Regional News

The International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) has reported a stable marine cargo insurance market at its annual conference in Singapore, with global cargo premiums reaching $22.64 billion in 2024—a 1.6% increase from the previous year.

Despite this growth, Mike Brews, Chair of the IUMI Cargo Committee, cautioned that uncertainty looms due to potential tariff impacts.

Brews highlighted that the cargo market’s stability is reflected in the consistent improvement of cargo loss ratios since 2018 and a benign claims environment in 2024. However, he noted that challenges such as cargo accumulations, mis-declared cargoes, the transition to net-zero, and war-related risks persist.

“The cargo market remains stable in terms of global premium income,” Brews stated, acknowledging a significant increase from China, attributed to corrections in previously under-reported insurance.

Looking forward, Brews emphasised the potential impact of tariffs, which could increase insured values and associated risks by up to 50%, particularly in North America. This could lead to shifts in trade flows, disrupting established shipping patterns and requiring insurers to adapt to new routes and risk profiles.

Despite an increase in market capacity and some market softening, Brews remains optimistic about cargo underwriting’s profitability, which continues to attract investment. However, he warned that tariffs and geopolitical tensions could pressure market stability and profitability if they reshape trade routes, costs, and volumes.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), in collaboration with AIA, has released its Asia Employee Benefits Report 2025, highlighting the significant impact of rising costs and digital transformation on employee benefits strategies across Asia. The report, which surveyed organisations in Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong, found that nearly half (49%) of respondents identified these factors as primary pressures.

Budget constraints emerged as the top challenge in designing benefits, with 63% of organisations citing it as a major issue. Understanding employee expectations followed closely, with 44% of respondents acknowledging it as a significant hurdle. The report also noted a decline in the provision of traditional insurance benefits such as life/accident insurance, hospitalisation, and surgical insurance, attributed to budget pressures.

May Leng Kwok, Head of Market Development, Global, for CIPD, emphasised the importance of aligning benefits with employee expectations: “Regularly gathering employee feedback is critical to closing this gap and ensuring benefits offerings are both valuable and relevant in today’s dynamic environment.”

David Chow, Director, Group Corporate Solutions at AIA, added, “Offering the right mix of benefits, especially in mental health and wellbeing, is more critical than ever.”

Looking ahead, employers plan to prioritise outpatient insurance, mental health, and life/accident insurance. The report underscores the need for organisations to adapt their benefits strategies to remain competitive amidst economic pressures and evolving workforce expectations.

The Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) has announced strategic partnerships with global legal content providers LexisNexis, Thomson Reuters, vLex, and Legora, set to commence on 1 October 2025. This initiative aims to broaden the accessibility of Singapore’s legal resources worldwide.

Additionally, SAL has launched LawNet 4.0, an AI-driven legal research platform, to better serve Singapore’s legal professionals.

The partnerships will allow seamless access to Singapore judgments, including the Singapore Law Reports, through these international platforms. Moreover, SAL’s collaboration with Legora will integrate its database of contract precedents, leveraging AI-assisted contract drafting and review capabilities.

LawNet 4.0 introduces several innovative features, including an AI-powered search engine developed with the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA). This tool, tailored for contract law, enhances research efficiency by providing AI-generated responses to legal queries. The platform also boasts faster response times and improved search result relevance, accommodating natural language queries.

These developments underscore SAL’s commitment to maintaining Singapore’s leadership in legal innovation and ensuring its legal resources are globally accessible. The integration of AI technologies in LawNet 4.0 is expected to significantly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of legal research for professionals in Singapore.

Eyexora has announced its launch as the first company to accelerate ophthalmology innovation using a hub-and-spoke model. The company, which is building a global portfolio, has initiated collaborations in Singapore and Europe, with its initial assets in-licensed from the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI).

The seed financing for Eyexora was led by life sciences investor ClavystBio, with contributions from leading ophthalmology experts. The company aims to advance a diversified portfolio of anterior and posterior segment therapeutics and ophthalmic devices within a $50 billion global market that serves over two billion patients.

Eyexora’s innovative approach addresses the inefficiencies of traditional drug development by centralising scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial expertise in a shared operational hub. This hub supports its subsidiaries, each dedicated to a distinct therapeutic or technology programme, enabling scalable growth whilst mitigating risk.

Headquartered in the US, Eyexora plans to establish global subsidiaries to support its business model. The company was co-founded by leaders in ophthalmology with decades of industry experience.

Eyexora’s launch marks a significant step in the evolution of ophthalmology, promising faster and more efficient delivery of eye care solutions worldwide.

Vantage Data Centres has announced a substantial $1.6 billion investment to expand its Asia Pacific (APAC) platform, led by GIC and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA). This investment will facilitate Vantage’s acquisition of a 300MW+ hyperscale data centre campus in Johor, Malaysia, enhancing its position as a leading provider of digital infrastructure in the region.

The Johor campus, located in Sedenak Tech Park, is one of Southeast Asia’s largest hyperscale data centre campuses. Originally part of Yondr Group’s portfolio, it was acquired by investment vehicles managed by DigitalBridge Group.

The campus will feature cutting-edge technologies, including direct-to-chip liquid cooling, and aims to meet EDGE certification requirements. It is strategically positioned in the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone, offering dark fibre connectivity and benefiting from competitive costs and government incentives.

Jeremy Deutsch, president of Vantage Data Centres APAC, stated, “This significant investment marks a pivotal milestone in our APAC growth journey. Adding the Johor campus to our portfolio will bring our APAC footprint to 1GW of capacity.”

The investment highlights the growing demand for digital infrastructure in the APAC region, driven by advancements in AI and cloud computing. Boon Chin Hau, chief investment officer at GIC, expressed confidence in Vantage’s ability to meet this demand, whilst Khadem AlRemeithi from ADIA noted the alignment with their strategy of investing in digitalisation-enabling infrastructure.

The acquisition and investment are expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to customary conditions. With this expansion, Vantage will have operational and planned IT capacity across Australia, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, further solidifying its role in the digital infrastructure landscape.

YY Group Holding Limited has announced the pricing of its registered offering, which includes 6.67 million ordinary shares priced at $0.60 each, alongside warrants for 10 million ordinary shares. The warrants, set at an exercise price of $0.80 per share, have a term of 3.5 years. The company expects to generate approximately $4m in gross proceeds, excluding warrant exercises and offering expenses.

The proceeds from this offering will be utilised for working capital and general corporate purposes. The offering is anticipated to close on 11 September 2025, pending customary closing conditions. This initiative is part of YY Group’s shelf registration statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in April 2025. FT Global Capital, Inc. is serving as the exclusive placement agent for this offering.

YY Group, headquartered in Singapore, operates as a technology-enabled platform providing workforce solutions and integrated facility management services across Asia and other international markets. The company leverages digital platforms and IoT systems to support industries such as hospitality, logistics, retail, and healthcare.

The offering marks a strategic move for YY Group as it continues to expand its presence and enhance service delivery across its operational regions. The company remains committed to innovation and value creation for its clients and shareholders.

ELFIGO Mobility has unveiled a new fall protection line aimed at preventing falls among the elderly in Singapore. The initiative comes in response to alarming statistics from the Singapore Medical Journal, which indicate that one in three Singaporeans aged 65 and above experience at least one fall annually, with the figure rising to one in two for those over 80. Falls account for 40% of injury-related deaths in this demographic.

The centrepiece of this new line is the FallSafe Airbag Safety Vest, designed with built-in airbags and sensors. The vest detects falls and inflates within milliseconds to cushion the impact, protecting critical areas such as the head, shoulders, chest, back, and hips.

Warren Chew, founder of ELFIGO Mobility, was inspired to develop the product after his mother was hospitalised following her second fall this year. “When she pointed out so many other elderly patients in the emergency ward with similar injuries, I knew I had to do something about it. It became a calling,” Chew explained.

Formerly known as Falcon Mobility, ELFIGO Mobility is a leading distributor of personal mobility aids in Singapore, including electric wheelchairs and mobility scooters. This new product line underscores ELFIGO Mobility’s commitment to enhancing safety and reducing injury-related fatalities among the elderly.
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Southeast Asia’s startup funding landscape experienced a significant downturn in the first half of 2025, with equity investments dropping 20.7% year-on-year to $1.85 billion across 229 deals, marking the weakest period in over six years. Despite this decline, the Southeast Asia Startup Funding Report: H1 2025, released by DealStreetAsia and Kickstart Ventures, highlights areas of resilience, including a remarkable 169% increase in funding in Vietnam and the emergence of new unicorns in Singapore and Malaysia.

The report underscores the shifting dynamics within the region, with Singapore maintaining its status as the primary fundraising hub, despite a 13% drop in deals compared to the latter half of 2024. Meanwhile, Indonesia, traditionally a growth leader, saw a dramatic 67% fall in investments to $78.5 million, placing it behind the Philippines, which raised $86.4 million. Vietnam emerged as a standout, with funding surging to $275 million, whilst Malaysia’s proceeds doubled to $196 million.

Investor caution was most pronounced at the early stage, with transactions falling to a six-year low of 219. However, late-stage activity rebounded, generating $756 million, a 70% increase, as investors concentrated on companies with proven resilience and scale. The fintech sector led with 57 transactions worth $631 million, although both volume and value were at their weakest in over six years.

The report suggests that whilst the region is undergoing a reset, the emergence of new unicorns and the rebound in late-stage deals indicate a foundation for future growth.

UOL Group Limited has announced the divestment of its commercial strata lots in Kinex, a retail mall located at 11 Tanjong Katong Road, Singapore.

The sale, valued at $275m (S$375m), involves UOL’s subsidiaries, UOL Property Investments and UOL Management Services, entering agreements with Kinex Times Square and Xiaohong Property Management. Completion is set for 31 October 2025.

UOL’s decision to divest is part of its strategy to unlock the value of its investment in Kinex and reconstitute its property portfolio. The sale is expected to provide the group with financial flexibility to repay debts and fund future investments. The property was valued at $271m (S$370m) by Edmund Tie & Company as of 30 June 2025.

The financial impact of the divestment on UOL is minimal, with a slight increase in net tangible assets and earnings per share. The transaction is classified as a “disclosable transaction” under Singapore Exchange rules, as it exceeds 5% of the company’s market capitalisation.

Hotel loyalty programme Wyndham Rewards has announced a new partnership with KrisFlyer, the rewards programme of the Singapore Airlines Group. This collaboration allows Wyndham’s 120 million members to exchange their points for KrisFlyer miles, providing more options for flights, cabin upgrades, and other travel experiences.

Under this partnership, members can earn KrisFlyer miles instead of Wyndham Rewards points during qualified hotel stays, with a rate of 1 mile per US$1 spent. Additionally, existing Wyndham Rewards points can be converted into KrisFlyer miles, starting from 6,000 points for 1,200 miles.

Eyvonne Lin, Vice President of Marketing and Commercial Performance for APAC at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, stated, “Today’s travellers want more than points—they want a global rewards currency that gives them the freedom to travel where, when and how they choose.”

Wyndham Rewards is celebrated for its simplicity and generosity, offering members a minimum of 1,000 points with every qualified stay and straightforward redemption tiers starting at 7,500 points per night. The programme also provides a fast track to elevated status after just five nights of stays. Earlier this year, Wyndham Rewards introduced an experiential platform, Wyndham Rewards Experiences, allowing members to use points for unique moments, such as VIP access to events.

This partnership with KrisFlyer is part of Wyndham’s ongoing efforts to expand its rewards programme, adding to its roster of over a dozen point transfer partners.