The road ahead for venture capitalists

Published Thu, Mar 19, 2020 · 09:50 PM

PRIVATE capital has rushed into South-east Asia's venture funds, chasing yield in a low-interest rate climate. Too much liquidity, too few good deals, was the happy problem.

Is it still a great time to be a venture capitalist? Not so fast. When record dry powder meets macro headwinds, the hustle gets harder, as we find out from Singapore venture capitalists, in Brunch this Saturday in The Business Times Weekend.

Payments fintech Transferwise jolted the money movement business when it "experimented" with an attempt to dodge hefty fees that big banks typically charge for international money transfers. Chief executive and co-founder Kristo Kaarmann tells The Raffles Conversation why every move they make must be about staying viable and breaking even.

Are we there yet? As markets continue to swing wildly, no one will hazard a guess as to where the bottom lies. In This Time Is Different, our columnist explains what investors can look for to gauge a stock-market bottom. Also in our Wealth & Investing pages, CFA Singapore Insights spells out why trust is integral to keeping the wheels of the financial market turning.

As governments lock down whole cities and put in place strict curbs on entry into countries, the travel industry is falling into a deep crisis. A Singapore travel entrepreneur shares his thoughts on how the beleaguered trade can start to help itself up.

Much of the world is on lockdown, and increasingly, it's feeling as though we are closing in on ourselves. Our Sass & The City column explores ways to deal with isolation.