We’re off to Hong Kong next week for the 4th stop of the Tech in Asia Tour! Join us.

EVENT UPDATE

9 July 11:30AM (HKT): Due to news about Typhoon Linfa, tonight’s event might possibly be postponed (to tomorrow 10 July, or within the same month) as the safety of all our guests, judges, speakers and startups is our utmost priority.

We will be monitoring the warning level closely and will update you on the situation and status of the event at around 5.00pm (HKT) today. We seek your kind understanding on this matter and will keep you informed on the situation as promptly as we can.

The Tech in Asia Tour will touch down in Hong Kong next Thursday, July 9, in search of the best startup in the city to showcase at our Tokyo conference. This is our second visit in four months. During Tech in Asia’s last trip to Hong Kong, Talkpush beat six other startups to win an exhibition booth, event passes, and air tickets to our Singapore conference in May.

Next week, five startups will pitch to a panel of esteemed judges, but only one of them will receive a sponsored package to exhibit at Tech in Asia Tokyo 2015. Come down and witness the pitches as these startups get grilled by the panel consisting of Koichi Saito, founder and general partner, KK Fund; Marc Syz, managing director, ACE & Company Hong Kong; as well as Roland Yau, investment director of CoCoon.

Apart from witnessing the pitches, this leg of the Tour also provides a great opportunity for you to hear expert advice on how to build a world-class startup in Hong Kong. Networking opportunities also abound. Connect with like-minded individuals, startups, and investors who will be present at the event.

Entry is free, and you can get your tickets below:

Venue

CoCoon
3/F Citicorp Centre
18 Whitfield Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Agenda

6.30pm – 7pm: Registration
7pm – 7.05pm: Welcome by Tech in Asia
7.05pm – 7.35pm: Fireside chat: How to build a world-class startup in Hong Kong
7.35pm – 8.30pm: Pitches by startups (5 min pitch, 5 min Q&A)
8.30pm – 8.35pm: Peek into Judges’ Backstage Discussion
8.35pm – 8.45pm: Announcement & Closing
8.45pm – 9.30pm: Networking

Please note that the event will be conducted in English.

Judges

Koichi Saito, founder and general partner at KK Fund

Koichi Saito previously worked at IMJ Investment Partners as director and was responsible for IMJ’s investments throughout Southeast Asia such as iMoney, Bukalapak and Zipmatch. Prior to IMJ, Koichi worked at Private Equity Fund founded by George Soros, and was engaged in several corporate and hotel acquisitions.

Before that, he served as an arranger of the securitization of mortgages at investment banking division of Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities. He also worked at Orix Corporation where he was responsible for providing loans to small and medium-sized enterprises in Japan.

Marc Syz, managing director, ACE & Company Hong Kong

Marc Syz is the managing director of ACE & Company Hong Kong, a leading global co-investment group specialized in direct investments across stages.

Marc moved to Asia as the executive vice president of Syz & Co Hong Kong to develop the Asian expansion of the family owned parent company. The Syz group is an award winning Swiss financial institution specialized in Private Banking, Asset Management and Investment Funds.

Prior to joining the Syz group, Marc was head of capital markets & equity sales at Union Bancaire Privée in Geneva, a leading Swiss Private Bank. He was responsible for the proprietary investments of the Bank’s Trading and Treasury division managing a range of alternative investments.

Roland Yau, investment director of CoCoon

Roland previously worked at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, a London-based international law firm, from 2008 to 2015. While at Freshfields, he was working in the corporate department focusing on transactions relating to equity capital markets, private equity and mergers and acquisitions. He was also previously seconded to the in-house legal department of Deutsche Bank Hong Kong and was responsible for covering the bank’s capital market activities across Asia (excluding Japan).

Here’s a shoutout to our Tour partners for their support: