Heart Of The Matter - A Podcast On Legal Developments From Around The World

Singapore offers foreign investors competitive access to the Asian market due to its favorable taxation policies and strategic location within Southeast Asia. Several free trade agreements with neighboring Asian nations are available to Singaporean businesses, in addition to over 80 double taxation avoidance agreements. Besides being a stable political and economic hub, Singapore is also an import...

Many people think that when two or more people start a business together, they will automatically get along and have a perfect working relationship. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Co-founder conflicts can arise for a number of reasons, and if they are not managed correctly, can lead to the downfall of the company. In this episode, I am joined by Jerome McDonagh and Eddy Lee of MDD to...

Start-ups and tech companies are often lauded for their innovation, but this can make them difficult to value. Traditional valuation methods are based on financial metrics such as earnings and revenue, but these may not be relevant for early-stage businesses. Instead, investors must focus on other indicators such as the team's experience, the market opportunity, and the strength of the product. By...

Ben Cooper joins us in this Q2 review show of the Hong Kong legal market. For more information about the Hong Kong legal market, please visit https://ashford-benjamin.com/

There's been a lot of discussion lately about the role of legal ops within companies. Some people argue that legal ops should be an extension of the legal team, while others maintain that it should be independent. So which is the right approach? To help unpack this, we spoke with Nicolas Leroux, founder and managing partner of Kalexius, and Eric O'Donnell, head of legal operations at Total Energie...

As the concept of outsourcing has expanded beyond its restrictive definition, legal outsourcing is changing the legal industry. Although outsourcing isn't new to business, it's relatively new to the legal industry. To help unpack this, we spoke with Nicolas Leroux, founder and managing partner of Kalexius, and Eric O'Donnell, head of legal operations at Total Energies. Nicolas Leroux is the Founde...

While Legal Operations is not a new concept, it is gaining popularity as General Counsel look for ways to create efficiencies within their legal departments. In-house legal teams rely on Legal Operations functions for strategic planning, people management, operational efficiency, technology investments, and project management. As a result, more and more companies are hiring Legal Operations profes...

"Do more with less" has been the call of many legal departments for almost a decade. Legal departments have had to ask themselves whether they are operating in a strategically sound manner when responding to this call. Thus, we are seeing a rise in legal operation functions in legal departments. Legal department heads must find ways to maximize productivity, streamline processes, and create value....

What it takes for a company to be resilient is constantly evolving, driven by macro socio-economic disruptions and micro business issues influencing a change in business models. A four-part series with FTI Consulting and Conventus Law focusing on the key areas where organisations can protect value and take action, to address critical issues and mitigate risks. We are in a period of rapid regulator...

Andrea Ng, Partner with Singapore-based law firm Shook Lin & Bok LLP takes a deeper look into the world of NFTs. How they are regulated, the complexities surrounding each NFT, and how NFTs make a business case for investors. To find out more about NFT regulations in Singapore, visit https://www.shooklin.com/en/ Andrea specialises in trust, asset and wealth management matters with a focus on REITs....

There is a naked ambition in Singapore for it to become a global fintech hub. Singapore has adopted a proactive approach to strengthening fintech by forming international partnerships and ensuring its regulators remain ahead of the curve. Singapore's financial technology industry will likely become a global fintech hub if it continues to mature through its application in several industries and eff...

Singapore has one of the strictest requirements for Crypto Exchanges to obtain crypto exchange licenses. This has resulted in the small number of exchanges being granted licenses and some of the biggest names failing to obtain licenses. While Singapore's drive for "Best In Class" regulations may bring some short-term competitiveness issues, ultimately this could place Singapore as the main crypto...

In February this year, the MAS in Singapore introduced the new Financial Services and Markets Bill 2022 to regulate virtual asset service providers in Singapore. Andrea Ng, partner with Singapore-based law firm Shook Lin & Bok LLP joined us to discuss the potential impact on the crypto market. To find out more about crypto regulations in Singapore, visit https://www.shooklin.com/en/ Andrea special...

In Vietnam, the fintech industry is growing rapidly, especially in the amount of investment and the number of new firms, which grew by over 150% since 2017. With the rise of e-commerce in Vietnam, digital payments have been the most prominent segment of the fintech landscape. Knut Nguyen and Philip Ziter, lawyers with Vietnam-based law firm Russin & Vecchi joined us to discuss the fintech market i...

In light of the recent FDI reforms, what are the laws and regulations facing investors doing business in the Philippines. Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan, partner of DivinaLaw joins us to discuss these matters. Atty. Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan is a partner of DivinaLaw. She is a corporate and tax practitioner for almost ten (10) years, and specializes in commercial and tax law, particularly merge...

Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan, partner of DivinaLaw joins us to discuss what sectors will benefit from the recent PSA amendments, what this means for FDI into the Philippines and what this means to the domestic economy. Atty. Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan is a partner of DivinaLaw. She is a corporate and tax practitioner for almost ten (10) years, and specializes in commercial and tax law, particu...

The amendment to the Public Service Act (“Amendment”) is considered a game-changing economic measure as it lifts the foreign equity restrictions for a wide range of public services, except those considered as public utilities or critical infrastructure. Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan, partner of DivinaLaw unpacks the new amendements for us. Atty. Ciselie Marie T. Gamo-Sisayan is a partner of Divina...

Ian Johnston of Kennedys joined us in this episode to discuss the Insurance market trends in Thailand. We discussed the areas where insurance product trends are developing, the corporate environment in relation to insurance, and insurance industry trends in relation to heavy industry or oil and gas in Thailand. To find out more about the insurance market in Thailand please visit, https://kennedysl...

Ian Johnston of Kennedys joined us in this episode to discuss how increasing cyber breaches will change the Insurance landscape in Thailand. We discussed the changes in working practices in Thailand, how is the insurance industry has to react to new cyber issues relating to world events, and how reporting requirements in the case of cyber breaches have had a knock-on effect on the insurance indust...

Ian Johnston of Kennedys joined us in this episode to discuss how COVID 19 has affected the Insurance industry in Thailand. We discussed the effect Covid-19 had on the solvency of the insurance industry in Thailand, significant coverage issues or disputes and how this pandemic has caused business delays that have filtered into insurance issues. To find out more about the insurance market in Thaila...

Freddy Karyadi of ABNR joined us in this episode to talk everything about crypto and digital assets in Indonesia. We looked at the essential components and the development of regulations regarding Crypto Asset trading in Indonesia, the strong retail market for crypto investments, bitcoin whitelists, and taxation of crypto trading. To find out more about digital assets in Indonesia please visit, ht...

Yang Eu Jin, Partner with RHT Law in Singapore joined us to talk about the SPAC market in Singapore. To find out more about SPACs in Singapore, please visit https://rhtlawasia.com/corporate-capitalmarkets/ Yang Eu Jin is Partner and Co-Head of RHTLaw Asia’s Corporate and Capital Markets Practice and Head of the Education Industry Group. He has covered a wide spectrum of corporate and securities la...

Yang Eu Jin, Partner with RHT Law in Singapore joined us to talk about the SPAC market in Singapore and how is different from other key SPAC markets in New York and Hong Kong. To find out more about SPACs in Singapore, please visit https://rhtlawasia.com/corporate-capitalmarkets/ Yang Eu Jin is Partner and Co-Head of RHTLaw Asia’s Corporate and Capital Markets Practice and Head of the Education In...

We're joined by Ranjan Narula, Managing Partner at RNA, Technology and IP Attorneys. In this episode to talk trade marks and dress marks in India. We discussed how India trademark and dress mark rules are designed to attract foreign direct investment. For more information about trademarks in India, please visit, https://rnaip.com/ Ranjan founded the specialist IP law firm, RNA, in 2004, and is now...

We're joined by Ranjan Narula, Managing Partner at RNA, Technology and IP Attorneys, in this episode to talk patent ligitation in India. We discussed how the ownership of a trade secret established, how is the commercial value established, what criteria are used to establish the New Patent Suit rules and whether this will make the patent litigation process more streamlined for businesses in India....