Five Singapore business leaders look back on 2025

Wee Teng Wen

Wee is the founder of the Lo & Behold Group, which operates lifestyle and hospitality concepts including New Bahru and Odette. In November, the group ended its management contract with the Warehouse Hotel, even though the property received top accolades.

This year felt like a coming of age for me and the company. We’ve had to look at our portfolio with fresh eyes, and question work we’ve put years into.

But it sharpened our understanding about what we should carry forward in service of our mission to help make Singapore more lovable. It was a reminder that growth isn’t about doing more, but doing better.

After nearly 20 years of building projects that explored different facets of Singapore, that body of work enabled us to take on our biggest project to date: New Bahru is now in full bloom, and its impact on the Singapore scene has been striking.

New Bahru has shown what can happen when home-grown talent, creativity and community come together in one place.

This year also marked our first step overseas through a joint venture with Bao in London, a team we have admired for years. (Bao is a London-based Taiwanese food group with several restaurants.)

One of the clearest lessons I’m taking into 2026 is just how important it is to work with partners who share your values, have a distinct point of view, and the courage to express it.

Christmas, for me now, is a moment to slow down, take stock, and remember the people who make this city shine. For many in hospitality, the holidays mean working harder than ever so others can celebrate. I hope we all take a moment to recognise them, and to show appreciation in ways big and small.

Malcolm Koo

Koo is the chief executive officer of financial services provider CGS International Securities Singapore, which won more than 20 awards for excellence in 2025, nearly double the figure in 2024.

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Christmas has always been my favourite time of the year. It’s a moment to give thanks for the blessings we’ve received and a reminder to share those blessings with others. My hope is that Christmas brings everyone warmth, peace, good health and new opportunities in 2026.

This year passed at an extraordinary pace. There were moments when personal time with family and friends felt scarce, but the understanding and encouragement I received – both at home and from the people I work with at CGS International – made 2025 especially memorable.

From an organisational standpoint, 2025 marked a defining chapter for CGS International. In my 22 years here and across its 46-year history, this was a remarkable year. Despite a challenging equities market, we achieved the No 1 market share for equities on the Singapore Exchange and No 2 market share on Bursa Malaysia.

Our Singapore team also delivered a milestone year, winning more than 20 awards, nearly double last year’s tally, including being named Asean’s No 1 broker at the Extel Awards and Best Small- to Mid-Cap Corporate Finance House in Singapore at the Alpha Southeast Asia Best Financial Institution Awards.

Beyond performance, I remain committed to corporate social responsibility, particularly in advancing financial literacy. This year, that included meaningful collaborations such as our partnership with The Business Times and The Rice Company Ltd on the 13-19 Art Prize, alongside initiatives with Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore to expand financial literacy programmes for persons with intellectual disabilities.

As I look to 2026, the lesson is to stay focused on serving our clients and community, remain humble, keep learning, and continue improving.

Danny Loong

Loong is the CEO-founder of lifestyle brand Timbre, which marked its 20th year in 2025. He is also president of Singapore Nightlife Business Association and chairman of The Music Society, Singapore to promote local music.

This has been a year of adjustment. Across food and beverage, live music and nightlife, operators have had to respond quickly to shifting consumer behaviour, higher costs and a post-Covid environment that no longer resembles the past.

People are travelling more, spending more cautiously and engaging differently with content. For businesses, this has meant reassessing pricing, formats and operating models to stay viable.

For Timbre, the response has been to double down on placemaking as a business strategy. We focus on building destinations rather than single-purpose venues – combining food, live music and activities that encourage repeat visits.

The opening of Timbre+ Hillview this year reflects that approach. Unlike Timbre+ One North, which is more live band-driven, Hillview is designed around families and neighbourhood communities, with karaoke, events and shared spaces. These choices are deliberate: they diversify revenue streams, broaden audiences and strengthen long-term sustainability.

This year was also a significant one as Timbre marked its 20th anniversary. Over two decades, we’ve evolved from a live-music bar to a music-lifestyle-food court model that allows us to continue supporting musicians while remaining commercially sound.

The core mission -– providing a platform for local music -– has not changed. Whether it’s supporting initiatives like Gift a Guitar, creating family-friendly spaces, or building venues around shared experiences, we focus on giving people reasons to come together. 

Christmas is about kindness and appreciation. It’s a chance to thank our staff, musicians and patrons, and to remind ourselves to be kinder to the people who serve us.

For me, it’s also family time: slowing down, spending time with my three-year-old son – I became a father at 50! -– and remembering why we build these communities in the first place.

Gregory Van

Van is the CEO of Endowus, Singapore’s largest independent digital wealth adviser. In 2025, it reached a new milestone, crossing US$10 billion in client assets.

For me, 2025 was a year of clarity seeking. In a period of persistent macro uncertainty – from interest-rate cycles and geopolitical tensions to the rise of artificial intelligence – investors and businesses alike were searching for clearer, more foundational truths.

For Endowus, this reinforced our mission to bring simple, evidence-based investing to all, helping clients cut through the noise.

Going into the year, and even after the first quarter, many were projecting weak markets and fragile consumer confidence. That did not play out, despite economic and political uncertainty and a “higher-for-longer” global interest-rate environment.

Throughout the journey, we maintained our advice to clients to remain intelligently diversified, at an appropriate risk level for their specific goals, so they are properly compensated for the risks they take. Both we and our clients have seen the success of rational discipline over speculation or trying to outsmart the market.

One defining moment was the launch of our comprehensive Wealth Insights Reports across the mass affluent and private wealth segments in Singapore and Hong Kong. This defines us as not just a platform, but a partner in financial education. Another 2025 milestone was surpassing US$10 billion in client assets.

The key lesson I’m carrying into 2026 is that process trumps prediction. Markets have defied the gloomiest forecasts. Our focus remains on what we can control: being objective and disciplined in asset allocation, serving clients first and conflict-free, and aligning our actions with long-term goals.

Christmas, to me, is about re-centring on what truly matters – time with family, gratitude and giving. I hope it brings everyone a moment of peace and connection with their loved ones.

Audrey Yeo

Yeo is the president of Art Galleries Association Singapore (Agas) and founder of experimental gallery space Yeo Workshop. Agas continues to expand its public outreach with the ever-growing Singapore Gallery Month.

This year reinforced for me that Singapore’s visual arts scene works only when galleries, artists, collectors and institutions move together. No single gallery or institution can do this alone.

Through initiatives such as Singapore Gallery Month, we made a conscious effort to bring these players into closer alignment – not to compete for attention, but to collectively grow audiences and strengthen Singapore’s position internationally.

At the same time, 2025 was not without its pressures. Like many industries, the art world felt the effects of global uncertainty, rising costs and a more fragmented audience.

International shipping became significantly more expensive, and galleries worldwide had to rethink participation in overseas art fairs, becoming more selective and strategic. 

We also saw what many describe as a K-shaped economy: some segments expanding, others contracting. These conditions forced more disciplined business decisions – including whether to pursue growth abroad or deepen engagement at home, where new audiences continue to arrive.

What stayed constant, however, was the role of art itself. Even in challenging times, art continues to offer joy, reflection and human connection. Small moments – like a passer-by stopping at our exhibition in OUE Downtown Gallery and saying: “Art is priceless” – remind me why this work matters.

Christmas, for me, is a pause before the intensity of January and Singapore Art Week. It is a time for rest, gratitude and appreciation – for artists, partners and teams who make the work possible. As we look ahead, my hope is that the arts community enters the new year grounded, collaborative and optimistic.