Secretlab CEO Ian Ang is Singapore's EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2020

Singapore

SECRETLAB co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Ian Ang was named the overall winner at this year's EY Entrepreneur Of The Year (EOY) on Monday, becoming the youngest winner in the awards' 18-year history.

The 28-year-old received the award in a virtual celebration, beating two other entrepreneurs who had emerged top in their respective categories. He also clinched the EOY award in the Consumer Products category.

He set up gaming chair firm Secretlab in 2014 with co-founder Alaric Choo, after struggling to find an ergonomic chair suitable for long hours of gaming. Secretlab chairs are now used in top e-sports tournaments and by half a million customers in more than 60 countries.

The EOY Singapore awards are organised by professional services organisation EY, with The Business Times as official media partner. This year's edition, the 19th, was held virtually with Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law K Shanmugam as the guest of honour.

"To win this award among so many other great, experienced entrepreneurs is an absolute honour," said Mr Ang. "There is still much to learn, and it is still early days for Secretlab."

"There are far too many people that I'm indebted to, but I'd like to thank everyone who has contributed to our journey - staff, partners, investors and fans," he added. "Singapore will always be our home where we first started six years ago, and we're proud to be part of putting our little red dot on the world map in the e-sports industry and beyond."

Png Cheong Boon, CEO of Enterprise Singapore and chairman of the judging panel, said: "Despite his youth, Ian embodies the entrepreneurial spirit and displays the business acumen of a seasoned entrepreneur. He spotted a niche in the ergonomic gaming chair market and went on to build Secretlab into a commercial success globally.

"With the courage to drop out of university to pursue his dreams and perseverance to build a product from next to nothing, Ian demonstrates how there are multiple pathways to success, the power of ideas and the value of continual hard work."

The other two EOY category award winners were Richard Koh, founder and CEO of fintech firm M-DAQ, in the Financial Technology category, and Eric Leong, managing director and co-founder of steel solutions provider Mlion Corporation, in Industrial Solutions.

In a speech, Mr Shanmugam noted that the entrepreneurial qualities of hard work, enterprise and self-reliance, which founding father Goh Keng Swee credited with transforming Singapore from "an island-swamp into a thriving metropolis", are the same qualities needed as the nation responds to the most severe economic disruption since its independence. "From the beginning, the spirit of entrepreneurship has enabled Singapore to thrive and prosper, and by doing so, improve the lives of Singaporeans," Mr Shanmugam said. "Today's entrepreneurs are continuing this legacy."

Max Loh, Singapore and Asean managing partner, Ernst & Young LLP, commented: "Even as business activity starts to resume and recover, business must go beyond protecting what has worked well to creating what will keep them competitive and resilient in future. Our winning entrepreneurs today demonstrate what it takes to be unstoppable - strategic vision, grit and agility - even in the face of a global crisis."

Other awards presented on Monday included the EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence award, which went to Duong Ba Tran, chairman of Truong Hai Auto Corporation in Vietnam, and the EY Family Business Award of Excellence, which went to Hong Leong Group.

READ MORE: EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2020