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Vintage Apples are a Terrible Vice
I don’t have much spare time or energy for vices, but when I pick one up, I tend to go deep down the rabbit hole. Alas, it is with much regret that I must inform you of my latest vice – the collection of vintage Apple devices. This is a living post; I’m going to…
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Goodbye 2019, Hello 2020!
My year in review, and some thoughts for the year ahead. As I enter the final two years of my 30s, I find myself in the midst of a new journey of self-discovery that has taken me towards new work- and life-arcs. I look forward to 2020 with equal parts of fear, hope and awe.…
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Hello world!
It’s good to be back from my self-imposed blogging exile. You can take a look at what this site used to look like (thanks to the Wayback Machine), with key snapshots in Jul 2017 and May 2011. Some of the other snapshots don’t retain the blog format well; the equivalent of bit rot in online…
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‘Gotong Royong’ is the Only Way for Indonesia Fintech
Ask ten thousand people when they think the Indonesian fintech industry was born, and you’re going to get as many birth date guesses as there are islands in Indonesia. Some would say it began with the release of OJK Regulation №.77/POJK.01/2016 by Otoritas Jasa Keuangan in January 2017, where Indonesia’s regulator unveiled its initial framework…
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Goodbye 2017, Hello 2018!
My year in review, and some thoughts for the year ahead. This is the last week of 2017, and as the year draws to a close, I stay in Singapore and try to slow down a little, breath and think. It’s my annual ritual to reflect upon the past year and plan for the next,…
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Goodbye 2016, Hello 2017!
My year in review, and some thoughts for the year ahead. Today marks the 3rd day of the new year. I write this aboard my flight back from Cambodia, where I’ve spent the past few days exploring everything in between Khmer ruins and Cambodian beaches and urbanity of Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Koh Rong and Phnom…
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Pulling the (virtual) World to Singapore
Until the invention of the first electronic general-purpose computer in 1946, humanity sought to bring order to our analog world by sorting and classifying information through manual, then electro-mechanical means. Networking technologies became tinder to the kindle that is computers, eventually becoming the fire of the Internet. Apart from changing the way we create, connect,…
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Amazon’s entry an urgent wake up call for Singapore’s retailers
I authored this essay for TODAY’s commentary column which was run on 4 August 2017. Many thanks to Jason Tan of TODAY for the invitation to contribute my thoughts and to the editorial team for helping with the title. I am republishing my submission as public record. Singapore’s glistening skyline disguises a worrisome decay that has…
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Once Bonded, Reloaded
Just like Yu-Mei Balasingamchow, I penned my name on a legal document in 2000 that effectively willed 6 years of my life – after the mandatory military service and the sponsored US university education – to the Singapore Public Service. The ‘golden ticket’ was like a dream come true – a chance for the eldest son…