The SFi Asian Family Impact Summit showcased inspiring speakers who shared personal journeys and insights in impact investing through three impactful tales: The Tale of Evolution, The Tale of Collaboration, and the Tale of Iteration.
Tale of Evolution.
Annie Chen, Chair, RS Group Asia
We were honored to have Annie Chen, the founder and chair of RS Group, to present our first impact tale: The Tale of Evolution. Annie shared her personal views on the concepts of risk, return, and impact, and she emphasized the importance of avoiding unintended negative consequences and adopting wider boundary thinking when designing or evaluating an intervention. She believes that traditional Asian wisdom and philosophies, such as Buddhism or Taoism, can help Asians see things more holistically and appreciate the interconnectedness of all things.
Annie noted how far impact investing had come in the last 15 years and how the ecosystem had grown significantly in Asia. Annie's advice to those figuring out how to start on their impact journey is to simply take the first step and not wait for the “perfect” opportunity. She believes that an honest inquiry into the nature of wealth and a deep contemplation of one's personal relationship with material wealth are natural and necessary parts of the impact investing journey.
"If our collective ambition is truly to create a better future for humanity and the planet, then impact investors need to grow their appetite for financial risk, especially those of us who can afford to do so."
As a community, we were thrilled to see such a vibrant ecosystem of impact investors in attendance, and are hopeful for the positive impact that could be created with collaboration. We believe that the exploration of the purpose of capital is ultimately a personal inquiry about one's own life purpose, and we hope that the summit provided a space for attendees to reflect and explore their own impact journeys.
Tale of Collaboration
Poman Lo, Founding Managing Partner, AlphaTrio Capital
We were honored to have Poman Lo, founding managing partner of AlphaTrio Capital, as one of our esteemed guest speakers at our recent summit. Poman's talk, "Tale of Collaboration," highlighted the importance of seeing the big picture, finding allies, and working together to achieve scalable impact.
Poman began her talk by reflecting on her childhood experiences and her appreciation for nature, which fueled her desire to do something for the world. She noted the urgency of the climate crisis and emphasized the need for decarbonization and lowering emissions to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees.
"Companies can actually do well, by doing good, that they are successful because of the impact they deliver rather than in spite of... It's important that we really embrace purpose, values, and mission as our guiding lights, and really internalize the logic of impact investing."
Poman shared her experience leading Regal Group's climate action initiatives, including launching the group's first carbon-neutral hotel 13 years ago and investing in green and prop tech. Through this, she met numerous founders who were driven by a passion for asking questions and making a positive impact. Inspired by her experience, Poman launched AlphaTrio Capital, which aims to develop scalable and measurable impact.
Poman believes that cultivating more wisdom and compassion is key to creating a vibrant impact community. She established the Institute of Sustainability and Technology to sponsor trainings, certifications, research, and promote best practices and leadership. She see's that Hong Kong has the potential to be an ESG hub and green finance hub, and foster strategic dialogue across public and private players to achieve this goal.
We loved Poman's vision for a sustainable future and her commitment to collaboration and impact investing. We believe that her insights and experience will inspire others to take action and work together to create a positive impact on the world.
Tale of Iteration
Khailee Ng, Managing Partner, 500 Global
Elisa Khong, Group Managing Director, Kechara Soup Kitchen Society
Never had we heard an impact love story…how a mission driven couple came together through a dedication to do well and do good. Khailee and Elisa shared their serendipitous meeting, and the subsequent fallout! The path to collaboration didn’t always run smooth. But long story short, their impact journey began with their virtual wedding, which they live-streamed to 600 guests and raised funds for causes that meant a lot to them. As innovators, Khailee and Elisa questioned the impact of direct donations as they continued to innovate and find solutions that were commercially viable.
The couple started Wiki-Impact to capture the stories of changemakers driving social impact through their work. They shared a story of how they offered theater performers use of their bespoke wedding platform for live streaming during the pandemic, which began as an act of kindness but developed into a practical and profitable solution for all. Khailee and Elisa believe that many positive outcomes are unplanned, Realities and challenges of impact mean that there is a groundwork, and it's challenging to juggle between various competing priorities.
“It really prompts different kinds of conversations between us… how do we actually give it more fuel and more momentum? How do we work more skillfully with our time? How can we hire different people to work in our family office? So we get more leverage?
I do think that that type of collaborative problem solving is super fun. If any of you are embarking on it, not just alone, but also with a partner or with certain family members, we'd love to connect. Learn from what you're doing and how you're solving it, learn how to replicate some of these things as well. Because we do all have challenges in our journey and you want to share it.”
- Khailee Ng
We believe that Khailee and Elisa’s journey highlights the importance of constantly questioning the impact of our actions, building solutions where they cannot be found, and capturing the stories of changemakers driving social impact. Khailee and Elisa's journey serves as a reminder that anyone can make a difference, and we hope that their story will inspire others to take action and create a positive impact on the world.
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