Tag: Southeast Asia

Singapore – Tech conglomerate Sea, is reportedly shutting down several projects, as well as having staff number cuts, according to a report by Reuters.

Sources told Reuters that its gaming livestream business and its development arm Garena would be cut, as well as staff working at Booyah!, a gaming livestream and community app, would be let go and the app would no longer be updated.

In addition, Sea Labs, the tech conglomerate’s development arm, was shutting some of its biggest experimental projects and cutting staff, including blockchain and public cloud projects.

In a statement to Reuters, Sea said that they have made some changes to improve efficiency in their operations that impact a number of roles, as well as focusing on the long-term strength of their ecosystem.

Sea is the parent company of regional e-commerce giant Shopee.

Meanwhile, some of Garena’s popular developed games include League of Legends, Arena of Valor, Point Blank, FIFA Online 3, and Free Fire, which was banned in India, after government officials allege that data collected from Free Fire was sent back to servers in China.

Singapore – Digital media platform in SEA, RICE Media, has partnered with Falcon Media, an Out-Of-Home (OOH) media company specialising in large format outdoor advertising billboards across Singapore, with the aim to display its impactful storytelling and insightful journalism in a much wider reach across Singapore. 

Through the partnership, RICE Media will be showcasing its video content on multiple digital screens outdoors, including Fortune Centre, Wilkie Edge, and Sim Lim Tower, as well as KINEX. It will be rotating its slate of video content on Falcon Media’s digital billboards for a period of one year. The campaign kicks off with a story about Ammar, a Singaporean dancer, filmmaker, and actor, whose deafness never got in the way of his dreams. 

Moreover, the partnership provides opportunities for the Singaporean publication to establish its commitment to telling stories, perspectives and insights from across SEA. It is also Falcon Media’s first-ever partnership with a publication. 

Khai Asyraf, RICE Media’s managing director, initiated the collaboration to offer RICE’s partners a 360-marketing solution by utilising multiple channels and touchpoints beyond the online realm. He noted that in this ever-changing digital era, strategic partnerships are essential for media companies to attain sustainable growth. 

“With this partnership in place, RICE wants to uphold our brand credibility while maintaining our edge and competitiveness in the media market. Falcon Media has enabled and accelerated this mission as we pursue audience growth and expansion across Southeast Asia,” said Asyraf. 

Meanwhile, Bernice Heng, Falcon Media’s managing director, commented that she is excited to kick off the partnership after finding immense synergy and potential in working with RICE.

“With RICE Media’s content creation offerings and digital media advertising options, they are an excellent fit for us to delve into the online realm. This partnership offers our clients the ability to reach out to their audience outdoors on both a macro and personal level,” said Heng.

In July 2022, RICE Media, has announced two leadership promotions, which include Asyraf, former client services director, being its new managing director, and Ilyas Sholihyn, former branded content strategist, being its new editor-in-chief.

Singapore – Full-service global communications agency Redhill has acquired Singapore-based sustainability-focused storytelling company VS Story to further strengthen its sustainability offerings to meet its clients’ rising needs. 

Through the acquisition, VS Story will be extending Redhill’s sustainability arm providing creative visual storytelling solutions centred around social impact and sustainability for the agency and its clients.

Founded in 2016, VS Story champions the global movement toward an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy. It has demonstrated a track record in delivering high visibility to important social and environmental issues through impactful visual storytelling.

Moreover, VS Story’s portfolio includes storyboarding, filming, photography, and post-production of various projects such as authentic documentaries, staff engagement videos, visual graphics and animation, infographics, and aerial videography, amongst others. It boasts a partner portfolio that includes Essilor Luxottica, Danone, PayPal, and MAS Holdings, as well as Winnow Solutions, and Linkedin, amongst others.

Jacob Puthenparambil, CEO of Redhill, commented that Redhill puts sustainability at the core of their business strategy, and they are delighted to have VS Story join their team, as it has an outstanding track record of producing sustainability-led visionary impactful initiatives.

“I am confident that together we’re in a stronger position to help our clients develop creative communications strategies that deliver on their commitments to their stakeholders,” said Puthenparambil.

Meanwhile, Jacqui Hocking, CEO of VS Story, shared that they are incredibly excited to work closely with Redhill to realise their joint passion for creating genuine systemic impact, and she is looking forward to working with their clients together on creating visionary and purpose-driven narratives and initiatives that affect change and impact lives. 

“Through our collaboration, we reaffirm our commitment towards making Singapore a global centre for the circular economy, AgriTech, and sustainable finance,” said Hocking.

The acquisition signifies Redhill’s steadfast commitment to sustainability following the recent appointment of Marta Bigio, senior director of sustainability, earlier this year. It also marks the agency’s second acquisition, after acquiring Hong Kong-based Creative Consulting Group (CCG) in early 2022 as part of its continued global expansion.

Most recently, Redhill has also appointed Do Sik (DS) Kim, former senior writer at Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS), to be its new chief operating officer for its Korea operation. He will be focusing on driving local expertise and cross-market collaboration to orchestrate broader capabilities for clients and accelerate business growth — with a sharp focus on the domestic market’s thriving start-up and tech investment ecosystem.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippine-based buy-now-pay-later platform, BillEase, has partnered with OpenFabric, a technology company that builds infrastructure for payments and financial services, to launch its new integration stack for large enterprise merchants and payment gateways looking for same-day integration of BNPL service. This will allow any business to rapidly offer instalment payment plans for their customers. 

Through this solution, merchants can use BillEase’s agnostic software development kit (SDK), which is powered by OpenFabric, to easily add BillEase to their platform. The new stack allows merchant technical teams to deploy a BNPL solution in just one to three days, versus the usual integration that takes months to complete, hence saving about 95% of developer time.

Georg Steiger, CEO and co-founder of BillEase, commented that they are excited to launch this integration solution with OpenFabric to further smoothen the integration work for merchants looking for an instalment option at checkout.

“We continue to develop and launch new ways for merchants to easily launch point-of-sale financing without spending too much time and effort integrating our platform,” said Steiger.

Meanwhile, Soma Ramasamy, CEO and co-founder of OpenFabric, shared that at OpenFabric, they help fintech companies to accelerate their merchant acceptance footprint at scale via simple and quick integrations.

“We’re excited to introduce this solution with BillEase and accelerate their merchant onboarding process by providing a quick and easily implementable solution for all kinds of merchants’ shopping carts and payment platforms,” said Ramasamy.

Indonesia – Independent agency M&C Saatchi in Indonesia has its new shopper marketing and brand experience specialism called ‘M&C Saatchi Shopex’. This division is designed to deliver omnichannel shopper and brand experience solutions to clients.

The scope of services from M&C Saatchi Shopex includes shopper strategy, retail design and production, shopper technology, planogramming, interactive display technology, events and activation, metaverse solutions, and e-commerce integration (O2O), as well as shopper performance research and analytics, amongst others.

Moreover, the agency has developed a proprietary tool that measures the ‘Experience Gap’ in consumer journeys across omnichannel landscapes for any given brand. Through its services, the agency also aims to create a net-zero experience gap, where consumers experience delight through synergies in their brand experience. Measures of success, according to the agency, are metrics that improve the Net Promoter Scores (NPS) after every brand interaction, as well as improved ROAS, as every brand experience translates to commerce. Through this vertical, M&C Saatchi will also work with retailers and e-commerce platforms on the supply side, and with brands on the demand side

Commenting on the developments, Anish Daryani, founder and president director of M&C Saatchi Indonesia, said, “As a specialism, we will map and curate customer journeys, online, offline and everything in between. Not only do we have the capability of creating memorable experiences, but also measure their impact with respect to how they contribute to commerce.”

Meanwhile, Moray MacLennan, global CEO and chairman at M&C Saatchi Group, noted, “Indonesia has been one of our best-performing businesses. Innovation and capacity creation have been key to their growth. The launch of M&C Saatchi Shopex delivers on our commitment to offering connected creativity to our clients.”

The agency has brought on board Michael (Mike) Forster as managing director of M&C Saatchi Shopex. Prior to his appointment, Forster was CEO of Geometry Global Korea. In 19 years at WPP agencies, he has held end-market, regional and global leadership roles, while in his 12 years in Asia, he has run businesses in Malaysia, Hong Kong, Korea, and Indonesia

On his appointment, Forster commented, “I was seduced by the stupendous growth story of M&C Saatchi Indonesia, and was eager to be a part of it. Indonesia is far behind its consumers’ expectations around brand experience, and I’m here to pioneer a new commerce and brand experience movement in the country through M&C Saatchi Shopex.”

Daryani also shared, “We have put together a team of specialists that have mastered the art of shopper and experiential marketing across markets. In Mike, we see the leadership and experience to make M&C Saatchi Shopex one of the most profitable verticals of our business, while delivering value to our clients at many multiples over their investments.”

Jakarta, Indonesia – Global communications company Havas Group has announced the promotion of three of its senior managers in Indonesia. This is part of its growth plans in the areas of OOH and strategic business leadership.

The appointees include Verri Astra, the new head of Adcity, Havas Group’s out-of-home brand, Gayatri Utami, the new strategy director, and Kristina Wulandari, the new senior implementation director. 

Astra joined Havas in 2014 as the strategic planning, research and analytics manager, and has risen the ranks to associate strategy director before taking on his new role. In his new role, Astra will be leading the OOH division for the agency, where he will be developing strategies for OOH media, utilising data to strengthen the clients’ OOH campaign and ensuring that a ‘regular’ campaign placement becomes a more strategic campaign.

Meanwhile, Utami will be continuing to lead and develop the strategic practice for the agency. Backed by strong consumer insights and an understanding of cultural nuances, Utami will be helping drive new brand strategies to elevate clients’ brand presence in Indonesia.

And lastly, Wulandari, an industry veteran of 22 years, will be continuing to manage clients’ KPI deliverables and groom the next generation of leaders. Having been with Havas since 2011, Wulandari’s experience spans multiple categories and has worked with clients such as Indofood and Godrej. 

Speaking about the promotions, Satyajit Sen, CEO of Havas Group Indonesia, said, “Our success as an agency is determined by the strength of our people. These are all well-deserved promotions that have played an instrumental role in powering the growth of our business in Indonesia and will continue to play a crucial part in driving the momentum.”

Malaysia – In conjunction with Malaysia’s 65th Independence Day, also known as Merdeka, local telco provider Celcom has launched a new campaign to remind Malaysians to embrace the spirit upon which Merdeka was founded – happiness. 

Themed ‘Bahagia Kita’, which translates to ‘We are happy’ in English’, the campaign explores the heart of the country’s harmony and happiness – the core values of kindness, acceptance, and understanding upheld by every Malaysian, as foretold by Bapa Kemerdekaan Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s Father of Independence. With inclusivity in mind, Celcom also aims to honour all cultures from East to West Malaysia by celebrating both Merdeka & Malaysia Day.

The thematic film follows the journey of 11-year-old Haikal. After he’s assigned to write a poem about Independence for school, he sets off on an eye-opening adventure around his neighbourhood. Haikal witnesses everyday Malaysian scenes and immerses himself in many multicultural experiences, and on this journey, he learns that all Malaysians are inherently kind and that the little things are what contribute to the nation’s happiness.

“As a homegrown organisation that believes in advancing society, the mantra of encouraging Malaysians to embrace happiness will help Malaysians advance positively into a future that we would be all proud of,” said Celcom. 

Moreover, in this festive season, Celcom will also help Malaysians stay happily connected with limited-time offerings, including free devices, unlimited Internet, flexible plans, and free home fibre for life, amongst others.

Manila, Philippines – Uniquecorn Strategies, a PR agency based in the Philippines, has launched a new PR and marketing arm called ‘Blockceler8’, as part of a larger effort to expand its offering focused on blockchain, crypto, NFT, Web3, GameFi, and Metaverse projects.

The new marketing arm began operations with a focus on communications and marketing for cryptocurrency businesses. It employs engaging long-term marketing practices to bring cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to the forefront.

Additionally, Blockceler8 offers services that revolve around educating the audience, including full-stack public relations services, thought-leader marketing, commentary, content marketing, and branding. The agency also provides social media and forums management.

Uniquecorn Strategies said that its genuine interest in disruptive technology motivates its team of marketing experts to employ engaging strategies that will allow companies to reach more customers, partners, investors, and other stakeholders. The power of storytelling is central to the growth of its clients, and it wanted to bring this to its existing web3 clients, such as Tetrix Network, Moneybees, and The Mega Maxi, which will be transferred under the management of Blockceler8.

Dean Bernales, CEO and managing director of Uniquecorn Strategies, said, “The blockchain space is fueled by innovation, so as much as we like to be tech-savvy, we still want to keep its human element. Blockcele8 uses the power of information and persuasive communication to relate crypto to the masses.”

Moreover, Uniquecorn Strategies has promoted co-founder Irene Manansala as its new associate director, a step up from her position as public relations manager. In this new role, Manansala will be leading all Uniquecorn Strategies’ communications, including building the company’s reputation, managing client relationships and long-term partnerships, and developing sustainable communication strategies.

Manansala brings nearly seven years of experience working in advertising and PR to the company. She has worked with companies across various sectors, managing their projects, events, campaigns, and relationships with clientele including Johnson & Johnson (Johnson’s Baby line, Modess, Trade & Marketing, Shopper Marketing, and Retail), Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi-Aventis Philippines, Cignal TV, TV 5 Network, and Reckitt Benckiser Philippines, as well as Mead Johnson, and Petron Corporation, amongst many others.

On her appointment, Bernales commented, “Irene’s extensive communication experience with a very open and collaborative approach to team building and management is something that is necessary and of great importance, as we execute on the next chapter of our company’s future.”

Singapore – To mark Great Eastern’s 114th anniversary, the regional insurer has unveiled its new brand purpose – ‘Reach for Great’ – which expresses its promise to be a partner and enabler of its customers’ ambitions and aspirations. This brand refresh stems from extensive research involving more than 2,000 consumers across Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia done over the last two years.

Colin Chan, Great Eastern’s managing director of group marketing, shared that in 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, they rallied their customers to live Lifeproof, encouraging them to be resilient and optimistic in the face of adversity, and at the same time, they kick-started extensive research across their key markets to better understand consumer expectations of their insurance partner, and specifically from Great Eastern as their insurer of choice. 

“Findings from our research pointed towards the enablement of goals with consumers expressing the desire for us to help them in the pursuit of their financial goals and aspirations. This heightened consciousness about the need for financial wellness has been further accelerated as we move out of COVID-19 into a more endemic state of pandemic living,” he said.

To communicate this new brand positioning, Great Eastern has developed a new visual identity with a distinctive new headline typeface, colour strategy, and illustration style added to its brand palette. Taking reference from Great Eastern’s first brand logo in the 1900s, the new visuals sport a heritage crest to reflect its establishment as an inspiring and trusted insurance brand in the region. This new iconic and distinct treatment will be visible in all marketing material, which will be rolled out regionally across Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia in the next few months.

Moreover, to launch ‘Reach for Great’ in a relevant and compelling way, Great Eastern has also unveiled a new campaign and brand film featuring consumer profiles across Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia going about the unique pursuit of their own ‘greatness’. The real-life stories across the region capture the vast diversity of consumer’s goals and ambitions and show how Great Eastern is able to help them ‘Reach for Great’ through its combination of heritage, expertise, and inspiration, as the brand that believes in empowering everyone to achieve their aspirations no matter how big or small.

Chan added, “This refresh elevates our continuing and unique value proposition as a composite insurer to empower everyone to Reach for Great regardless of their aspirations, life stage or socio-economic status. We believe that Great is for everyone and that Greatness comes in many forms. Through the authentic stories of the people filmed in our brand film, we are that insurer of choice that will be there for life, to enable our customers to achieve their goals and #ReachforGreat.”

The new brand campaign is now available across free-to-air television, digital and social media, website, and out-of-home advertising across its key markets. Consumers can also interact with the brand as it rolls out a slew of product initiatives, rewards, and promotions from September onwards.

Singapore – Global financial superapp Revolut has appointed Raymond Ng, chief commercial officer at Liquid Group, to be its new CEO for Singapore. This follows Revolut’s recent launch of its crypto products in Singapore.

In his new role, Ng will be focusing on leading and building the next chapter of Revolut’s expansion in Singapore, developing and implementing the local business strategy. 

During his previous stint at Liquid Group, Ng managed product and business development and global expansion. He also held senior executive roles with large global corporations such as Microsoft, Visa, and MasterCard, as well as with tech startups.

Revolut said it is committed to establishing Singapore as one of the cornerstones of its global business and plans to establish several global product hubs.

Commenting on his appointment, Ng said, “I’m thrilled to lead the exceptionally talented team and bring Revolut’s super app offering to Singapore as we continue to develop the best financial solutions for millions in Singapore, especially those who are looking for hassle-free digital alternatives to get more from their money.”

Meanwhile, Nik Storonsky, CEO and founder of Revolut, noted, “With a wealth of experience in the mobile, payment and travel tech sectors and an outstanding track record in scaling the business across new markets in the APAC region, Raymond is an excellent fit for the role and his appointment is a major achievement in our continued mission to become the world’s first truly global financial superapp.” 

In April 2022, Revolut has appointed Charles Debonneuil as APAC general manager as it continues to focus on growth in the APAC region. Debonneuil will focus on building out Revolut’s local Growth teams and developing the business’ growth strategy, driving rapid new user acquisition in the APAC region.