Speedhome CEO on moonlighting and riding out Covid-19

Dan Lain-Lain (Malay for “and others”) is a weekly column by TIA journalist Emmanuel Samarathisa that dissects the goings-on in the Malaysia tech scene but with a heavy mix of current affairs, policy and politics. Click here to read past articles.

When Speedhome launched in 2017, I was genuinely rooting for the startup. Not because I’m an investor – I’m a journalist, come on. If I had the money to invest, I wouldn’t be here.

But Speedhome promised to disrupt the home rentals space in Malaysia by allowing tenants to rent with zero deposits. If you’re a renter like me, then you’d know how annoying the system is, which typically favors the landlord.

It’s a complex situation, but what happens is that a tenant will need to cough up a “deposit” that can come up to four months’ rent prior to moving in.

This deposit acts as some sort of “insurance” in case you, the tenant, go rogue or display your baddest behavior – e.g. trashing the place or turning it into a crime den.

Better yet, you need to pay legal fees upon signing the tenancy agreement aside from paying the deposit.

There’s also a whole load of racism that some people will have to deal with. Take it from me: Most of the time I’m able to rent a unit because my wife, who’s Chinese Malaysian, does most of the negotiating.

Despite its potential to disrupt the market, Speedhome was disrupted last year when it had to lay off staff. We reported that.

I also found out that its CEO, Wong Whei Meng, had to moonlight as a talk show host on LinkedIn to make ends meet. Viewers of the show, which ran for three months, could donate or send him a tip. Wong also received support from his peers.

Despite navigating a bleak period, Speedhome is still here. I caught up with Wong to see what has happened since then.

Here’s my conversation with Wong, which has been edited for clarity and brevity: