Doctor Anywhere founder is EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2022 Singapore

HEALTHTECH startup Doctor Anywhere’s founder and chief executive officer Lim Wai Mun has been named the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2022 Singapore (EOY).

The telemedicine provider won in the healthcare services category and was picked from five other winners in their respective categories.

Lim will go on to compete with other global contenders at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year, to be held in June next year.

The EOY is organised by professional services organisation, EY. The gala for the 21st edition of the award was held at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore, on Tuesday (Nov 29), where Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong was the guest of honour.

The winners were selected from 140 nominations by an independent judging panel, based on four globally benchmarked criteria – entrepreneurial spirit, growth, purpose and impact.

The chairperson of the judging panel, Singapore Business Federation chief executive Lam Yi Young, praised Lim’s courage to leave his corporate role to pursue his vision of providing the elderly with improved access to healthcare.

A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU

Monday, 3.30 pm

Garage

The hottest news on all things startup and tech to kickstart your week.

Sign Up

“The courage to embrace the risk of leaving a corporate role to pursue his idea, tenacity in overcoming market barriers at a time when telemedicine was yet to be widely accepted as well as continued innovation in growing the ecosystem of services, are truly exemplary,” he said.

He noted that being an entrepreneur has fundamentally been about a “relentless focus” on innovation and purpose to drive societal impact. “For the healthcare industry, the past two years have been an especially trying time, but it has also propelled it to a new, digital era of better and efficient healthcare,” he added.

Previous overall award winners include biotechnology startup Mirxes’ co-founders Zhou Lihan, Zou Ruiyang and chief investment officer Isaac Ho in 2021 as well as Secretlab co-founder and chief executive Ian Ang in 2020.

Five other EOY category award winners also vied for the top award:

• Financial technology: Akshay Garg, co-founder and group CEO, FinAccel

• Advanced manufacturing: Julian Ng, CEO and executive director, Grand Venture Technology

• Biotechnology: Kane Black, chief executive, Inex Innovate

• Food and beverage solutions: Jonathan Lim, CEO, Oddle

• Environmental solutions: Melissa Tan, CEO, Wah & Hua

In his opening remarks, EY Asean regional managing partner and Singapore and Brunei country managing partner Liew Nam Soon noted that the key themes of digital innovation and purpose have emerged in the entrepreneurial landscape over the last two decades of the awards.

“Many of our winning entrepreneurs also embody a clear sense of purpose, as they stay sharp on growth. It is this sense of purpose that keeps them grounded in navigating the challenges of entrepreneurship and the unpredictability of economic conditions,” he said.

Two other awards were given out as well – the EY Family Business Award of Excellence and EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence award.

The EY Family Business Award of Excellence was presented to Agrocorp International, a wholesaler which transitioned to being a agricultural commodity and food solutions provider.

The award is jointly selected by knowledge partners, Business Families Institute @ Singapore Management University and the Insead Wendel International Centre for Family Enterprise.

“Family enterprises form the bedrock of many economies. Agrocorp International is a second-generation company that has been successful in preserving the company and family values, while maintaining a strong sense of innovation and environmental sustainability,” EY’s Liew said.

The EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence was presented to Keeree Kanjanapas of BTS Group Holdings.

“Committed to do what is right, he has led BTS to be the first carbon-neutral rail company, and continues to regularly give back to the community,” Liew said.