us, whatever the situation.” mentals that include low interest rates, a Information Technology and Business Pro- strong currency, record gross international cess Association of the Philippines. This The Philippine central bank expects GDP reserves, low debt ratios, stable inflation means multi-use developments, such as to bounce back and grow by 6.5% to 7.5% and improving employment figures. those offered by Alveo Land, remain attrac- in 2021 and 2022. The Asian Development tive for both tenants and investors. “Our Bank also expects growth to accelerate in Public infrastructure projects, agricul- projects offer dynamic configurations that 2021 with effective fiscal support and mon- ture and high technology are driving the balance residential, lifestyle options and etary policies keeping the economy on economic recovery. Among the services workspaces,” explains Alveo Land President track. JPMorgan Chase is even more bullish sector, domestic tourism is poised for a Robert Lao. “They can easily adapt to the on the country. In August, it increased its rebound, led by the Department of Tour- demands of the new normal, where conve- 2021 growth forecast to 9.5%, which would ism’s efforts to ensure the careful reopen- nience and innovation are key.” be among the strongest in the region. ing of top local destinations. “We hope that this will soon make way for greater With crises also come opportunities, as Southeast Asia may have seen a inter-regional travel,” says Tourism Secre- seen in the dramatic rise in digital banking decrease in foreign direct investment tary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat. “But visi- during the quarantine period. Increased (FDI) in the first half of this year, but the tors from all over the Philippines can now financial digitalization has enabled greater Philippines managed to buck this trend. enjoy some of the world’s best islands at access to financial services and quicker cap- The central bank reported FDI net inflows their safest and most tranquil.” ital turnaround, thus accelerating income increased for the fourth consecutive growth. By strengthening their e-com- month in August, expanding 47% from A diverse range of industries, from food merce operations, companies such as SM a year earlier, while net equity capital manufacturing to financial services, continue Investments Corporation are evolving with investments rose by 33%. This show of to stay buoyant. The business process out- the circumstances while positioning them- confidence by investors demonstrates the sourcing sector (BPO) also remains optimis- selves for a post-recovery future. “Even country’s sound financial management, tic, with increased demand for outsourced across different platforms, we’ve managed effective pandemic control efforts and health-related services encouraging some unshakeable resilience. Philippines 1

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION SM INVESTMENTS CORPORATION: ADAPTING TO THE NEW REALITY The group rolls out initiatives to help local businesses bounce back from the pandemic while prioritizing the safety of its employees. SM stores offer safe and convenient ways of shopping with options for pickup at designated counters or home delivery. As Covid-19 hit businesses across the micro, small and medium enterprises said when the company released third- Philippines, SM Investments Corporation [MSME] across the group such as through quarter earnings in November. (SMIC) and its companies acted swiftly to marketing campaign support and by strengthen resilience among its partners waiving fees to help our MSMEs sustain By the end of June, SM malls waived and communities to boost their response their operations as well as credit support 11 billion pesos (US$221 million) in rent to the crisis. and improved cash access to our many for tenants affected by the economic banking clients across the country,” SMIC downturn. In July, it launched “Kasama “In aid of reviving economic activity, President and CEO Frederic DyBuncio ng SM,” an initiative to help businesses SM has undertaken many programs for impacted by the pandemic to recover. It also teamed up with the Department “We continue to adapt, innovate and build our of Trade and Industry and the Associa- capabilities to respond to the new realities. It is tion of the Filipino Franchisers to roll out crucial for us to continue to be here to serve our “BUYANIHAN” a nationwide campaign customers and stakeholders with new and enhanced encouraging shoppers to buy local. solutions for their convenience and safety.” To help meet the demands of the — FREDERIC DYBUNCIO, PRESIDENT AND CEO, country’s healthcare sector and support families affected by the coronavirus, SM SM INVESTMENTS CORPORATION contributed more than 300 million pesos (US$6 million) to equip Philippine hospi- tals with ventilators, medical supplies and 2 Philippines

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION reac tion) Covid-19 test- items by telephone from select stores. ing for its employees and Through these services, SM promotes agency workers across its store and restaurants located in its malls. businesses. Meanwhile, SM Supermalls has part- Finding Solutions nered with local governments to launch Wheels-On-The-Go and SM Riders Pro- SM has moved quickly to gram across Luzon island. The programs tap job-seeking construction workers, adapt its businesses to the repatriated overseas Filipinos and tricy- cle and jeepney drivers as delivery drivers new reality with innovative and personal shoppers. solutions to better serve its “We continue to adapt, innovate and build our capabilities to respond to the stakeholders. new realities. It is crucial for us to con- tinue to be here to serve our customers It widened its diverse and stakeholders with new and enhanced solutions for their convenience and range of essential and non- safety,” DyBuncio says. essential products available For more information: www.sminvestments.com SM responded to the Covid-19 crisis with donations of online through its shopping essential medical supplies, equipment and PCR tests to site, ShopSM, and The SM hospitals nationwide. STORE, which can be found on popular ecommerce plat- personal protective equipment. It also forms. SM also tapped communities on built emergency quarantine facilities for Viber to provide content and shopping Covid-19 patients and transformed the options for its retail products and ser- SM Mall of Asia Arena in Metro Manila vices through the instant messaging app. into a mega swabbing facility to support SM introduced mall fulfillment services the government’s efforts to expand test- such as “Take Out and Deliver y” and ing capacity. “Personal Shopper” to deliver takeaway To ensure the safety of its workforce and other products to customers. “Call to a n d c u s to m e r s , SM h a s c o n d u c te d Deliver”—The SM STORE’s branded ser- R a p i d a n d P C R ( p o l y m e r a s e c h a i n vice—allows customers to order essential SM expanded its customer access channels this year, offering innovative solutions to better serve the needs of its stakeholders. Philippines 3

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION THE PHILIPPINES: TURNING TOURISM AROUND Covid-19 may have hit the tourism industry hard, but the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT), through its marketing and promotions arm Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, has a plan to help the industry recover. The Philippines’ natural beauty and diverse points of interest have driven its tourism industry to be one of the strongest con- tributors to the country’s economic prog- ress. In 2019, tourism contributed 12.7% of the country’s GDP and employed 13.5% of its total workforce, providing 5.7 million jobs. However, with global and local travel crippled by the pandemic, the sector has been facing unprecedented challenges. Staggered for Safety Chocolate Hills, Bohol (Photo by Beautiful Destinations) There is cause for cautious optimism approach allows local government units to of contagion within their borders. Health though, with the number of new cases learn from successful examples and develop checks are rigorously performed on all and infection rate steadily decreasing effective travel schemes tailored to their sit- visitors seeking entry, and local govern- over recent months, approaching that of uation, while prioritizing health and safety. ments are ensuring that protocols such other Asian destinations such as Japan and as the wearing of masks and personal Malaysia. DOT and TPB are thus planning These reopened destinations continue sanitation measures are consistently ahead for the country’s gradual and safe to be vigilant to prevent the possibility followed. Small steps, to be sure, but reopening to both domestic and foreign instrumental to reviving tourism. In Sep- tourists. Several major tourist destinations tember this year, the Philippines became are already welcoming local visitors, albeit the 100th destination to receive the under strict health and safety protocols. World Travel and Tourism Council’s Safe The current roster includes Anilao in Batan- Travels Stamp, proof to travelers that the gas, Baguio, Bohol, Boracay, Ilocos Sur and country has adopted and implemented Ilocos Norte. These locations have dem- internationally recognized protocols for onstrated both effective control of local health and hygiene. transmission and adequate infrastructure to handle the influx of tourists under the new normal. It is the DOT’s hope that they can lead the way for other destinations to eventually follow suit. This staggered Boracay Island (Photo by Eric Beltran) Inspiration for Recovery DOT and TPB’s plan is centered on eco- nomic recovery and taking care of tourism stakeholders. It is geared towards four key goals. The first is to secure livelihoods and provide adequate social services, which not only involves protection and capacity- building for tourism professionals but also adequate assistance for affected travelers 4 Philippines

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION Diving in Anilao, Batangas (Photo by Robert Yin) and the dissemination of vital information normal as well as promotional campaigns destinations internationally in the coming to prevent the spread of the virus. The reflecting changes in the industry. year. On top of these, another reason to be second is to sustain business operations upbeat about Philippine tourism’s recov- by extending financial support to tour- “The DOT and the TPB continue to ery is the country’s recent accolades at the ism-related businesses. This also calls for look for safer and more accessible ways to Asia leg of the 27th World Travel Awards policies supporting financial and corporate encourage more people to travel. As we in November. The award-giving body cited solvency and encouraging investments in coexist with the virus, we need to strike the Walled City of Intramuros in Manila as the tourism sector. The third is to develop a balance between ensuring the safety Asia’s leading tourist attraction, with the appropriate infrastructure and policies to and wellness of everyone, and reviving Philippines also bringing home citations as establish quality standards and protocols our tourism industry for the benefit of Asia’s leading destination for beaches and relevant to the new normal. The fourth is to those relying on tourism to survive,” says diving, while the DOT was recognized as enhance marketing and product develop- Philippines Tourism Secretary Bernadette Asia’s leading tourist board. ment. The launch of tourism bubbles and Romulo-Puyat. green corridors will help kick-start local tour- The Meetings, Incentive Travel, Con- ism and create useful products for the new For now, most travel in the Philippines ventions, and Exhibitions/Events (MICE) will remain domestic. But the DOT and TPB sector of tourism was especially affected are preparing to promote numerous local this year, with most large events cancelled, postponed or shifted online. But it is antic- ipated that hybrid events, or contained, limited-scale gatherings can safely be held at several local destinations with low risk of transmission. Health checks and protocols are proving to be effective so far, boding well for carefully organized incentive tours and engagements. With a continuously improving pandemic response, promis- ing medical breakthroughs and a rejuve- nated economy, prospects are bright for a Philippines tourism renaissance in the coming year. Baguio Burnham Park (Photo by Dakila Angeles) For more information: app.philippines.travel 5 www.tpb.gov.ph #ItsMoreFunInThePhilippines #tpbgovph Philippines

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION ALVEO LAND: STANDING STRONG The innovative property developer reimagines business hubs across Metro Manila and beyond with first-in-class projects that blend residential, commercial and lifestyle concepts. For close to a century, Ayala Land has been at the forefront of real estate devel- opment in the Philippines, skillfully navi- gating both economic highs and lows. As its subsidiary, Alveo Land has blazed trails into key markets and locations with inno- vative projects targeting savvy investors and rising companies. Stiles Enterprise Plaza is Alveo’s flag- ship office-for-sale project in Circuit Makati. The 29-story building serves as a focal point for Ayala’s thriving new central busi- ness district (CBD) with its exclusive river- side location and views. Stiles Enterprise Plaza’s dynamic setup appeals to startups, creative professionals and entrepreneurs by offering inspiring workspaces that are adaptable for various pursuits. Gentry Corporate Plaza is a landmark two-tower development in Makati’s Sal- Alveo Financial Tower, Alveo Park Triangle Tower and Gentry Corporate Plaza cedo Village. Located at one of the coun- try’s most prestigious and cosmopolitan and complements its progressive work- lots for ownership on offer, Broadfield easily addresses, the project merges residential, spaces with appealing lifestyle options. attracts investors and entrepreneurs looking business and lifestyle concepts into one Strategically positioned where key for a healthy environment amid abundant dynamic multi-use structure. transport corridors and economic hubs business opportunities in the South. Alveo Financial Tower is Alveo’s flag- converge, Ayala Land’s Arca South in Alveo’s office and commercial properties ship office development in the Makati Taguig City is an up-and-coming central have the distinct advantage of being man- CBD. Its location on Ayala Avenue, the business distric t that could soon rival aged by Ayala Property Management Cor- CBD’s main artery, offers seamless con- other CBDs for accessibility and stature. poration (APMC). APMC’s commitment to nectivity to key areas throughout the city. Tryne Enterprise Plaza is a three-tower the highest standards of building manage- The 49-story tower is adjacent to Ayala’s office development that will underpin the ment has been proven across generations established City Gate development, a emerging district. Offering choice office as its expert property maintenance and ser- bustling mixed-use hub. spaces for sale, the flexible configurations vices adhere to the strictest building guide- Rising at an auspicious corner of Boni- appeal to businesses with an eye on future lines. This ensures peace of mind for inves- facio Global City, the 28-story Alveo Park expansion or reinvention. tors and efficient operations for tenants. Triangle Tower is expected to stand as Further afield, Ayala Land is opening up “Beyond just the physical structure, design another iconic landmark in this world-class a new economic hub with Broadfield, an and amenities, we have always been aware CBD. The tower completes the Park Trian- expansive estate in the Calabarzon region of the value of first-rate management and gle District, a mixed-use development that just south of Metro Manila that is easily maintenance teams to uphold the value of integrates premium residential with retail, reached via the Metro Luzon Urban Beltway. our developments,” says Robert Lao, Alveo This emerging growth center is sur- Land President. “Even during extraordinary rounded by burgeoning communi- circumstances, Alveo makes sure that our ties and industries and boasts some communities enjoy the utmost safety and of the fastest-appreciating land val- convenience under our care.” ues in the country. Broadfield’s masterplan reflects a careful focus on sustainability and quality of life. Verdant spaces are interwoven with walkable and bike- friendly streets lined with hip retail Broadfield Estate and dining outlets. With commercial www.alveoland.com.ph 6 Philippines

F E AT U R E S 69 THE GREAT RETAIL BY STEVEN BERTONI PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAMEL TOPPIN FOR FORBES REINVENTION Amid the Covid carnage, a handful of innovators have finally figured out how to compete against Amazon and sell in the 21st century. Investors and consumers—and workers—are all winning. Target CEO Brian Cornell DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

FEATURESIN70 late February, Target CEO Brian Cornell was sipping cof- fee in a Manhattan deli—one eye on the keynote address he the second quarter, Target sales jumped by nearly 25% year- was soon to give at an investor conference, the other on his over-year, to $23 billion, as online sales tripled, adding 10 phone as news alerts of America’s first confirmed Covid-19 million new customers. Home Depot also grew about 25%, death buzzed in. to $38 billion, as its online sales doubled. Even at mighty Walmart, where getting revenue to go up significantly is Target’s communications, investor relations and special- akin to turning an aircraft carrier, online sales doubled and events teams had spent months agonizing over every detail drove a 6% year-over-year increase, to $140 billion. of the speech, given to 200 Wall Street analysts and jour- nalists and able, in a matter of minutes, to send Target’s While no one foresaw the coronavirus, these sudden win- stock price climbing—or crashing. Three years ago, Cornell, ners had already been girding for the industry pandemic 61, who took over Target’s top spot in 2014 after running known as Amazon by embracing the one resource the Pepsi’s food business, had caused the company’s shares to digital giant lacked—their thousands of physical stores. By plunge 12% after analysts scoffed at his bid to counter Ama- hardwiring digital shopping into their locations, Target, zon by investing $7 billion to upgrade Target’s then-1,800- Walmart, Best Buy, Home Depot and Lowe’s transformed plus stores and raise worker wages. their stores, long viewed as expensive and fast-aging liabili- Cornell’s contrarian moves had been paying off. Target’s stock had nearly doubled since early 2017, but the Covid news had him on edge. In early January, he had created a task force to monitor the virus. Now it had come to Ameri- ca. Cornell shelved the in-person conference and threw to- gether a virtual one in 48 hours. “I’ll always remember how I got only one question about the virus during the confer- ence,” Cornell says, shaking his head. “And it was whether Chinese production delays would impact our spring line.” Within a few days, America started locking down, and the retail landscape underwent a seismic shift. Panicked shop- pers stripped stores of toilet paper, sanitizer, bleach and bot- tled water. Amazon, overwhelmed by an enormous increase in orders, floundered: Deliveries were delayed; shipments of nonessential items became, well, nonessential. Negative customer reviews went up 50%. So did allegations of price gouging, with six-packs of Bounty paper towels going for nearly $60 and a tub of 75 Clorox wipes offered for $40. (An Amazon spokesperson says, “Our systems are designed to meet or beat the best available price amongst our competi- tors, and if we see an error, we work quickly to fix it.”) With supply chains seizing up and Amazon temporarily stumbling, millions of customers gave other online stores a shot. Smaller, savvy web retailers such as Wayfair and organ- ic food peddler Thrive Market saw business boom. Millions of mom-and-pop operations were finally compelled to move from storefront-heavy strategies to digital ones. Ditto luxury retail, including brands such as Prada and Tory Burch. No one took greater advantage than big-box retailers. In FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

Target CEO Brian Cornell at a new curbside pickup station in Sarasota, Florida. “You can place an order, drive into over 1,500 parking lots and our team member will walk out and put it in your trunk, contact-free.” 71 TARGET ties, into hyperlocal distribution hubs that are now power- thing even more profound has occurred with a third set of ing in-person and digital shopping alike. Early results were winners: workers. To say that high-stress, low-pay retail gigs looking good. In the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak, they have lived at the bottom of the economic food chain is an became great. insult to plankton. In 2019, the median annual wage for a retail worker was $25,250, with little upward mobility and “We are within [16 kilometers] of most Americans,” says turnover rates running about 60% a year. All this dysfunc- Cornell, who saw same-day delivery demand nearly triple tion was subsidized by you, the taxpayer—the Economic Pol- and curbside pickup service soar 700%. For years, the re- icy Institute estimates that more than 35% of retail workers tail sector had been losing its way with customer service. receive public assistance. Little wonder that no brick-and- Yet this shift was an undeniable consumer benefit. “Target mortar retail company has ever before appeared on our Just has become truly convenient,” says Paul Trussell, Deutsche 100 list, created in partnership with nonprofit Just Capital, Bank’s retail analyst. “It’s taken years of investment, but now which spotlights America’s best corporate citizens. you can buy online, pick up in store or use their app to have someone put the product right in the trunk of your car.” But something happens when clerks and salespeople sud- denly become essential frontline workers. In July, Target ac- So shoppers and shareholders have benefited. But some- DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

celerated a plan to raise its minimum wage by two dollars The victors, in this case, actually shared the spoils amid to $15 an hour. Best Buy and Walmart soon followed—and something of an arms race for workers. Walmart, the upped the ante, with Walmart pledging to pay some store world’s largest private employer, raised wages, paid more managers up to $30 an hour. Bonuses, paid sick days and than $1 billion in bonuses and added 14 more annual paid stricter safety measures came next. Yes, respect and con- sick days. “Our emergency-leave policy has safeguarded up- sumer demand prompted the wage hikes. More critically, ward of hundreds of thousands of associates who knew that though, the stores of the 21st century need better-trained, they could take time off and be secure with their job,” says 72 multitasking employees to make them run. “Our workforce Donna Morris, Walmart’s Chief People Officer. will need to evolve in a way that meets the needs of custom- Home Depot, too, has paid out $1 billion–plus in bonuses FEATURES ers,” says Best Buy CEO Corie Barry. and extended paid leave. “Spring is our Christmas season, The result: Five brick-and-mortar retailers debut on the but we canceled all our promotions because we didn’t want 2021 Just 100, led by Target at number 15. “As an essential a traffic surge in our stores. Safety came before sales,” says business, if we were going to take care of America,” CEO CEO Craig Menear. “We let our team know Home Depot Cornell says, “we had to take care of our team first.” had their back. Take care of your workers, they take care of your customers and the rest takes care of itself.” A s in any pandemic, there have been vic- In addition to Covid pay, corporations are investing re- tims. Long-suffering companies like JCPen- sources to promote racial equality and increase diversity. In ney, J.Crew, Bed Bath & Beyond and Pier 1, June, Walmart’s foundation pledged $100 million for a cen- ter to promote health, education and training for underrep- none of whom shifted fast enough, have filed resented groups. People of color make up 47% of Walmart’s for bankruptcy. At the same time, Target 1.4 million U.S. employees. Women represent 55% of its shares are up 97% since their late-March low. Lowe’s is up workforce, including about half of store managers. 136%, Home Depot 82% and Best Buy 115%—all trouncing Target, whose Minneapolis headquarters sit less than six the S&P 500’s 64% gain. Allowed to stay open while most kilometers from where George Floyd died, pledged to in- businesses were shuttered, these megamerchants absorbed crease the number of Black employees across the company demand from millions of bored shoppers flush with nearly by 20%. Black staffers currently make up 15% of its work- $300 billion in stimulus checks and few places to spend it. force. Among Target’s 350,000 employees, 50% are people “All those dollars have to go somewhere,” says Citi analyst of color; 58% are women, accounting for nearly half of its Paul Lejuez. executives. “It’s important that our team, leaders and board FORBES ASIA “If we were going to take care of America, we had to take care of our team first,” says Cornell. DECEMBER 2020

reflect the 30 million–plus families we serve each week,” Cornell says. “Diversity is critical to 5 BIG-BOX LESSONS bring that to life.” FOR SMALL RETAILERS Going all in on physical stores requires in- vesting billions in employees. “You can be dig- ital, but you’ve got to deliver digitally with a FALL ONLINE: Use digital tech America,” Cornell says. “They human,” says Walmart’s Morris. to turn your store into a local shop for you and bring the order As stores become more digital and jobs fulfillment center. “A vast major- right to your doorstep.” 73 more complex, companies must increase pay ity of online orders are picked, CHOICE PRODUCT: Curate or TARGET and perks to attract and keep employees. The prepped and packed at our create high-quality and trendy latter is extremely tricky (and expensive) in stores,” says Target CEO Brian things to help people shop with an industry with such high job churn. “Your Cornell. “FedEx and UPS sweep speed and confidence. “Target employees must feel as much differentiation by to deliver it the last mile.” has one of the top product working at Target as customers feel shopping PICKUP ARTISTS: Takeout isn’t teams in retail,” says Bernstein at Target,” says Brandon Fletcher, a retail ana- only for food anymore. “We had analyst Brandon Fletcher. “They lyst at Sanford C. Bernstein. high demand but had to limit in- have four brands that do around store traffic,” says Home Depot $1 billion in sales that they built CEO Craig Menear. “We started from scratch.” F ew felt good about Target in curbside, which let us serve more SAFETY FIRST: Put customers at 2014 when Brian Cornell was customers without having them ease by ensuring that everything named CEO. At the company, come into the building.” is sparkling and sanitized. “Long before the CDC was talking which traditionally promoted NEED FOR SPEED: Outpace about PPE, we were looking at Amazon with same-day delivery. suppliers,” says Donna Morris, from within, he was an outsider During the pandemic, Target Walmart’s Chief People Officer. has seen sales through Shipt, a “We needed masks. We needed in more ways than one. He grew up in Queens, startup it bought in 2017, jump gloves. We needed an opera- 350%. “We have over 200,000 New York, under tough conditions. His fa- ther died when he was in elementary school. Heart disease put his mother out of work and Shipt personal shoppers across tional protocol.” his family on welfare. Grandparents pitched in; school and sports offered salvation. Cor- nell graduated from UCLA in 1981 and spent the next 30 years as retail’s version of a career military officer, relocating 15 times as he climbed the corpo- is to hold the ground it has won during the pandemic. Big- rate ladder at Tropicana, Gallo Wines, craft store Michaels, box retailers have found a formula that works—for now— Sam’s Club and two different tours at PepsiCo. with lessons for smaller retailers and other industries. He took over a Target in tatters. The previous year, a The challenge: what happens when government stimulus data breach had exposed the credit-card numbers of 40 recedes and a stir-crazy country can return in full force to million customers. Meanwhile, a poorly executed launch restaurants, bars, hotels and travel. of 124 stores in Canada was racking up hundreds of mil- And then, of course, there’s Amazon, which remains the lions in losses. Target, which had earned the upscale nick- elephant in every CEO’s home office. After its initial pan- name “Tarjay” thanks to its high-quality products, was demic stumble, Amazon quickly hired more than 175,000 now saddled with shabby stores and stale brands. “They new employees and fortified its logistics network to get were quickly going the way of Kmart,” says Barclays ana- back on track. Second-quarter sales (which include large lyst Karen Short. “The stores were messy and out of stock. non-retail divisions like AWS and advertising) exploded Employees were unhappy.” 40%. Even as these big-box retailers enjoy a stock boost, Cornell acted quickly, jettisoning the Canadian business Amazon’s soaring valuation of $1.5 trillion is double the size and selling a chain of pharmacies to CVS to focus on fixing of their market caps—combined. That gives it more than the U.S. operation. The $7 billion plan that had sunk the enough firepower to compete and disrupt on every front. stock in 2017 refreshed stores, gave customers new digital The pandemic and its impact on consumer habits have only buying options and turned locations into warehouses for increased Amazon’s power and reach. online orders. Target also launched dozens of fresh brands Cornell sees his edge both in his Tarjay cachet—and his like clothing lines Goodfellow & Co. and Universal Thread. arsenal of thousands of upgraded stores. “A few years ago, “Target’s whole existence is to sell stuff that wasn’t Walmart everyone said stores were obsolete. We took the other path, fall-apart, but Target Tarjay,” Fletcher says. “Cornell went not because it was our opinion—it was what consumers back to Target making really good stuff—good enough that were telling us,” he says. “Even during the pandemic, about people again call it Tarjay.” 85% of all retail spending happened in stores. And now, Whatever you call it, Target’s ability to sell high-quality I have 1,900 fulfillment centers across the country. That stuff via a high-quality experience is crucial if the company speed is essential.” DECEMBER 2020 FORBES ASIA

I N N O VAT I O N By Alex Knapp Photograph by Jamel Toppin for Forbes Virus Fighter 74 ALICE ZHANG’s “garbage chute” cellular research might soon help humans fight off viral infections of all kinds, including—well, you know. S ome dispiriting news: For vi- ruses that cause diseases like Ebola, SARS and Covid-19, we have nothing at all that works like penicillin, a broad-spectrum antibiotic that can combat dozens of bacterial strains—even ones we haven’t discovered yet. Finding something similar for viruses has been the Holy Grail of drug research for decades. That could all change soon, though, thanks to the work of Alice Zhang, a member of the Forbes 30 Under 30 for Science in 2017. Her company, San Francisco-based Verge Genomics, has spent years working on a treatment for ALS, the dev- astating neurological ailment also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. As it turns out, variations of her ALS drug might be effective against Covid-19— and other viruses as well. “That’s important,” Zhang says, “because we really need drugs that we can stockpile to prevent the exact situation we’re in right now.” Several varieties of Verge’s drug candidate “were quite highly effective” against the novel coronavirus in tests run by the Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness, according to Dr. Mark Namchuk, one of the group’s research leads. The big caveat: What works in the lab doesn’t always work in the human body. Fewer than 10% of promising drug candidates make it to market, and the success rate for repurposing drugs is roughly the same. Verge’s drug repairs a “garbage chute” within cells that recycle waste. With a dis- ease like ALS, this process “goes haywire” in the nervous system, Zhang says. But viruses also use it to invade and infect cells. Targeting the “gar- bage chute” stops viruses from getting in, thereby halting infection. Zhang’s next step is to partner with a larger pharmaceutical company to start clinical trials, which will likely begin in early 2021. If it pans out, she says, it could be “a frontline defense against future viral outbreaks.” FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

PROMOTION MALAYSIA: PUSHING AHEAD Faced with the greatest economic challenge to the country since gaining independence in 1957, Malaysia is firmly focused on recovery. In its latest report on Malaysia’s economy, in the market, Top Glove, the world’s larg- metrics monitoring system with chat-based the central bank noted GDP improved sig- est rubber glove maker, believes it can stay medical teleconsultations. nificantly, marking a smaller contraction of ahead of the game. Not content to rest on 2.7% in the third quarter compared with the its laurels, Top Glove’s goal is to continue to The company has tied up with China’s 17.1% dip the previous quarter. The govern- dominate global market share—solidifying WeDoctor, a global healthcare platform ment expects the rebound will continue, its No. 1 status in the rubber glove indus- that boasts 700 million users. BookDoc uses projecting the economy will grow up to try—and become one of the world’s top WeDoctor’s AI technology to screen calls and 7.5% next year. 500 companies by 2035. offer teleconsultation services to patients in its ecosystem seeking advice for a range of According to the Ministry of Finance Silverlake Group is another homegrown medical concerns, including Covid-19. (MoF), production and trade picked up company that intends to push ahead over July to September, combined with a with expansion plans. Its revenue rose to Moving forward, the central bank believes rise in private consumption, while unem- US$161 million in the year ended in June, the economy will improve in tandem with ployment fell over the same period. Mean- with a compound annual growth rate of stronger global demand and domestic while, stimulus packages unveiled by the 8% since 2011. policy support that includes government- government to ease the economic fallout targeted wage subsidies, public projects from Covid-19 are expected to contribute Math is the basis for its latest cloud com- and low interest rates. It also anticipates the over four percentage points to the nation’s puting solutions as the company helps its economic impact of Covid-19 containment GDP growth. customers detect, manage and combat measures reintroduced in October will be fraud in the banking, finance and insurance less severe compared with earlier restric- Malaysia has moved quickly to acceler- industries. Silverlake Group is poised for tions as businesses have been allowed to ate digital adoption by businesses, educa- further growth in 2021 on the back of its continue to operate. tion and society. This will help the nation’s partnership with an institutional investor. industries, from manufacturing, healthcare, Noting that Malaysia’s economic funda- electrical and electronics to e-commerce, Going regional is also on the cards mentals are still strong and its economic support the country’s recovery. for BookDoc. The five-year-old medtech base is sufficiently diversified to weather startup is ramping up its business to the storm, the MoF says it will continue to Amid a global call for more medical pro- expand its footprint by complementing its closely work with the private sector and the tective gear, which increases competition patient-doctor booking system and health- public to foster sustainable growth in 2021. Malaysia 1

PROMOTION TOP GLOVE: ACCELERATED GROWTH AMID THE PANDEMIC The world’s largest rubber glove manufacturer sets bigger goals as it steps up production to meet rising global demand. Since the beginning of the year 2020, Top Glove, the world’s largest manufacturer of rubber, nitrile and surgical gloves, has seen its shares increase more than fourfold on Malaysia’s main stock exchange thanks to a surge in global demand for personal pro- tective equipment following the coronavi- rus outbreak. Some investors, however, may question whether there is still room for growth given that a vaccine is expected to be available for distribution by 2021, according to the World Health Organization. Share Value Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai, Executive Chairman and Founder of Top Glove “Our share value is nowhere near its peak,” buying more factories and machin- including doctors, nurses, nutrition- says Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai, Executive ery to cope with growing demand for ists and counsellors, who look after our Chairman and Founder of Top Glove. “For our products.” 21,000 employees. this year and 2021, we expect demand to increase by 20% to 25%. Post-pandemic, As the call for protective wear increases, The Future it should stabilise at around 15%, which is more companies are moving into the rub- higher than pre-pandemic. There is a lot of ber glove business. Shrugging it off, Lim “Moving forward, our goal is to grow the potential for growth as rubber gloves are an says, “We would be more worried if there company twentyfold and be on the list of essential item in the healthcare industry.” are no competitors. However, the glove the world’s top 500 companies by 2035. business is both challenging and competi- To do that, we need to continually source “For the financial year ending 2021, ana- tive. When we started 20 years ago, there for talents, especially for our research and lysts have projected our company’s aftertax were 200 glove manufacturing companies, development unit, and increase invest- profit to be around US$2 billion, compared but only about 50 are still around today.” ment in automation and robotics to boost with this year’s profit of US$500 million,” production capacity. Currently, we are he adds. Labor Issues diversifying with more product offerings like face masks and other medical protec- Hong Kong Listing Commenting on allegations of forced tion devices, and are looking out for merg- labor by the U.S. Customs and Border ers, acquisitions or joint ventures that sync Already listed in Malaysia and Singapore, Protection (CBP), Lim says, “We have well with our current operations,” Lim says. the Malaysia-based company is eyeing the submitted an independent audit report Hong Kong stock exchange next. to the CBP and will be making remedia- www.topglove.com tion payment of about US$32 million to “Our track record is proven. Investors more than 11,000 migrant workers. We who bought our shares back in 2001 when hope to work with the CBP to clear the we listed in Malaysia would have seen the matter soon.” value increase by 400 times to date,” Lim says. “Similarly, those who bought our He adds, “We take employee well- shares when we listed in Singapore four being seriously and there is a team of full- years ago would have seen the value grow time professionals within the company, by 10 times. “Our annual compound growth rate in terms of revenue is about 23%, which is more than double the overall [industry] market growth of 10%.” “We are confident that we will per- form even better on the Hong Kong stock exchange, which has a market capi- talization of US$5.36 trillion. We hope to raise US$2 billion to fuel the com- pany’s organic growth, which includes 2 Malaysia



PROMOTION SILVERLAKE GROUP: OPPORTUNITIES IN A CHALLENGING YEAR Founder Goh Peng Ooi shares his thoughts on how Covid-19 will impact the company and the financial industry, and the plans he has in place to make his business more competitive. The coronavirus pandemic has taken the spotlight for most of this year, and the global economy is facing one of the worst economic downturns in decades. Most businesses—from multibillion- dollar airlines to mom-and-pop establish- ments—have been hard hit, and many employees lost their jobs as a result of the crisis. There have been over 58 million cases of Covid-19 confirmed worldwide, and more than 1.3 million deaths. The financial sector has not been spared from the pandemic, with many Asian banks posting lower earnings due to reduced loan volumes amid slower business activ- ity. Silverlake Group, whose clients com- prise many of the top banks in Asia, also registered a drop in revenue. A Silver Lining However, Goh Peng Ooi, Founder and Group Executive Chairman of Silverlake Group, a company that is known for pro- Goh Peng Ooi, Founder and Group Executive Chairman of Silverlake Group viding core banking software and other solutions to banks, insurance, fintech, when the going gets tough for the bank- year, these companies were consoli- retail companies and governments, sees a ing industry. “If the banks are compelled dated into one of three units: banking silver lining during the pandemic. to merge, this will also be very good for and finance, insurance, and Mathemati- Its core banking solution, which is a us,” Goh says. “We are very good at inte- cal Intelligence (MI) Cloud. key building block of infrastructure in the grating core systems when banks com- financial economy, is essential in helping bine. It is a very complex exercise, and it Mathematics-Driven Future banks to adjust to the new normal, he says. requires the right resources, the know- Two years before Goh founded Silverlake Simply put, banks in the region, which are how, and the ability to do it on time.” Group in 1990, he worked on a math- largely still profitable despite weaker earn- Goh adds that the year has allowed ematical proposition that banking and ings, will likely continue to need Silverlake Silverlake Group to focus on reorganiz- finance was an example of group the- Axis’s core banking solutions. ing and consolidation. ory. Since then, Goh has applied that “Covid-19 is not going to kill banking. Before the pandemic hit, Silverlake and other mathematic al theorie s to In fact, it is going to accelerate banking Group’s por t folio of 13 0 companies grow the group’s operations, including transformation,” Goh says. repor ted direc tly to the head of fice, category theory, specifically topoi. There’s a saying that behind every cri- including Silverlake Axis, which is listed G o h , a p a s s i o n a t e m a t h e m a t i c a l sis, lies an opportunity, and Goh believes on the Singapore E xchange. Under a thinker, believes the key behind Silverlake Silverlake Group can be a beneficiary of reorganization carried out earlier this Group’s success is mathematics, and it will remain so in the future. “If you want to run a good company, the right thing to do is to use math- “Covid-19 is not going to kill banking. In fact, it is ematics and structure it in such a way that it can respond to any type of situa- going to accelerate banking transformation.” tion,” Goh says. Over the past decade, Silverlake — GOH PENG OOI, FOUNDER AND GROUP EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN, SILVERLAKE GROUP Group has grown significantly. Its listed entity Silverlake Axis saw revenue rise to US$161 million in the financial year ended in June, with a compound annual 4 Malaysia

PROMOTION APPLICATIONS AND SOLUTIONS ENABLED BY MI CLOUD An illustration on the possible applications and solutions that are enabled by MI Cloud, such as Data Management, Boundary Management and Dynamic Artificial Intelligence. End users who can benefit from MI Cloud include those in banking and finance, healthcare and insurance, retail and e-commerce, and education. growth rate of 8% since 2011. Net profit into launching MI Cloud, as he wanted have deep pockets,” he says. “Also, the was US$45 million with earnings increas- to wait for the right time to be certain fund will not view Silverlake Group as a ing 4% over the same period. that it could pass the necessary “stress Goh Peng Ooi company, but instead it tests.” It has offered MI Cloud solutions will look at it as an investment and will This growth was due in part to the to end users in the banking and educa- manage it from an institution or invest- group’s evolving business model; more tion sectors for free since 2008, so that ment point of view.” than two-thirds of its annual revenue is the company could ensure the platform recurring revenue, with high profit margins. was secure, scalable and simple to use. Moving forward, Goh says Silverlake Group will operate much more effi- One of the areas that Goh sees strong “Why start with banking [with MI ciently, with each of the three core growth potential is the group’s new MI Cloud]? It is because we wanted to start groups (banking and finance, insurance Cloud division. with the toughest and most mission crit- and MI Cloud) to be run by people spe- ical applications first,” he says. cialized in their particular field. Using mathematics, the company is able to build MI Cloud solutions to help Ushering In a New Era “Essentially, what this means is that our banks and businesses analyze operational people will be able to serve our custom- data efficiently and accurately, detect This year will also be the year when Silverlake ers better, come up with products much fraud, manage risks, understand custom- Group begins to transform itself from a faster, and be more focused,” he says. ers better, and even predict future trends. single-leader organization to institutional leadership. “We are signing up with a Public: www.silverlakeaxis.com “You can use mathematics to predict fund, and they are coming in to invest [in Private: www.silverlakegroup.com what is going to happen but mathemat- Silverlake Group],” Goh says. ics cannot predict exactly when it is going to happen,” Goh says. The participation of the fund is impor- tant, Goh says, as it will help Silverlake Although Silverlake Group’s MI Cloud Group to be more competitive globally. solutions were introduced this year, Goh The group has produced very good says the platform is the result of more technology over the years, but that in than two decades of work and invest- itself will not take the company to the ment. “A substantial portion of the divi- next level, he explains. dends I received from Silverlake Axis were used to construct the MI Cloud that “With the fund coming in, we are try- we have today,” says Goh, who indirectly ing to create a group that is very good owns over 68% of Silverlake Axis. in technology, and at the same time He adds the company did not rush Malaysia 5

PROMOTION BOOKDOC: EXPANDING INTO TELEHEALTH CARE The medtech startup has pivoted to adapt to the challenges brought by Covid-19 through new partnerships at home and abroad. It may be cliché to say there’s never a bet- ter time to be in healthcare, but it is true when it comes to healthcare platform BookDoc and its Founder and CEO, Dato’ Chevy Beh. “No one in the world was prepared for what has taken place in 2020,” says Beh. “Healthcare around the world, and espe- cially for us here in Southeast Asia, has been changed forever. While I take no joy in what has happened, I see BookDoc as a part of the broader cog in the wheel to help people take control of their health during this unprecedented period.” The healthcare platform began its jour- ney five years ago in Malaysia, connect- ing individual patients with medical care professionals of their choice. Through its namesake app, the company created a sustainable ecosystem between doctors, individual and corporate patients, and the insurance industry. Since then, BookDoc has expanded Dato’ Chevy Beh, Founder and CEO, BookDoc its presence to Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia. In Malaysia, it to monitor patients around the clock and Beh. “By partnering with WeDoctor, our continues to grow its portfolio of partner help them make better decisions through patients on the BookDoc platform can text organizations that include the Ministry of regular updates about their health. chat with doctors and get expert opinions Education, the Royal Malaysia Police and from the WeDoctor platform.” the Malaysian Army. The WeDoctor Advantage The arrival of Covid-19 pushed the It also has promoted advances in wear- In a timely pivot, BookDoc added tele- companies to tweak their plans, he says. able technology, such as smart watches, health consultation services to its expand- As the coronavirus spread worldwide, the ing portfolio of services this two companies discussed how they could year. The company partnered serve the greater good and agreed to with WeDoctor Holdings in add Covid-19 to their list of consultative May, a Hangzhou, China- services. based, healthtech platform Beh notes that in the early days of the founded in 2010 by Liao pandemic, not much was known about Jieyuan. The Tencent-backed the disease and many healthcare systems company has more than 700 were overwhelmed with new Covid-19 million users and of fers a cases. The collaboration between the two range of services including companies has helped lessen the burden online consultations with of healthcare providers in the region by medical professionals. providing real-time telehealth consulta- “ We had b e e n in c on - tions to patients. versation with WeDoctor “The partnership was beneficial for for some time to offer tele- both companies as WeDoctor wanted to health consultation services enter Southeast Asia and BookDoc was for a range of areas such as able to provide these services in the five mental and reproduc tive countries we operate in,” he says. “What’s health, issues that may be great about partnering with WeDoctor BookDoc ties up with WeDoctor to offer uncomfortable for some to is that its platform has built-in, advanced teleconsultation services. talk about in person,” says machine learning algorithms that can help 6 Malaysia

PROMOTION with initial queries and answer them with- out human intervention. “The platform is also multilingual, user-friendly to navigate, and free of charge to use. Only when patients have more complicated questions will they be directed to actual doctors for further follow-up advice.” Home Care Responsibility Malaysian athletes use BookDoc’s app to stay fit when Covid-19 restrictions was enforced. Over the years, BookDoc has continued to expand its partnership ecosystem and The Ministry of Health selected BookDoc staff and enable them to work from home. widened its service offerings with a num- ber of healthcare entities, including gov- as the booking platform through which At the same time, BookDoc is an essential ernment agencies. For example, during the height of the Covid-19 national move- users could set up appointments for con- service and it needed to keep its business ment restrictions, BookDoc partnered with Malaysia’s Ministr y of Youth and venient, at-home Covid-19 testing instead running smoothly by ensuring its call cen- Sports to help competitive athletes stay fit by integrating their exercise routines onto of having to visit a hospital, he adds. ters were optimally staffed. the BookDoc platform. Coaches were able to get automatic updates of athletes’ “Some companies cut their at-home workouts through the BookDoc app, Beh explains. losses during tough economic He adds that BookDoc has expanded “Some companies cut their times but not us, as we decided its ongoing collaboration with the Min- losses during tough economic to turn our headwind to become istry of Health by providing new services times but not us, as we decided a tailwind,” he says. “We had to available to Malaysians. “We began host- work extra hours to embrace ing webinars on BookDoc every day from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. on topics pertaining to turn our headwind to and change with the times and to Covid-19. We started virtual telehealth become a tailwind.” capitalize on our resources to consultations, where patients can seek a reach out to bigger markets to quick consultation should they suspect any symptom of Covid-19. The doctors — DATO’ CHEVY BEH, FOUNDER AND CHIEF increase our penetration and can screen the affected patients quickly EXECUTIVE OFFICER, BOOKDOC product offerings.” and appropriate measures can be taken to limit further contamination. Beh says hard work has led to “We also developed a queue-manage- the firm’s successes. Last year it ment system, where patients are asked to register on BookDoc to schedule their Upcoming Plans was included on CNBC Upstart 100, a list next appointment, which helped govern- ment hospitals manage queues and prac- As a startup in the medtech space, the showcasing the brightest, most intriguing, tice social distancing, Beh says. 35 -year-old says his company wasn’t young startups. immune to the impact of Covid-19. BookDoc “We are very proud of this as we were had to comply with Malaysia’s movement the only Asia-based medical technology restriction order, set up standard operat- company included on the list, and this ing procedures to ensure the safety of its validates the plans and directions we’ve taken,” Beh says. “In 2021, we plan to go even further with WeDoctor as we lever- age its expertise more. We also plan to expand our ecosystem further by part- nering with any healthcare-based entities that see us as the one-stop shop of digital healthcare services in Southeast Asia.” Through BookDoc, patients can book to get a Covid-19 test at home. www.bookdoc.com Malaysia 7

I N N O VAT I O N By Leah Rosenbaum Photograph by Christian Peacock for Forbes Health vs. Wealth 82 The world is awash in cheap antibiotics. So why is biotech billionaire BOB DUGGAN trying to make a new one—and how can he possibly make money from it? B was 71 years old and worth some $3 billion. He Summit Therapeutics Bob Duggan could easily have might well have retreated to his house in Costa CEO Bob Duggan has called it a career in 2015, after he sold Pharma- Rica, with its giant mural of a green-eyed jag- given more than $500 cyclics, his cancer-drug biotech, to AbbVie. He uar cub, and lived out the rest of his life on the million to Scientology beach, surfing and reading books about Scien- over the years but tology. But Duggan, now 76, rejects the idea of says he doesn’t “in- retirement. “It’s indigenous in every human to troduce religion into want to make a difference, to exercise their abil- business.” ity and capability,” he says. “It has nothing to do with age.” FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

In April, Duggan became the CEO of Summit Thera- founder of Rx Securities, a life sciences–oriented invest- 83 peutics by buying more than 60% of the Nasdaq-traded ment bank based in London. “What that means commer- company for about $63 million. Summit, which was cially is that these new antibiotics get put in the cupboard, I N N O VAT I O N founded in 2003 but has yet to post any meaningful rev- and they’re not used.” enue, is developing a new antibiotic for the common but deadly infection Clostridioides difficile (C. diff), which is The result: Antibiotic development is usually not spread by fecal matter and is often acquired in hospitals worth it for big pharma companies, and the small firms and nursing homes. C. diff itself causes extreme diarrhea that still develop them are struggling. Two of Summit’s and, in severe cases, organ failure and death. Every year peers, Achaogen (of which Duggan owned a 15% stake) almost a quarter-million Americans are infected with C. and Melinta Therapeutics, filed for bankruptcy in the diff, and 13,000 die. past 18 months. Only 25 new antibiotics have been ap- proved over the last 20 years, most of which are deriva- It’s a noble place for Duggan to try to make a difference, tives of existing drugs. but it’s also a difficult one. Nobody disputes that antibiot- ics are one of the great success stories of the 20th century. None of this deters Duggan, a committed Scientolo- Before penicillin was discovered in 1928, infectious dis- gist with a history of investing in underdogs and coming eases were the leading cause of death in America, and life out on top. He started investing in his early 20s while expectancy at birth was just 58 years. Antibiotics changed studying business administration at UCLA. “I started everything. With cheap treatments widely available for my investment career with about $5,000,” he says, “and everything from tuberculosis to pneumonia, a child born within a year and a half I had half a million dollars.” One in Cleveland yesterday can expect to live to be nearly 80. of the first companies he invested in was Sunset Designs, the maker of Jiffy Stitchery needlepoint kits, which was But there are two main problems with antibiotics today. sold to British consumer-goods giant Reckitt Benckiser First, the economics: There are a lot of different antibiot- Group for $15 million in the mid-1980s. Next came in- ics already on the market, almost all inexpensive generics. vestments in a bakery chain, an ethernet firm and a busi- Amoxicillin, for instance, was introduced in 1973 and is ness that designed robotic surgical instruments. In 2008, one of the most commonly prescribed antibiotics in the Duggan became the CEO at Pharmacyclics, a penny- world. Off-patent for decades, it now costs less than a dol- stock biotech. lar per pill and is highly effective. Given that it takes about $1.3 billion to develop a new drug, hardly anyone is even Then, finally, the billion-dollar break. A drug in Phar- trying to make novel antibiotics anymore. There’s no easy macyclics’ pipeline, Imbruvica, turned out to be a block- way to recoup the expense. buster treatment for B-cell cancers, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), one of the most common Compounding the difficulty is a scientific problem. Bac- forms of leukemia in adults. That led directly to the $21 teria mutate and evolve quickly. That means the bacte- billion acquisition by AbbVie. rial strains that are resistant to being killed by a specific antibiotic survive and spread. To treat patients infected As at Pharmacyclics, the fate of Summit lies in one with bacteria resistant to a certain antibiotic, a different drug: ridinilazole, a new antibiotic for treating C. diff one needs to be administered. Therefore, when a new an- which is being tested head-to-head against the generic tibiotic is finally developed, “doctors reserve it for very se- gold standard, vancomycin. In a recent Phase 2 clinical vere cases because of resistance,” says Samir Devani, the trial, ridinilazole was found to be not only superior to vancomycin in treating C. diff, but also possibly able to ANTIBIOTIC DEVELOPMENT prevent recurrence of disease. If Summit can prove that IS USUALLY NOT WORTH IT ridinilazole not only treats but also prevents illness bet- FOR BIG PHARMA COMPANIES, ter than the best current option, hospitals could charge a AND THE SMALL FIRMS THAT premium for the drug. STILL DEVELOP THEM ARE STRUGGLING. Alan Carr, a biotech analyst at Needham, thinks that if any new antibiotic has a shot at success, ridinilazole may DECEMBER 2020 be it. “There is a fairly attractive market opportunity for C. diff,” Carr says, noting that the price for ridinilazole will likely be higher because it is a pill, not an intravenous drug, which means it can also be prescribed to patients outside a hospital. But “I don’t think it’s a billion-dollar drug. I think it can be a few hundred million, but I don’t think it’s a blockbuster.” For Duggan, it all boils down to the simplest wisdom: “How can you not make money if you deliver what patients need?” FORBES ASIA

84 Joby Aviation founder JoeBen Bevirt with the final prototype of his electric tiltrotor aircraft, the product of 11 years of work, nearly all of which was engineered in-house.

I N N O VAT I O N By Jeremy Bogaisky Photograph by Ethan Pines for Forbes Your Flying Car Is 85 Finally Here With nearly a billion dollars in funding, JOBY AVIATION promises to have its air taxis aloft by 2023. J $745 million, most recently at a valuation of $2.6 billion. Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda told Bevirt he hopes, through JoeBen Bevirt first thought Joby, to realize the flying-car dreams of his grandfather about building an airplane that could take off and land Kiichiro, Toyota Motors’ founder, who developed aircraft like a helicopter in second grade while trudging up the before World War II. 7km road to his family’s home in an off-grid hippie settle- ment among the redwoods in Northern California. “It was Joby is the best-funded and most valuable of an explo- a lonnnnng hill,” Bevirt says, laughing. “It made me dream sion of startups leveraging advances in batteries and elec- about a better way.” tric motors to try to wean aviation off fossil fuels and cre- ate new types of aircraft, including autonomous ones, to Four decades later, Bevirt is closing in on that goal. On serve as air taxis. No one knows how big the industry could a ranch outside Santa Cruz, California, the surfing mag- get—or if it will get off the ground at all—but Wall Street net near where he grew up, Bevirt has secretively devel- is spitballing some big numbers. One report from Morgan oped an electric airplane with six tilting propellers that he Stanley estimates the category could generate $674 billion says can carry a pilot and four passengers almost 400 ki- a year in fares worldwide by 2040. lometers at up to 320 km/h, while being quiet enough to disappear among the hum of city life. He envisions the as- “If we can fly, we can turn our streets into parks and fun- yet-unnamed aircraft, which experts speculate could cost damentally make our cities much nicer places to live in,” $400,000 to $1.5 million to manufacture, as the founda- Bevirt says. tion for a massive rooftop-to-rooftop air-taxi network— one he plans to build and run himself. His aspiration is to Dreamers have been trying (and failing) to build flying free urbanites from snarled roads and save a billion people cars for 100 years. Skeptics think Joby and its competitors an hour a day at a cost (he hopes) on par with booking an are still at least a decade too early: Today’s best batteries UberX, or about $1.60 per kilometer. pack 14 times less usable energy by weight than jet fuel. Given how much brute power is needed to propel an air- It sounds crazy, but Bevirt, 47, has some powerful be- craft straight up, they say, until batteries improve, electric lievers. Toyota pumped roughly $400 million into his Joby air taxis will have too little range and carrying capacity to Aviation in January, joining investors including Laurene make business sense. Then there’s the tough task of con- Powell Jobs and Jeff Skoll’s Capricorn Investment Group, vincing regulators they’ll be safe to fly. which was also an early Tesla backer. In all, Joby has raised Bevirt says he can produce a viable, safe aircraft now DECEMBER 2020 with the top-of-the-line lithium-ion battery cells that cur- rently power electric cars. And Joby is the only startup to commit to Uber’s ambitious timeline of launching an ur- ban air-taxi service in 2023. Bevirt says he’s on track to win safety certification from the Federal Aviation Admin- istration that year, which would likely make Joby the first electric air-taxi maker to clear that daunting hurdle. Bevirt was raised in a back-to-the-land community in which he got an early education in engineering, helping fix farm equipment and building homes alongside his fa- ther, Ron Bevirt, who was one of the LSD-tripping Mer- ry Pranksters back in the 1960s. (JoeBen is named after a FORBES ASIA

character in Sometimes a Great Notion, written by Prank- cash—and patience—from investors. Joby has no plans to sters ringleader Ken Kesey, famous for One Flew Over the sell its aircraft outside of building its own fleet, further de- Cuckoo’s Nest.) laying the day when investors can recoup the billions re- As an adult, Bevirt re-created that community with a quired to scale up. decidedly capitalistic twist on his secluded 178 hectares of Joby’s five-seat design boosts its revenue potential for woodlands and meadows overlooking the Pacific. The prop- ride sharing compared to the smaller, more mechanical- 86 erty, which he purchased with the proceeds from selling ly simple two-seat multicopters being developed by Ger- earlier businesses—such as Velocity11, which built liquid- many’s Volocopter and China’s EHang. The downside of handling robots used for testing potential drugs, and the Joby’s size: weight. A big part of that heft comes from the company behind GorillaPod, a flexible camera tripod—in- batteries, and it’s unclear if they’ll have enough juice to do cludes a former quarry where Bevirt conducted test flights. the job, according to modeling by the lab of Carnegie Mel- Employees have lived in small cottages on the property and lon battery expert Venkat Viswanathan, based on aircraft built houses nearby. Before locking in on developing an specs Bevirt shared with Forbes. aircraft, he incubated other startups there, with everyone For Joby to achieve the 240km range it says the 2,180kg working together in a cavernous barn. Bevirt started an or- gross weight aircraft is capable of (but has yet to achieve in ganic farm to feed them, with chickens and bees yielding flight testing), plus FAA-required reserves, Viswanathan’s eggs and honey, and hired a chef to prepare it all. team estimates it needs a 1,000kg battery pack. Subtract- “It’s a high-fiving, hugging culture, and that really flows ing roughly 450 kilograms for five passengers leaves only from JoeBen,” says Jim Adler, managing director at Toyo- about 730 kilograms for the airframe, seats and avion- ta AI Ventures, who convinced his colleagues to invest in ics—a slim 33% of gross weight. That’s 35% lower than Joby in 2017. “He’s high-energy, and it’s contagious.” any certified production airplane. The upshot: Either Joby While Joby is participating in Uber’s aerial ride-sharing has built an unprecedentedly light and efficient airframe, plans, a big part of Bevirt’s business model involves run- as Bevirt maintains, or its range will turn out to be lower. ning his own ride-sharing network. That helped attract Another concern: Getting approval from the FAA might investors. “If it was just a vehicle, I would not have been require safety tweaks that weigh it down. moved to invest if there wasn’t a service wrapped around “What we’re doing, it’s an insanely hard undertaking,” it,” Adler says. Bevirt says. “Not only the technical challenge of the air- Building the required landing pads, booking software craft [but] then changing the way everyone on Earth and other infrastructure, though, will require a lot more moves around on a daily basis.” Joby’s aircraft has six propulsion units that enable it to stay aloft even if a motor fails. The propeller blades are shaped to make it quieter than a helicopter when taking off or landing vertically, and virtually silent when tilted forward in flight. TREVOR JOLIN FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION INDONESIA: POSITIONED FOR RECOVERY The government is putting in place measures to combat the pandemic as well as boost the country’s long-term growth. In the face of a once-in-a-generation crisis, changes are fully realized. State-owned enterprises such as Pertamina Indonesia is proactively taking steps to miti- In particular, the reforms will help Indone- continue to play their part in supporting eco- gate the impact of the coronavirus on its nomic growth. The energy giant has a key people and economy. sia capitalize on shifts in global manufactur- role in developing Indonesia’s energy secu- ing supply chains. Many multinationals are rity and self-sufficiency. According to Nicke Among other steps, the government has looking to diversify their supply chains in Widyawati, President Director and CEO of rolled out a series of measures to support response to uncertainties created by ongo- Pertamina, the company not only seeks hard-hit businesses and industries. These ing U.S.-China trade tensions. Some have profit, but also to serve as an engine of eco- include 35.3 trillion rupiah (US$2.26 billion) relocated operations to Indonesia in recent nomic expansion and a driving force for the in new tax incentives for 18 sectors such as years, and the new measures introduced by growth of the country’s small and midsized tourism, food and beverage, and healthcare. the government are aimed at accelerating businesses. The authorities have also expanded social this trend. assistance programs for low-income citizens On the manufacturing front, Indonesian across the country to help them meet their “We believe that the law will bolster Indo- corporates such as apparel maker Pan Broth- basic needs and maintain their purchasing nesia’s long-term economic growth pros- ers continue to keep their production lines power. pects. All else being equal, faster growth running to meet global demand. The com- would have a positive effect on the sover- pany’s targeted production capacity in 2021 Meanwhile, the recently approved Omni- eign’s public debt metrics, boosting fiscal is 130 million garment pieces annually. bus Law on Job Creation is expected to make inflows and reducing debt-to-GDP ratios,”said it easier to do business in Indonesia by cut- Fitch in its October report. Over the longer term, Indonesia’s plans to ting red tape, easing restrictions on foreign focus on infrastructure—including new air- investment and providing more incentives to “Perhaps more importantly, the potential ports, power plants and transportation proj- free-trade zones. According to Fitch Ratings, boost in Indonesia’s manufacturing exports ects—and the booming digital economy will the new law should significantly enhance the and FDI inflows could make the country less help fuel the country’s growth in the post- business climate and improve the country’s dependent on commodity exports and on crisis period and lead to new opportunities international competitiveness over time if the portfolio flows to finance its current-account for businesses and investors. deficit.” Indonesia 1

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION PERTAMINA: ENERGIZING THE NATION Indonesia’s national energy company is a driving force for the country’s economic prosperity. Pertamina Hulu Energi's offshore operations in the North Java Sea. Pertamina is an Indonesian state-owned inte- Pertamina aims to become a US$ 100 bil- which will be achieved in stages up to 2026. It grated energy company engaged in the pro- lion company and a global energy leader by is also increasing production in its domestic oil duction and distribution of oil, gas and renew- 2026. To achieve this, it underwent a corporate and gas blocks, while conducting exploration able energy. The company plays an important restructuring this year and formed six busi- activities to discover new oil reserves. As part role as the guardian of Indonesia’s energy ness groups: upstream, gas, refining and pet- of these efforts, the company is carrying out security, self-sufficiency and sovereignty. With rochemical, commercial and trading, power onshore and offshore seismic surveys across millions of people affected by its wide range and new and renewable energy, and shipping. Indonesia, and has acquired oil and gas fields activities, Petamina has become a national at home and overseas to boost its reserves. economic locomotive: It not only significantly “This pandemic has accelerated business contributes to the country’s growth but it also change and the future energy transition. In its downstream business, Pertamina underpins an integrated business ecosystem. Pertamina needs to quickly respond to the manages six processing refineries in Indone- new global megatrend. Restructuring is a sia that have a total capacity of about 1 mil- “As a state-owned enterprise, Pertamina strategic step to be more adaptive, agile and lion bpd. The company is upgrading some of not only seeks profit, but also serves as an more aggressive for business development. By these facilities to optimize their performance engine of national economic growth and a integrating synergy within Pertamina Group, under its Refinery Development Master Plan. driving force for the growth of the country’s we are optimistic the target in 2026 will be It is also developing new refineries under the small and medium-sized enterprises,” says achieved,” says Widyawati. Grass Root Refinery program. Nicke Widyawati, President Director and CEO of Pertamina. The company also supports the Optimizing Business These efforts are aimed at enhancing over- development of Indonesia’s frontier, remote all production capacity to help Indonesia and outermost regions, known as 3T. Pertamina has set a crude oil production tar- achieve energy self-sufficiency. If Pertamina’s get of 1 million barrels of oil per day(bpd), refineries can reach a capacity of 1.8 million 2 Indonesia

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION Pertamina's Dumai refinery processes palm oil for green diesel. Pertamina plans to launch a biorefinery in Cilacap, Central Java, next year. bpd by 2026, the country will be able to pro- 5,000 villages while increasing natural gas transitioning to clean and renewable energy,” duce enough fuel to meet domestic demand deliveries to household customers in more says Widyawati. and lessen its reliance on overseas supply. than 23 cities nationwide. The company has accelerated domestic Pertamina also is preparing to expand the Commitment to Sustainability production of B30 biofuel, which will allow petrochemical business in Indonesia, with an Indonesia to slash its fuel imports and pro- eye on growing its presence in the industry Pertamina remains committed to Sustainable tect the country’s foreign exchange reserves. across the Asia-Pacific. Its plans include inte- Development Goals (SDGs) through its collab- Pertamina is also trialing environmentally grating petrochemical operations at its refin- oration with all business units and subsidiaries, friendly green diesel, green gasoline and eries, with petrochemical production set to its implementation of corporate governance green aviation fuel. These green fuels use reach 8,600 kilo-tons per annum by 2026. and its stakeholder engagement. Priority palm oil—widely available in Indonesia—as goals to support SDGs are tailored for various the primary raw material, helping to support Besides helping Indonesia reach energy company programs to achieve targets that are local workers and industry. In line with these self-sufficiency, these development and revi- in line with the company’s overall strategies in plans, Pertamina established the Biogas Power talization initiatives will boost other sectors, the upstream and downstream sectors. Plant Project to process palm oil waste and such as manufacturing. The construction added solar power to several of its facilities. and operation of the refineries is expected to To adapt its business for changes in the require more than 140,000 workers and create global environment, Pertamina remains Pertamina is also tapping the potential of an additional 3 million jobs. focused on developing greener and cleaner the country’s geothermal reserves. The com- energy. A number of innovative technology pany, which has realized 1,877 megawatts in Pertamina will continue to absorb domes- solutions have been developed to take advan- power generation from geothermal sources, tic crude from foreign oil and gas contract tage of sources of new and renewable energy will continue to develop this renewable holders that operate in Indonesia. The aim in Indonesia. source for energy production. is for crude oil produced in Indonesia to be processed by domestic refineries and reduce “We put high priority on and hold the Recognizing its role as a responsible corpo- crude imports. commitment to sustainability. We are ensur- rate citizen, Pertamina is actively implement- ing the development of green energy in line ing corporate social responsibility (CSR) and Equal Access to Energy with the government's vision to enhance environmental protection programs. In Sep- national energy security and independence, tember, Pertamina was recognized with the To ensure equal and easy access to fuels, while responding to the challenges of International Global CSR Award at the 12th Pertamina was tasked by the Indonesian gov- Global CSR Awards 2020 for its dedication to ernment to implement the one-price fuel Pertamina operates 7,000 gas stations nationwide. sustainable business and environmental pro- policy in the 3T regions. In addition to its 7,000 tection programs. gas stations found nationwide, Pertamina also distributes fuel to rural areas through its Through these programs, the company retail chain Pertashop. Its fuel pumps play an has channeled more than 3.5 trillion rupiah important role in realizing the government’s (US$250 million) to help more than 1 million strategic program for developing villages. The people, which includes funding to build hos- company expects to have more than 4,500 pitals for Covid-19 patients and to provide Pertashop pumps operating by the end of medical equipment. The company has also the year. continued to support Indonesia’s small and midsized firms as they navigate the Covid- Reflecting its commitment to an energy 19 crisis, such as offering training programs security strategy that prioritizes availability, focused on digitalization. accessibility, affordability and sustainability for all people across Indonesia, Pertamina has www.pertamina.com set up more than 180,000 LPG retailers in over Indonesia 3



FORBES LIFE By Elisabeth Brier Photograph by Taylor Castle for Forbes Killing It 91 RYAN HOGAN and DERRICK SMITH are cashing in on pandemic-induced boredom with their immersive murder mysteries. I It’s Saturday night Hunt A Killer cofounder and CEO Ryan Hogan in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, and DECEMBER 2020 Heather Nicoll, a 31-year-old graphic designer, is investigating a murder. Along with a close friend, she rummag- es through a box of old newspaper clip- pings, financial records and police re- ports as she attempts to solve the grisly death of Jake Morgan, the lead singer of Just4fun, a fictitious boy band. Ev- ery month Nicoll, along with 100,000 others, pays around $30 to Baltimore- based startup Hunt A Killer to receive a new installment of the game. It will take a full “season” of six boxes, cost- ing $180, to get to the bottom of Mor- gan’s death. “I don’t mess around when it comes to cracking these cases,” says Nicoll, who tracks her results with a pencil in a binder. “I’m fully addicted to investigating things now.” Hunt A Killer is played almost en- tirely offline—and that’s largely the point. “There is not a better time that’s needed to put your phone down, get off Twitter and get off all these other devices,” says CEO Ryan Hogan, 36, a former active duty U.S. Navy officer. “We’re going crazy right now. We all need to be able to detox.” FORBES ASIA

MALCOLM’S MONOPOLY 92 FORBES LIFEInside the box for Hunt A Killer’s eighth installment, “Curtain Call,” are rehearsal schedules, to-do lists and Malcolm Forbes handwritten letters from the game’s victim, a famous 1930s actress. flew hot-air TOP LEFT: GABBY JONES FOR FORBES ; THE STRONG Last year, Hogan’s company, which he co- Warwear that Hogan started with his wife while balloons, rode founded with his childhood friend Derrick he was still in the Navy. Stuck with $100,000 Harleys—and Smith, 37, generated $27 million in revenue worth of unsold T-shirts, in 2011 Hogan teamed spent decades by selling subscriptions, premium “all-in-one” up with Smith to stage a series of horror-themed collecting toy editions and collections of previous install- 5K races called “Run for Your Lives” (partici- soldiers, miniature ments (starting at $140 for six boxes). The pan- pants fled zombies planted around the course). boats and board demic is providing a big boost: This year Hunt That company went bankrupt, but the experi- games. In 2010, A Killer should book about $50 million in reve- ence started the duo down an entrepreneurial 20 years after his nue and hopes to turn a profit for the first time. path that by 2016 had morphed into the first in- death, his 214-lot The two founders own 85%, worth just over stallments of Hunt A Killer. treasure trove hit $65 million. the auction block. Working from Smith’s basement, the cofound- Among the gems The duo is the latest beneficiary of a board- ers did everything themselves, from designing was a perfectly game boomlet that dates to the mid-1990s, when the games to packing and shipping them. By staged replica of a complex German strategy game called Settlers 2017, the company had 25,000 subscribers and a the Sack of Troy of Catan first became popular on American col- cult following on Facebook. “Covid certainly ac- (which sold for lege campuses. Catan has sold more than 30 mil- celerated our path,” Hogan says, “but we aren’t a $21,250), a meter- lion copies worldwide and still generates north of Covid-based company.” long model of the $100 million in revenue annually some 25 years Lusitania ocean after its initial release. Overall, Euromonitor ex- Next up: retail. In September, Hunt A Killer liner ($194,500) pects sales of board games in North America to debuted a version of its flagship game for $30 on and four vintage increase from $3.4 billion in 2019 to about $4.1 Amazon. The same product also became avail- Monopoly sets, billion in 2024. able at Target in October. A brand collaboration including one of with Lionsgate, based on the Blair Witch movies, the earliest known. “Growth was explosive for games the first half is newly available on the company’s website and That circular of this year,” says Stephanie Wissink, who tracks a similar collaboration with Simon & Schuster oilcloth version, the industry for Jefferies. “The category was up (Nancy Drew books) is in the works. handmade in 1933 37% this year. I’ve worked in this space for two by Charles Darrow, decades and have never seen that.” Hunt A Killer “If we can make these amazing experiences fetched what’s dates back to a failed apparel company called that provide escapism and immerse you in a sto- believed to be the ry,” Hogan says, “there’s just nothing greater.” highest price ever paid at auction for a board game: $146,500. FORBES ASIA DECEMBER 2020

SAUDI LEADERS’ INSIGHT REPORT A Historic Year for G20 The world’s financial leaders mark an unprecedented year as Saudi Arabia marks another page in its history. www.forbesmiddleeast.com | [email protected] The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are expected to contract by about challenging times, the need for an is busy working toward 4% to reach US$65.8 trillion in 2020, open, fair and rules-based multilateral its mission to diversify its down from US$68.6 trillion a year trading system is critical to support economy as part of its Vision ago. Members of the group represent global economic recovery,” said Majid 2030. Tourism plays a major role in its around 80% of the world’s economic bin Abdullah Al-Qassabi, Minister of development plans. As an example of output, which is projected to be worth Commerce and Investment of the one of many projects, in November, US$83.8 trillion in 2020, two-thirds Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at an earlier Saudi’s Ministry of Culture announced of the global population, and 75% of virtual G20 trade and investment an initiative to establish a world-class international trade. They represent the ministerial meeting. center dedicated to the management, voices of 4.6 billion people around restoration and protection of the world. So far G20 countries have underwater cultural heritage in the Red contributed over US$21 billion to Sea and the Arabian Gulf. The center The pandemic crisis, healthcare support the production, distribution will be affiliated with the Ministry’s plans and the recovery of the global and access to diagnostics, therapeutics, Heritage Commission and will be economy were at the top of the G20 and vaccines; injected over US$11 responsible for developing the tourism agenda this year. Saudi hosted an trillion into safeguarding the global sector in Saudi Arabia and the region. exceptional virtual meeting to discuss economy; and launched a debt the Covid-19 outbreak. “At this suspension initiative for the least Saudi is also seeking to play a critical time, with the world facing the developed countries that allowed main role in strengthening the global coronavirus pandemic, which affects beneficiary countries to defer US$14 economy. In November, Saudi hosted the humans, health systems and the global billion in debt payments due this year G20 Leaders’ Summit for the first time economy, we meet with the G20 in and use the funds instead for financing in its history, chaired by His Majesty King an exceptional summit; to come up their health systems and social Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. with initiatives that fulfill the hopes of programs. As 2020 comes to a close, our people, strengthen the role of our the world will be watching and waiting The G20 Leaders’ Summit, governments, and unite our efforts to see what further help is coming. which was kicked off in the wake to confront this pandemic,” said His of the 2008 global financial crisis, Majesty King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al In this report exploring the future of occurred this year amid exceptional Saud on Twitter in March. Saudi Arabia, some of its key influential circumstances as world leaders urged business leaders share their insights on solidarity against the backdrop of the The G20 meetings also touched the impact of Vision 2030 and Saudi’s Covid-19 pandemic. G20 economies on enhancing trading ties. “In these ambitious plans.

SAUDI LEADERS’ INSIGHT REPORT Prudent Ethical Investing Samer Abu Aker, CEO of SEDCO Capital, reveals how the firm has maintained its strong performance with investment solutions to create value today with a focus on sustainability for tomorrow. What does SEDCO Capital do? SEDCO Capital is a global Shariah- compliant and ethically led multi-asset manager. We are headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with offices in Riyadh, London and Luxembourg. We invest in Saudi Arabia, the GCC, the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Asia and our total assets under management (AUM) currently exceed US$5 billion. We provide our sophisticated clients with comprehensive investment solutions across diversified asset classes all over the world. Our clients consist of high net worth individuals, family offices, endowments and financial institutions. Our primary asset classes are public equity, private equity, real estate and fixed income. We have our full asset class suite exposure in the U.S., Europe, the U.K. and Asia, and we also have interests of private equity in Latin America and public equity in Brazil. Our Luxembourg platform is one of the largest of its kind in the world in terms of Shariah-compliant funds and AUM, and provides our investors with access to European opportunities. How has SEDCO Capital’s Prudent Responsible investment has been demonstrated an accelerated propensity Ethical Investment approach helped growing in significance for years among in the same direction. Importantly, RI it outperform the market? regional and international investors. In represents an enormous market size, SEDCO Capital’s proprietary Prudent terms of investor segments, financial with current AUM at US$89.7 trillion. Ethical Investment (or PEI) approach institutions and endowments have been Notably, US$29.5 trillion covers listed is characterized by the sophisticated increasingly pivoting toward RI, and, equities and fixed income and US$30.7 fusion of Shariah-compliant principles demographically, millennials have also trillion represents RI strategies. with responsible investment (RI) principles, particularly as they relate to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) adherence.

www.forbesmiddleeast.com Shariah-compliance requires the decision. An exhaustive scrutiny of all Thanks to the unprecedented support additional screening of balance sheet possible scenarios helps allay concerns from policymakers all across the ratios such as leverage, cash and and mitigate potential obstacles that globe, the current low interest rate interest-bearing securities, and/or the may arise during the exit phase. We environment is expected to persist for ratio of accounts receivable to market evaluate each potential investment the next few years without posing any cap or total assets (whichever is greater). with the end in mind. This means short-term threat to financial stability Lower financial leverage and better cash paying special attention to all aspects before inflation starts to raise its head. conversion result in a bias toward quality that a buyer will consider prior Against this backdrop, we believe that and growth, thereby underscoring the to making the purchase decision, some exposure to higher-income asset significance of the “prudence” element including the suitability of the asset classes, such as real estate (including in the PEI approach. We believe the location, asset quality, tenant credibility global REITs) and both listed and tactful merging of both schools of and financial position, and lease type. private infrastructure is warranted in thought has enabled us to outperform order to both provide superior income purely conventional investment How has Saudi’s Vision 2030 streams and a longer-term hedge approaches over many years on a risk- impacted your investment against higher inflationary pressures. adjusted basis. decisions? Vision 2030 has created several What effect will the G20 resolutions For example, the SC Europe Equities benefits for global multi-asset have on assets in Saudi and globally? Fund, which follows a PEI approach managers. Firstly, it created a roadmap It is difficult to comment on the impact including negative screening, active by highlighting certain economic of G20 resolutions without knowing ownership/proxy voting and ESG growth sectors within the kingdom the content of such resolutions. It screening, outperformed on annual that are expected to flourish in the is a privilege for all kingdom-based return basis for the past five years the future, and around which we can business organizations that Saudi Dow Jones Islamic Market Europe index expect to see increased investment Arabia is presiding over such a by 1.21% and MSCI Europe Index activity. As a result, this has provided prestigious economic forum. by 7.18%. Similarly, the SC Global greater visibility for long-term planning Sustainable Equity Fund outperformed and increased confidence in our The critical issues that will be on annual return basis for the past five investment-decision making. Another discussed will be around ensuring years the Dow Jones Islamic Market factor is the increased transparency the sustainability of our planet and World index by 0.64% and MSCI World in reporting macrostatistics, which the people who inhabit it through Index by 4.74%.This means our clients is always a good thing for global empowerment, innovation and benefit from greater return with lower investors who could be keen to invest cooperation. SEDCO Capital has volatility when investing within a multi- with us in-kingdom. Thirdly, we believe been recognized internationally for its asset class framework, while adhering putting Saudi Arabia on the map will commitment to responsible investment. to the pillars of ethical investing. be a boon for these Shariah-compliant As the first Saudi Arabian and Shariah- investments going forward, and compliant asset manager to be a What factors do you look at therefore we feel very well positioned signatory of the UN-supported Principles when you consider exiting an to create value for existing and for Responsible Investment (PRI), we are investment? potential clients. well positioned to be active participants We invest in attractive real estate in shaping the type of future that this opportunities, which we term Core and Which asset classes do you think year’s G20 meeting envisions. Core Plus, in locations across Europe, will outperform in 2021, and why? the U.K. and the U.S. We look primarily Clearly the ongoing pandemic has In 2020, SEDCO Capital was at the office, logistics, education and created unexpected risks, which awarded the highest possible rating by healthcare subsectors. The average are inherently difficult to control. the PRI in recognition of our approach internal rate of return of our real estate However, it has also opened several to responsible investing and integrating portfolio is approximately 7%. new opportunities. We believe public ESG factors into the investment and private equity markets will benefit solutions that we create for our clients. We ensure that every decision from a continued quest for growth, taken over the course of a real estate albeit at the cost of lower returns www.sedcocapital.com investment is value-enhancing for than in the past decade for as long as potential buyers. The most successful Covid-19-related uncertainty remains. exit strategy requires a well-tailored business plan prior to any investment

SAUDI LEADERS’ INSIGHT REPORT Investing in Ethics Ayman Maamoun Tamer, Chairman of Tamer Group, discusses how the 98-year-old family business continues to innovate and keep ethics at its core. The value of environmental, social, What changes have patients and consumers through and governance assets in investing you made to make normal and tough periods. We has grown to US$40.5 trillion Tamer Group more gained the trust of our customers by globally. How has this impacted the sustainable? being committed to serving them by strategy of Tamer Group? We are working to adopt providing the best quality products Companies around the globe have common metrics and to at the right time. We established to act on their purpose, which now eventually have clear and our corporate social responsibility includes not only making profit but transparent reporting arm, SA’AID, to give forward and adhering to environmental, social, on the impact that we are having on contribute to the community through governance and data stewardship the planet and society, in addition to various projects. (ESGD). ESGD considerations are our other stakeholders. We need to increasing in importance today. Such look at climate change, nature loss and How does your SA’AID program tie investment in the ecosystem opens the fresh water availability, among other in to the Sustainable Development eyes of all industries to the need to things. And for people, we need to Goals? build more sustainable business models look at their well-being, dignity and SA’AID in Arabic means “forearm,” with all stakeholders. equality, and of course their skills and which symbolizes the part of the development for the future. body that connects the body (the Tamer is a family business Although it sounds simple, I have community) and the hand (the preparing today to introduce the realized that adopting good governance company). In English, “SA” is an fourth generation to be part of the and focusing on sustainable value management team. For the past 98 creation for all stakeholders is the years serving the market in Saudi only way forward. This should, of Arabia, Tamer has taken many course, include our planet. Examples initiatives to ensure the sustainability of such metrics under governance of the business. We have always kept include having a clear purpose for the the 3Ps in our strategy: people, planet company and having clear stakeholder and profit. engagement as well as ethical behaviors, such as anticorruption. We introduced corporate governance, segregation of duties and separation of ownership from management. This journey took almost two years to complete. We adopted a new strategy to serve Saudi

www.forbesmiddleeast.com abbreviation of Saudi Arabia, while We adopted a new strategy to serve Saudi patients “AID” represents reaching out and and consumers through normal and tough periods. collaborating. We gained the trust of our customers by being committed to serving them by providing the best The Sustainable Development Goals quality products at the right time. are a complete mission that will require further focus and resources in order to How has Tamer Group’s governance Group has started to sync with the achieve transparent reporting and real evolved over the years? Ministry of Health in many initiatives, progress in this domain. SA’AID is just Family businesses are often precariously such as through its national screening one arm managing our social community short-lived and are vulnerable when it program and the national VNA services, which include supporting comes to handing down the business, and teleradiology platforms. These different projects that focus on health, especially from one generation to initiatives help to share resources from education, women empowerment, art another. However, such a predicament Ministry of Health hospitals with other and culture, workplace wellness and can be overcome if there is transparency, hospitals to reach more patients and community development. accountability, family trust, healthy provide the best healthcare service for discussion and good leadership. Tamer the Saudi community. Where do you think growth in Group has been governed according Saudi’s pharma sector will come to an implicit agreement based on The localization of all industrial from over the next 10 years? these principles, rules and values sectors is a central tenet of Vision Saudi’s pharma sector grew from among the members of both the 2030. Tamer Group is on a mission US$7 billion in 2015 to US$8.6 billion second and third generations. to develop the organization and the in 2019. Growth drivers for the healthcare industry to help increase total market were mainly oncology, We have established a more the income of the kingdom, generate diabetes and rheumatological diseases formalized and structured governance job opportunities and brighten the (immunotherapy). Vaccines and within the family through a family future for younger generations. other biological drugs will also grow constitution, and within the business substantially in this market. by implementing the best corporate The group has invested in global governance practices whether those and local startups. What are the The government sector will practices are mandatorily required or not. factors that you consider before remain the main driver for growth. investing in a startup? The healthcare system in Saudi is, How has Saudi’s Vision 2030 The first thing we consider in and will continue to be, supported by changed the way you do business? investments are the ethics of the government services. Private sector Digital transformation plays a major industry that we are entering. We contribution is increasing with a range role in Saudi’s Vision 2030. Tamer often look at investments that have of privatization initiatives supported by a holistic advantage for both the Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, but still the family office and regionally for the government will have the larger share holding operating group. These of contribution. investments include healthcare, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, manufacturing pharmaceuticals and vaccines, consumer nutrition products, consumer goods and beauty products. www.tamergroup.com

SAUDI LEADERS’ INSIGHT REPORT Power in Communication Nasser Sulaiman Al Nasser, Group CEO of Saudi Telephone Co. (stc), discusses how the company has developed this year to meet new challenges while continuing to focus on equality and technological advancement. What has been your biggest challenge this year and what has been your biggest success? Undoubtedly, the Covid-19 pandemic was the biggest challenge that we have faced this year. Yet, this terrible situation also represented an opportunity for stc to live up to its expectations as a national champion, not only from an infrastructure and customer experience perspective, but also from a corporate social responsibility perspective. The lockdown resulted in the need for remote work, health and education, which in turn dramatically increased traffic in our network. Thanks to our technological leadership and agility, stc was able to enhance capacity rapidly to maintain the required levels of speed and reliability to support the country’s needs. Customers were able to continue operating as normal as possible and enable the accelerated adoption of new digital ways of working and accessing services. Our large investments in the digital transformation of our customer touchpoints allowed us to seamlessly shift our interactions to safe digital channels without compromising on the high level of experience and speed that our customers have come to expect from stc. Most importantly, stc was able to contribute to ease the financial challenges that the pandemic represented to families and small businesses by providing more capacity and services for the same price and extending financial facilities. Finally, stc was able to do well by its employees, its most important asset, by quickly adopting new digital ways of working, developing and strictly implementing health protocols to ensure the safety of all employees, and creating new working-from-home policies that will allow us not only to face this crisis but the