Celebrating the strength of entrepreneurship in Asia-Pacific

Celebrating the strength of entrepreneurship in Asia-Pacific

One of my favourite celebrations of the year is almost here! It’s a time when we come together to recognise and connect entrepreneurs on a global stage – it’s time for EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year?.

The only global program of its kind, EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year? convenes visionary founders, transformative CEOs and business leaders from around the world in the ultimate global competition for entrepreneurs. This year’s cohort represents 47 countries and territories from around the world – including 10 from Asia-Pacific.

Each of these entrepreneurs have been named Entrepreneur Of The Year? in their respective market and now head to Monaco to compete for the world title where a diverse panel of independent judges will assess the achievements against four criteria: entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact. Two alumni from Asia-Pacific join this year’s judging panel: Australia’s Linda Brown, CEO and President of Torrens University Australia and South Korea’s Jung Jin SEO, Chairman, Celltrion Group who was named EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year? in 2021.

Every year, I am inspired by the stories of innovation, passion, and determination shown by these ambitious leaders as they think differently and risk boldly to find solutions to some of the world’s biggest challenges.

Asia-Pacific – home to a thriving entrepreneurial spirit

Asia-Pacific is home to some of the world’s most innovative entrepreneurs. This is evident when we look at the inspiring stories of this year’s EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year? finalists, as well as our track record when it comes to previous winners. In fact, an entrepreneur from Asia-Pacific has been named the winner six times in the program’s history, including last year’s winner Doris Hsu, Chairperson and CEO of GlobalWafers Co., Ltd, who will also join us in Monaco this year as part of a plenary session on leadership with EY Global Chairman and CEO Carmine Di Sibio and and EY Global Chair and CEO-elect Janet Truncale.

The 10 inspiring individuals who represent our Asia-Pacific markets this year are impressive. Together, their businesses have a combined revenue of over US$5.5 billion and employ more than 14,000 people. Their stories showcase the entrepreneurial power of this region and demonstrate the immense opportunities available to those ambitious enough to seize them.

From an Olympic medallist to a music producer, and with careers spanning law, science, technology and more, there’s no doubting the diversity of experience and backgrounds of the entrepreneurs representing Asia-Pacific. However, there is a common thread: innovation and creativity, backed by determination and purpose. As we ask ‘How do entrepreneurs set the world in motion?’ ?I am proud to shine the spotlight on the 10 entrepreneurs representing Asia-Pacific this year – click on the links below to watch each finalists’ video.

From Australia: Gary Smith, CEO and Co-Founder, BioPak is helping businesses around the world to significantly reduce their environmental impact through the creation of BioPak’s plant-based compostable packaging, which serves as a sustainable alternative to plastic. BioPak is also a B Corp company and pledges 5% of its profits to their Give Back Fund.

From Chinese mainland: After a long and established international career as an engineer and scientist, Dr. Howard Yang, Chairman, CEO and Chief Scientist of Montage Technology Co., Ltd is a visionary entrepreneur who innovated the electronics industry with his cutting-edge integrated circuits (IC). Today, Montage Technology is dedicated to providing high-performance, low-power IC solutions for cloud computing and artificial intelligence.

From Hong Kong/Macau: Mr Li Ning, Chairman and CEO, Viva Goods Company Ltd, who won six Olympic medals, leveraged his sports brand to build a diverse consumer fashion portfolio, expanding his international presence and diversifying his consumer brand portfolio. Under his leadership, Viva Goods has seen remarkable revenue growth and now has a presence around 80 countries/regions.

From Indonesia: Mr Yozua Makes, Founder and CEO, PT Plataran Indonesia transformed his love for Indonesia into a tourism powerhouse, founding Plataran Group to showcase the country's rich and diverse heritage. He has made significant contributions in the fields of conservation, culture, and community, creating job opportunities in areas with poor living standards and proving himself to be a visionary entrepreneur.

From Japan: Soichiro Swimmy Minami is the Representative Director and CEO, Visional, Inc. – a data management platform that helps companies identify, analyse and manage talent, to redefine the future of work in Japan and confront the challenges posed by an aging population and declining birthrate. By embracing AI and modern hiring practices, Visional has made great strides toward alleviating labour shortages and low productivity while helping to revitalise the Japanese economy and inform government policy.

From Malaysia: Dato’ Foong Wei Kuong, Managing Director of JF Technology Berhad is a driving force for innovation in the global semiconductor industry, transforming JF Technology from its humble beginnings to become one of the top test contacting solutions providers in the world, today serving more than 100 multinational corporations worldwide. Dato’ Foong is committed to cultivating new talent through partnerships with universities to enhance the employability of graduates, thereby elevating Malaysia’s prominence in the high-tech semiconductor sector.

From New Zealand: With an idea that began in 2017 (long before NFT was a buzzword), David Yu launched VeVe – an app that has transformed the digital collectibles market by embracing non-fungible tokens (NFTs), blockchain and augmented reality to enable users to collect and trade digital collectibles worldwide. With users in the USA, UK and Europe, VeVe is the world leader in digital collectibles and David is now focused on growth in untapped markets such as China and Japan, as well as the exciting expansion into virtual spaces with the upcoming VeVeVerse.

From Singapore: Purpose-driven entrepreneur, Ms Yvon Bock, Founder and CEO, Hegen Pte Ltd established Hegen in 2015 to create a positive breastfeeding journey for mothers. Her goal to serve 100 million mothers globally, combined with her dedication to empower working mothers, demonstrates her commitment to making a difference for women and parents worldwide.

From South Korea: Si-Hyuk Bang, Chairman, HYBE has thrilled millions of fans worldwide through his cultivation of Korean pop artists, demonstrating his purpose to provide joy through music. His ambition for HYBE to be the world’s best music-based entertainment lifestyle platform has seen the company expand into the US, Japan and Latin American markets, embracing technologies such as AI, blockchain, and gaming.

From Taiwan: Margaret Kao, Chairman and CEO of Marketech International Corp (MIC) provides high-tech solutions to the semiconductor, flat-panel display and photovoltaic industries. Passionate about innovation and embracing technologies like AI, Ms Kao is driving growth through new offerings such as the industrial metaverse, smart cities and intelligent medical care.

Interestingly, six of this year’s Asia-Pacific entrepreneurs hail from the Technology, Media & Entertainment and Telecommunications (TMT) industry – a driving force behind the region’s growth – and a clear sign of the innovation thriving in this sector in this part of the world. However, no matter the industry, all of these stories show the incredible impact entrepreneurs have on their local economies, the innovations they are embracing, and the legacy this creates: a vibrant market where entrepreneurs can thrive.

Who will win?

As we anticipate the announcement of the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year? 2024, I am proud to showcase and celebrate our home-grown talents from across Asia-Pacific, and cheer for their continued success. I can’t wait to find out who will be crowned this year’s winner – and of course I wish all of our entrepreneurs the best of luck!

To learn more about EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year?, please get in touch. And to nominate an entrepreneur for Entrepreneur Of The Year 2025, visit https://www.ey.com/en_gl/weoy/contacts.

To find out who will be crowned this year’s winner, follow EY social media channels and look for the winner announcement on the evening of Thursday 6 June 2024 (CEST).

The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organization or its member firms.

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