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Tag: asean

  • Citi Boosts ASEAN Real Estate Team with Ex-UBS Investment Banking Leader, Indran Thana

    Citi Boosts ASEAN Real Estate Team with Ex-UBS Investment Banking Leader, Indran Thana

    Indran Thana, an experienced investment banker, is set to join Citi as the managing director and head of real estate for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) segment. The appointment, effective from June 2026, will see Thana, a former UBS employee, operating from Singapore.

    In his new role, Thana will report to Matthew Nimtz, the head of ASEAN investment banking, as well as Ben Connolly, the Asia head of real estate investment banking and co-head of capital markets and advisory for Australia and New Zealand.

    During his tenure at UBS, Thana held the position of managing director and head of real estate, lodging & leisure for Asia. His professional experience also includes stints at DBS, Maybank, and Amanah Capital.

    In an internal memo, Citi lauded Thana for his “deep client relationships, proven track record, and comprehensive expertise across traditional and emerging real estate sectors.” The corporation expressed confidence that his skills and experience will allow them to increase their market share and strengthen partnerships with critical institutional and corporate clients throughout Southeast Asia.

    Questions & Answers

    Who is Indran Thana?
    Indran Thana is an experienced investment banker who has previously worked for UBS, DBS, and Maybank, among others. In June 2026, he will join Citi as the managing director and head of their ASEAN real estate business.

    What will be Thana’s role at Citi?
    As the managing director and ASEAN head of real estate for Citi, Thana will be expected to use his extensive expertise in the real estate sector to increase Citi’s market share and strengthen existing partnerships with key clients across Southeast Asia.

    What previous positions has Thana held?
    Thana has held several high-ranking positions in financial industries. Notably, he was previously the managing director and head of real estate, lodging & leisure for Asia at UBS.

  • Vietnam auto production ranks 4th in Southeast Asia

    Vietnam auto production ranks 4th in Southeast Asia

    Vietnam ranks fourth in Southeast Asia in auto production in the first 10 months at 362,000 units, up 16.4% year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office.

    Thailand leads the region with nearly 1.6 million units made in the period, followed by Indonesia, 1.2 million, and Malaysia, 567,700, according to the ASEAN Automotive Federation.

    Many auto factories have recently been established in Vietnam, including Toyota, Honda, Ford, Kia, and Hyundai. Vietnam company VinFast has also been expanding with a focus on the global electric vehicle market.

    Some brands such as Skoda (Czech) and Chery (China) are planning to assemble cars in Vietnam through domestic partners in the next 1-2 years.

    Vietnam also imports cars from the regional leaders Thailand and Indonesia.

    Vietnam also ranked first in year-on-year auto sales growth in the first 10 months at 52.2%, followed by Malaysia at 50.7%.

    The country saw 322,963 units sold, against the leader Indonesia’s 851,413.

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  • Thailand partners with Huawei to launch ASEAN’s first 5G smart hospital

    Thailand partners with Huawei to launch ASEAN’s first 5G smart hospital

    Thailand Office of The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), Siriraj Hospital, and Huawei Technologies (Thailand) Co., Ltd. jointly launched the “Siriraj World Class 5G Smart Hospital.”

    Thailand General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, presided over the inauguration ceremony alongside Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, Minister of Digital Economy and Society, Prof. Dr. Prasit Watanapa, MD, Dean of Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital Mahidol University, Colonel Natee Sukonrat, Ph.D, Vice-Chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, Han Zhiqiang, Ambassador of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Thailand, Abel Deng, Chief Executive Officer of Huawei Thailand, as well as Assoc. Prof. Visit Vamvanij, MD, Director of Siriraj Hospital, Assoc. Prof. Cherdchai Nopmaneejumruslers, Vice Director of Siriraj Hospital.

    This project marks the first and largest 5G smart hospital project in Thailand and the ASEAN region. It aims to bring more efficient and convenient experience to patients by introducing technologies such as 5G, cloud, and artificial intelligence, and promote Siriraj Hospital to become a model for smart hospitals in Thailand and the world. At the same time, Siriraj Hospital and Huawei will establish a Joint Innovation Lab to incubate innovative 5G applications. Currently, the two parties have started piloting 5G portable medical boxes, 5G unmanned vehicle, 5G medical carts, and 5G smart hospital beds. It is expected that 30 5G medical applications will be incubated and promoted nationwide in 2022.

    General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister, addressed the national policy on 5G technology and digital economy, stating, “The Thai government understands the importance of technology, successfully drafting a plan for Digital Thailand, and today is an important first step in the utilization of digital technologies and 5G in the medical field. This will help reduce processes for medical personnel, decrease overall risk, and will improve the effectiveness and efficacy of healthcare for patients. We will use Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital as a pilot project with the aim of expanding to other hospitals in the future. We admire Siriraj Hospital and Mahidol University, and would like to thank Huawei, NBTC, private organizations, and all other partners involved in this project. We hope the project will act as a blueprint for all smart hospitals in Thailand going forward.”

    Prof. Dr. Prasit Watanapa, MD, Dean of Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital Mahidol University, shared the background and development of implementing Siriraj’s Smart Hospital Project with 5G and artificial intelligence (AI) to build a model for smart hospitals in collaboration with its partners – introducing 5G, cloud, AI, and digital disruption technologies for application in prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation to enhance the quality and productivity of medical services, bring about good experiences while using its services, provide people in remote areas with better opportunities to access advanced tertiary health care services, as well as minimize the disparity and serve as a model for new generations of medical services to the global public health industry. In addition, an innovation lab and other innovative platforms were also established to cultivate innovation projects in the future.

    Colonel Natee Sukonrat, Ph.D., Vice-Chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, addressed the NBTC’s support of the project by saying that “The NBTC, as the regulatory body of broadcasting and telecommunications businesses, has a key mission for licensing frequencies to accommodate high speed wireless communications in the 5G era, to promote the national telecommunications infrastructure development, and introduce the extension and utilization of technologies to various sectors. This is in line with the government’s policy after the National 5G Committee resolved to approve the pioneer Smart Hospital project as a prototype project for 5G application and foresaw the potential of Siriraj Hospital – equipped with specialists and fully-integrated medical equipment – as being instrumental in development into a smart hospital to produce apparent results.”

    Since the beginning of the pandemic, Siriraj Hospital and Huawei have established long-term cooperation in 5G technology development and application. In June 2020, Siriraj Hospital cooperated with Huawei Thailand to launch 5G self-driving vehicles for contactless delivery of medical supplies. In December 2020, Huawei signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with Siriraj Hospital to accelerate the intelligent operation of Siriraj Hospital using digital technologies such as 5G, including patient monitoring, diagnosis, and data collection, and provide technical training for doctors in the hospital. In 2020, Siriraj won the award from CommunicAsia Awards in the category of “Most Innovative 5G Trial in Asia Pacific Region.”

    Mr. Abel Deng, Chief Executive Officer of Huawei Technologies (Thailand) Co., Ltd., highlighted that “Huawei has collaborated with Siriraj Hospital to transform it into a world class 5G Smart Hospital, and introduced the Innovation Lab at Srisavarindira Building as part of its 5G infrastructure project for Siriraj Hospital last year. This signifies a model for upgrading Thailand’s public health industry in the future and contributes to Siriraj’s transition to becoming a smart hospital, in line with Huawei’s mission to Grow in Thailand, Contribute to Thailand.”

    This cross-sector collaboration will enhance and upgrade the services of Siriraj Hospital to progress it to become a smart medical center using digital technologies based on 5G, AI, big data infrastructure, and cloud edge processing for the purpose of patient tracking, disease diagnosis by AI on cloud, data storage and analysis, and allocation of resources.

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  • HSBC Bolsters ASEAN Sustainability

    HSBC Bolsters ASEAN Sustainability

    HSBC strengthens its sustainability-related capabilities in Southeast Asia with the appointment of a newly created role.

    Kelvin Tan has been named head of sustainable finance and investments, ASEAN, according to a statement, reporting to Singapore chief executive Kee Joo Wong.

    Based in Singapore, Tan will be tasked with supporting Singapore-based clients with their low carbon transition needs. He will oversee the provision of sustainability-linked finance, support the development of innovative climate solutions, lead cross-business and cross-market collaboration across the bank’s ASEAN franchises and enhance employee education on sustainability.

    Tan was most recently CEO of HSBC Thailand, a role he held since 2015.

    According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), ASEAN is projected to experience some of the most significant temperature increases worldwide which, if left unaddressed, could reduce regional GDP by up to 11 percent by the end of the century.

    The region is also facing a $100 billion per year infrastructure gap, ADB added, which may have worsened during the pandemic.

    Southeast Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to climate change-related natural disasters. If nothing is done, the environmental, social and economic impact of climate change will be profound, Wong said. Tan’s extensive experience in Singapore and across ASEAN markets, as well as his proven commercial banking ability, makes him the perfect candidate to ensure we take further strides towards a more strategic and coordinated approach.

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  • Standard Chartered Adds ASEAN Private Banker

    Standard Chartered Adds ASEAN Private Banker

    Standard Chartered added a private banker focused on the south and southeast Asia market, joining most recently from Bank of Singapore.

    Standard Chartered Private Bank appoints Lawrence Goh as managing director and deputy market head for ASEAN and South Asia, according to a statement.

    Based in Singapore, Goh reports to Cedric Lizin, regional head, private banking ASEAN & South Asia and global head of global South Asian community.

    Goh has 20 years of experience in the financial sector including five in asset management and the last fifteen in private wealth management, specifically in the ASEAN region. He was most recently at Bank of Singapore where he spent 12 years covering various southeast Asia markets. Previously, he also worked for Citi Private Bank covering ultra-high net worth individuals and families in Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Australia.

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  • Vietnam cashless transactions among lowest in ASEAN

    Vietnam cashless transactions among lowest in ASEAN

    Cash transactions remain highly popular in Vietnam compared to other ASEAN countries as it has low banking penetration. A new Standard Chartered report says Vietnam has the lowest bank account ratio in six ASEAN countries at 30.8 percent of the population aged 15 and up.

    This ratio is 34.5 percent in the Philippines, 48.9 percent in Indonesia and 81.6 in Thailand. Credit card ownership in Vietnam accounts for only 4.1 percent of the population, compared to 9.8 percent in Thailand. The debit card ownership ratio, meanwhile, is 26.8 percent, lower than Indonesia at 30.9 percent and Malaysia at 73.8 percent.

    Only 3.5 percent of the Vietnamese population have a mobile money account, while this ratio is 10.9 in Malaysia.

    Even though the country’s e-commerce industry has been growing at a double-digit rate in recent years, 90.2 percent of online purchases are paid with cash, the report said. This ratio is highest, compared to only 47 percent in the Philippines where the percentage of the population with bank accounts is only slightly higher than that of Vietnam.

    “Although there is a rise in alternative electronic means of payments in the region, cash still dominates. Apart from Singapore, the more traditional means of banking and payments remain more popular for the rest of ASEAN,” the report said.

    The reasons for high cash usage, Standard Chartered said, is a lack of understanding of how digital payments methods work and how to start using them.

    Others included concerns over the confidentiality of financial records and the perception that cash is still the simplest and most straightforward payment method, the bank said.

    But there is still a lot of potential for cashless payment to grow in Vietnam, the report said, noting that with over 70 million mobile users and 64 million internet users, e-wallet payments are set to gain more traction in the coming time.

    There are over 20 e-wallet apps in Vietnam, while foreign operators such as Samsung Pay, Alipay, and Amazon have also entered the local market to tap the large potential, the report said.

    The value of e-wallets transactions in 2017 exceeded VND53 trillion ($2.2 billion), an increase of 64 percent from the previous year, according to the State Bank of Vietnam.

    The government is striving to increase cashless payment in the country. A resolution issued in January recommended that cashless transactions made viable for all urban household bill payments by the end of this year, prioritizing mobile payments and payment via card readers.

    Ho Chi Minh City this week has instructed all schools, hospitals and many others to accept non-cash payments.

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  • Viettel deploys Vietnam’s first 5G base stations

    Viettel deploys Vietnam’s first 5G base stations

    Vietnamese military-run operator Viettel has installed Vietnam’s first 5G base stations in Hanoi ahead of planned 5G trials.

    The operator has deployed three test 5G base stations at various offices, and expects to switch them on for trials in early May.

    Viettel plans to test 70 5G base stations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in June in preparation for a large-scale deployment, the report states.

    Viettel plans to be one of the early adopters of 5G, targeting a commercial launch in 2020. Viettel is taking the lead in the deployment of the technology in the market.

    At the recent ASEAN Conference on 5G in Vietnam, minister of information and communications Nguyen Manh Hung said 5G represents an opportunity for Vietnam to change its global rankings by stimulating growth in the digital economy.

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  • New Head of Swiss Business Hub in Singapore

    New Head of Swiss Business Hub in Singapore

    The Swiss Embassy in Singapore appointed a new Head of the Swiss Business Hub for the ASEAN region.

    Renee Koh joined the Swiss Embassy already in November 2018 as the new Head of the Swiss Business Hub for the ASEAN region, according to a news release on Thursday.

    The Swiss Business Hub ASEAN is part of the Embassy of Switzerland in Singapore with antenna offices in the Embassies of Switzerland in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Vietnam (Hanoi) and at the Consulate General of Switzerland in Ho Chi Minh City.

    The Swiss Business Hub facilitates commercial relations between Switzerland and ASEAN. Its activities are supported by Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE), which has been officially commissioned by the Swiss government to promote exports and investments.

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  • New Honda Accord For ASEAN Markets Revealed

    New Honda Accord For ASEAN Markets Revealed

    The tenth generation Honda Accord has been revealed for the ASEAN markets and the all-new sedan is more compact than its predecessor while offering more generous cabin space. Interestingly, the new generation ASEAN-spec Accord is similar to the North American version in design that has been on sale since 2017. The latter model has usually been bolder and sportier in terms of appearance, and it’s nice to see the ASEAN model borrowing those traits. This is also the version of the new Honda Accord that India will get, possibly by next year.

    With respect to dimensions, the 2019 Honda Accord is shorter in length, while the wheelbase has gone up over the ninth generation version. The new Accord is 13 mm shorter at 4920 mm, while the wheelbase stands at 2830 mm, up by 54 mm. The new version is also 10 mm wider than the previous gen Accord while the roofline has been lowered by 15 mm that lends a coupe-like appearance.

    The tenth generation Honda Accord gets an imposing design language with the thick chrome bar on the grille with the giant ‘H’ in the centre. The car gets full-LED headlamps with daytime running lights and the fog lamps too are LED equipped. The coupe roofline takes prominence at the sides with a chrome lining running through, and also gets the diamond cut alloy wheels. The rear sports the new C-shaped LED taillights that we first saw on the new generation Civic globally and the boot comes with an integrated spoiler for the sporty appearance.

    Inside, the ASEAN-spec 2019 Honda Accord gets a familiar treatment with the flat-bottom, multi-function steering wheel, floating infotainment system and a semi-digital instrument console. The seats are upholstered in leather and are finished in brown, creating a nice contrast over the black dashboard. The leather upholstery also extends to the door panels and centre console in the car. Like the current version, the new Accord is loaded on tech and comes with climate control, electric sunroof, heads-up display, front and rear parking sensors, 360-degree camera, cross traffic monitoring, wireless smartphone charging, Honda Smart Parking Assist System with auto parallel and perpendicular parking. The car also gets the Honda Sensing Suite that adds a bunch of safety aids to the sedan.

    The all-new Honda Accord will be offered with two engine options including the 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine that churns out 188 bhp and 243 Nm of the peak torque, while there is also the 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol motor that is paired with electric motors on the hybrid version. The combined output on the new Accord Hybrid is rated at 213 bhp. It is the hybrid version that India is likely to get and will replace the current Accord Hybrid already on sale here.

  • Axiata Digital joins Singtel’s cross-border m-payment alliance

    Axiata Digital joins Singtel’s cross-border m-payment alliance

    Singtel Group and Malaysia’s Axiata Digital have signed an agreement to collaborate in the areas of mobile financial and digital services to promote the growth of the ASEAN digital economy. Under the agreement, Axiata Digital will join Singtel’s cross-border mobile payment alliance VIA, expanding the alliance’s footprint beyond Singapore and Thailand to Malaysia.

    Axiata Digital operates the Boost Malaysia mobile wallet, which as 3.7 million customers and 66,000 merchant points across the nation.

    In addition, the Singtel Group’s Open Platform payment gateway will partner with Axiata Digital’s API platform to enable cross-sharing of product portfolios.

    Both parties have also agreed to jointly promote and drive cross-border payments and to explore collaboration around rewards and loyalty programs.

    VIA was launched in October with Thai partners AIS and Kasikornbank. AIS is one of Singtel’s regional mobile associates. Singtel group plans to expand the VIA initiative to cover other associates Bharti Airtel in India, Globe in the Philippines, and Telkomsel in Indonesia.

    “We are delighted to welcome Boost Malaysia on board the VIA alliance, which gives us presence in an important new market. This shows the tremendous potential for us to grow cross-border mobile payments even beyond the countries where Singtel’s regional associates operate,” Singtel CEO Arthur Lang commented.

    “VIA’s continued expansion will provide consumers with the ease and convenience of using one mobile wallet to pay across multiple regional markets as they travel. We look forward to more partners joining VIA.”

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  • How ASEAN could benefit from the US-China trade war?

    How ASEAN could benefit from the US-China trade war?

    ASEAN has been urged to find ways for its member states to join hands together to cushion any possible fallout from the trade war between the United States and China.

    Against the backdrop of an escalating trade war between the US and China, Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Dr Ong Kian Ming is advocating greater cooperation between ASEAN countries to package the region to foreign investors instead of focusing on country specific promotion.

    He said Malaysia and it’s Asean counterparts should look at ways as a comprehensive unit to take advantage of this situation as investors might be interested in relocating and investing more in Malaysia as a result of this trade war.

    Drawing reference to the strong two way cross border trade linkage in terms of investment and expertise exchange between Johor and Singapore, Ong said Malaysia should replicate this with other countries.

    He also noted that interest from Chinese companies to invest in Malaysia, coming through the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, has risen since last year.

    Instead of setting hub in Malaysia, Ong added that Chinese companies could use Malaysia as a connecting point to tap into the Asean market.

    He opined that the trade war between US and China is less than likely to find a resolution in the short term and Malaysia, being an open economy will be affected by the trade duel.

    In that light, Malaysia should be open to investments and ratify trade agreements such as RCEP and CPTPP, which are yet to be signed in order to strengthen its stance on remaining open to trade.

    “As tariffs have gone down, the non-tariff measures has also gone down. That is why we need to have a greater push among the governments in Asean with the help of the business sector to come in and advice the government on the challenges they face so that we can remove or reduce some of the regulatory red tape with regards to the non-tariff measures,” he said referring to non-tariff barriers.

    Ong said in that regard, ASEAN is working together to compile a database of non-tariff measures so that the trade bloc could gather some of the regulatory and bureaucratic issues faced by companies when setting shop in another ASEAN state.

    International Trade and Industry Minister Darell Leiking urged all the relevant agencies in Malaysia to strive to reduce bureaucracy so as to facilitate more investments into the country.

    He also asked for all chambers of commerce within ASEAN to stand together and start trading with each other during a meeting with members of the Malaysia-Thailand Chamber of Commerce (MTCC) earlier last week.

    Retailers across the region do not see any immediate impact on their business; however, it is worth monitoring exchange rates, as RMB value might represent a variable to consider while working on price architecture.

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  • ASEAN Tourism Ministers Stir the Pot for Gastro Tourism in Southeast Asia for 2018

    ASEAN Tourism Ministers Stir the Pot for Gastro Tourism in Southeast Asia for 2018

    The ASEAN Tourism Forum ended on a high 26 January, with ASEAN tourism ministers itemising a list of achievements for the region’s robust travel and tourism sector.

    Lauding the completion of a strong VisitASEAN@50 campaign in 2017, which generated a better than expected response, ASEAN’s 10 tourism ministers were optimistic about new marketing campaigns for ASEAN tourism in 2018 and beyond.

    The ministers revealed the following new priorities.

    There will be a new emphasis on promoting the many aspects of gastronomic travel, as outlined in the minsters’ Joint Declaration on Gastronomy and Tourism. The declaration notes that, “gastronomic tourism helps to create a strong sense of place for branding and marketing destinations, and also assists in maintaining and preserving local heritage and identity, and protecting biodiversity”.

    Cruise tourism will be developed further due to its high economic impacts. There will be renewed focus on the effectiveness of destination management, specifically environmental and social issues and the welfare of local communities that cruise tourism touches.

    Cross border bus and coach traffic will also be promoted further, following an agreement by ASEAN Transport Ministers to ease restrictions. The ministers noted that recommendations from studies on recognising domestic driving licences in neighbouring ASEAN countries could boost tourism significantly, especially if there were road enhancements along major tourism corridors.

    Ministers noted that the quality of work supplied by tourism professionals throughout Southeast Asia will continue to rise, in part, due to the completion of all 242 ‘toolboxes’ for job training. Jakarta will host a permanent secretariat in order to improve and unite tourism industry standards across ASEAN.

    Positive Legacy of VisitASEAN@50 Campaign
    The Tourism Ministers at ATF were buoyed by public and travel industry response to VisitASEAN@50 campaign in 2017. Based on preliminary figures from member states, ASEAN is expected to receive 125 million international visitors, exceeding the target of 121 million international tourist arrivals to the region set for VisitASEAN@50.

    If confirmed, this new record will indicate a growth of 8.4 per cent from 2016. Arrivals were dominated by intra-ASEAN travel, accounting for 42 per cent of total international arrivals.

    Targets for length of stay and revenue were also achieved, with ASEAN averaging 7.98 days of stay for international tourists, generating an estimated US$93 billion from tourism in 2017.

    “As we celebrate this most recent success,” said Weerasak Kowsurat, Minister for Tourism and Sports of Thailand, who chaired the Ministers’ meeting, “we still recognise the scale of the task before us and the urgency in enhancing our competitiveness to achieve sustainable development. We must therefore ensure that we unite to create the synergy which brings about inclusive growth and that none of us is left behind.”

    ATF 2019 will be held in Halong Bay, Viet Nam in January next year. The 2020 edition will be in Brunei Darussalam.

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  • Korean retailers shifting to ASEAN from China

    Korean retailers shifting to ASEAN from China

    Lotte, Shinsegae and other retailers in Korea have been shifting their focus to Southeast Asia as it has become difficult to conduct business in China amid deteriorating Korea-Sino ties.

    The increasing number of middle-class consumers in Vietnam and other countries has also encouraged the retailers to establish a larger presence in the rapidly-growing region.

    The exodus from the Chinese mainland has been accelerating as the Chinese government shows no signs of easing economic retaliation against Korean firms and their products because of Seoul’s decision to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery here.

    Of the Korean retailers, Lotte Group has engaged most actively in the Southeast Asian markets, pushing ahead with its plan to carry out multi-complex construction projects in Southeast Asia as the group’s new growth engine.

    Lotte Mart, the hypermarket brand of the nation’s largest retailer, is currently operating 45 stores in Indonesia and 13 in Vietnam, industry sources said. It will also open another store in Lampung Province, Indonesia, in December 2017.

    In September 2014, Lotte built the Lotte Center in Hanoi, Vietnam. The 65-story multi-complex offers the group’s various shopping and accommodation brands, including Lotte Department Store, Lotte Mart and Lotte Hotel.

    Lotte is building a large-size shopping mall with a gross floor area of 200,000 square meters in Hanoi, with completion scheduled for 2020. It is also reviewing its plans to invest about 2 trillion won (US$1.74 billion) to build another 100,000-square meter multi-complex in Ho Chi Minh City.

    Lotte Duty Free, the group’s duty free store affiliate, has also recently entered Vietnam. It partnered with a local retailer to establish the Phu Khanh Duty Free at the Da Nang International Airport, and the company official said it has a similar plan to open business in other major cities in Vietnam.

    Shinsegae Group’s discount chain brand E-Mart is also shifting to Southeast Asian markets.

    It has officially announced its exit from the Chinese market, and chose Vietnam as its new overseas growth engine. E-Mart opened its first store in the Go Bap area of Ho Chi Minh City, in December 2015, and is planning to open its second store in the city soon.

    The E-Mart Go Bap store recorded 41.9 billion sales the previous year to exceed its sales target by 20 percent. Its sales performance also marked 25.8 billion won during the first half of this year, up 27.5 percent from the same period the previous year.

    It signed an MOU deal with Ho Chi Minh City last year to invest $200 million in September, and an E-Mart official said it will enter Laos, Indonesia and Cambodia soon.

    GS Retail, the nation’s convenience store brand is also entering Southeast Asian markets.

    GS Retail, which operates the GS25 convenience store chain, has recently established a joint venture with Vietnamese SonKim Group. Taking 30 percent in shares, GS Retail plans to open its first store in Ho Chi Minh City.

    GS Retail opened its first GS Supermarket in Indonesia in October 2017.

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  • ASEAN signs free trade, investment pacts with Hong Kong

    ASEAN signs free trade, investment pacts with Hong Kong

    Hong Kong on Sunday signed free trade and investment pacts with the ten-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in what one of the Chinese territory’s senior officials called a “loud and clear” vote against rising regional trade protectionism.

    The pacts conclude nearly three years of talks, are expected to take effect on January 1 at the earliest, and aim to bring “deeper and bolder” integration of market access with the bloc, said Edward Yau, Hong Kong’s commerce and development secretary.

    “In the face of protectionist sentiments in other parts of the world, these two agreements are in fact a loud and clear vote from all of us here for freer and more open trade,” Yau said.

    “Hong Kong, being a free trade promoter and advocate of a strong, rule-based multilateral trading system, will continue to take this pathway, continue to do our utmost.”

    Total merchandise trade between Hong Kong and ASEAN was HK$833 billion ($107 billion) last year, official figures show. Total services trade was HK$121 billion ($16 billion) in 2015.

    The ASEAN Hong Kong China Free Trade Agreement (AHKCFTA) was signed on the sidelines of a summit of the regional grouping in the Philippine capital of Manila.

    It came after leaders attending an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Vietnam agreed to tackle “unfair trade practices” and “market distorting subsidies” in a statement on Saturday that bore the imprint of U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the global trade landscape.

    That summit offered a contrast between the vision of U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy and a traditional consensus favouring multinational deals that China now seeks to champion.

    While Hong Kong already has one of the world’s freest and most open economies, the pacts will see many ASEAN countries gradually eliminate or slash customs duties on goods from the former British colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

    Professional services are also expected to benefit, with increased investment flows, Yau added.

    The ASEAN grouping includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

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  • Interpol op unveils thousands of C2 servers in Asean

    Interpol op unveils thousands of C2 servers in Asean

    Nearly 9,000 botnet command and control (C2) servers and hundreds of compromised websites – including government portals – were identified during a groundbreaking INTERPOL-led cybercrime operation involving public and private sectors across ASEAN.

    The operation was carried out from the INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation (IGCI) in Singapore, the research and development facility of the world’s largest police organization.

    Cybercrime investigators from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam gathered together at the IGCI to exchange information on specific cybercrime situations in their respective countries. An additional cyber intelligence report was contributed by China.

    Experts from Kaspersky Lab cooperated with the INTERPOL to share fresh cyberthreat discoveries and to formulate recommended actions along with six other private companies, namely Cyber Defense Institute, Booz Allen Hamilton, British Telecom, Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, and Trend Micro.

    Being the only vendor able to detect the infection at the time, Kaspersky Lab provided the INTERPOL team with an exclusive report on a WordPress plugin vulnerability that has affected thousands of websites in the region, including those belonging to government agencies, universities, NGOs, and private businesses.

    The vulnerability allowed perpetrators to inject malicious codes to over 5,000 legitimate webpages around the globe and redirect the users to advertising pages of counterfeit goods. The vulnerability also allowed other types of malicious activity such as potentially unwanted programs (PUP) downloads, password brute-forcing, and proxy among others.

    Kaspersky Lab has also furnished the IGCI with an extensive list of 8,800 botnet C2 servers found to be active in ASEAN countries, as retrieved from the Kaspersky Security Network and Botnet C&C Threat Feed. Formed from the words “robot” and “network”, a botnet is a zombie network of thousands or millions of Internet-connected devices (such as PCs, smartphones, tablets, routers, smart toys, or other gadgets) that are hacked and infected with a special malware so that these could be controlled by a cybercriminal to deliver cyberattacks.

    The botnets data shared by Kaspersky Lab covered various malware families, specifically those targeting financial organizations, spreading ransomware, launching distributed-denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, distributing spam, and enabling other criminal activities. Investigations into the C2 servers are currently ongoing.

    The operation’s findings also include the confirmation of nearly 270 websites infected with a malware code which exploited a vulnerability in the website design application. Among the victims of malware infection were several government websites which may have stored some personal data of its citizens.

    A number of phishing website operators were also discovered such as one with links to Nigeria. One cybercriminal based in Indonesia selling phishing kits via the Darknet had been ascertained to have posted tutorial videos on YouTube showing customers how to use the illegal software.

    According to IGCI Executive Director Noboru Nakatani, the operation was ideal as it demonstrated a highly effective and beneficial public-private partnership in the fight against cybercrime. “Sharing intelligence was the basis of the success of this operation, and such cooperation is vital for long term effectiveness in managing cooperation networks for both future operations and day-to-day activity in combating cybercrime,” said Nakatani.