10 reasons I love doing business in Singapore

Having been in Singapore for 6 years now I have an understanding of why it’s great to do business in Singapore and Asia comparative to doing business in London and the UK. With 20 years of doing business in London I can honestly say that doing business in Singapore and Asia is so much easier and more pleasurable than doing business in the UK and Europe.

Here’s 10 reasons why:

1. People think regionally, not locally

One of the first things that I noticed about doing business here is that people don’t just think about one country or one city, they think regionally. Asia Pacific. Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, India, China, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, New Zealand; the list goes on but people don’t tend to buy single countries here, they buy regions. South East Asia, ASEAN, Asia Pacific, ANZ; the list goes on.

When I worked in London most clients were interested in, well, London. Then there were maybe some who looked at England, some may even have looked at the whole of the UK. Not many looked at Europe as a whole. It’s a mindset difference as much as a regional one.

2. People think locally when it comes to creative execution

Clients may well operate in and target Asia Pacific countries; however clients also tend to believe in country-specific and even city-specific creative execution. Every city and every country has different customers and that is often reflected in more personal creativity. This is even relevant to cities in the same country like China, India and Indonesia which have diverse cultural and business make ups.

3. Every city in Asia is different, every city fascinating

Asia Pacific is vastly different to Europe. Every country in Europe has very similar broadband speeds, infrastructure, culture, religion, and politics. There are no military dictatorships in Europe, there are no alcohol-free countries in Europe, there are no typhoons and less obvious corrupt practices.

Asia on the other hand is the complete opposite. That’s the wonder of Asia. Every city, every country has different broadband speeds, culture, religions, peoples, way of life, "democracy" and way of doing business.

When doing business in each city in Asia, you have to constantly be learning and embracing local cultures and local customs. It’s inspiring, thought-provoking, revealing, fascinating, and stimulating. Singapore is very much the benchmark of how to run a business-orientated city in Asia Pacific and to me the ultimate Asian business city.

4. People will meet you

One of the great things I noticed about setting up meetings in Asia is that virtually every time I reach out to people on LinkedIn, they would generally say yes to meeting up. When I first came here without a job I used my LinkedIn network from the UK and got introduced to people and they would normally said yes to meeting me.

When I got my first role over here I reached out on LinkedIn to CMO’s and MD’s across the region and they said yes. In the various roles that I have had over here since and in my current role I reach out on LinkedIn and people generally say yes. There’s a willingness to meet in general and a positivity here that I never found to this extent in London.

5. Singapore is an easy place to meet up

In the UK it would often be months before people would meet with you and when they did it would take hours to get there and that was just across London. If you reached out to people outside of London and into the northern cities it would take even longer.

In Singapore I can walk to most meetings or my meeting can walk to me. People can decide to meet you tomorrow and it will take 5 minutes to get there. Even meetings in places like KL and Jakarta can take less time to reach from Singapore than it took me to cross London or use the regional or national rail stations to reach potential clients in the UK.

6.People make decisions

One of the things I do love about Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, and Shanghai is that my clients tend to be very open and straight-talking. If they think we’re too expensive they tell us. If they want to cut a deal (which we don’t do) they will ask.

They will also say if they wish to go ahead there and then which many do. There are exceptions; sometimes Asians don’t wish to lose face and therefore when they realise that they can’t afford our services they say they will think about it and will come back to us in a week/month/year when actually they mean never.

Reading these signals took me time but understanding them is crucial to ensure that you don’t waste time but also that you allow your potential customer to save face and you both move on.

7.There is an expat/foreigner/internationalist network

Whether people like it or not, expats buy expats, foreigners buy from foreigners, and locals buy from locals. This works to your advantage if you have a great network of contacts and are good at enhancing this network to grow it further.

As an outgoing expat or internationalist (as a friend of mine likes to call himself as he points out that he and I have no expat package and have no intention of going back to the UK, so therefore we are internationalists rather than expats or even just foreigners in another land), I find it easy to reach out to people and network.

What’s the worst that can happen? They may not be interested. What’s the best outcome? You may find a client, partner, associate, future employee, investor, media contact, fellow entrepreneur, just someone interesting, fellow internationalist; the list is endless.

8. You get out what you put in

More than anywhere in the world I think Asia rewards hard work. There is no fallback; there is no unemployment benefit or sickness benefit; the governments here do not come to your aid if you are in trouble in any of the Asia Pacific nations (with the exception of ANZ which has very similar way of life, government set-up, benefits system and outlook to the UK and Europe).

Therefore the emphasis is on you to work and provide for yourself and your family. If you do not, no one else will. This is a great motivator to work hard. The harder you work, the more you put in, the more you succeed, the more you get out of.

It is the opposite of Greece which is symptomatic of how European governments hand out money for people who don't work in ways that Asia governments would not.

I’m not talking about working long hours for the sake of showing you’re still at your desk which is a Singaporean custom but I’m talking about smart working. However if you do work hard then you do get rewarded financially, personally, spiritually whichever way you wish to be you can be and will be.

9. Asia rewards entrepreneurs

I believe that Asia rewards entrepreneurs more than Europe. It’s easier to create and set up a company in Singapore certainly than in London. The environment is more pro-business; there are no strikes or unions, no real red tape or barriers to entry.

Anyone can be an entrepreneur in Asia. There are amazing incentives to being one. Low personal and corporation taxes, zero tax on dividends, many financial and other government and trade body incentives, online assistance and a willing, educated, motivated workforce and amazing logistics.

It’s also easier to reach out to potential clients here, to network and to work with other entrepreneurs. It’s just basically a more positive business environment in which to do business.

As by example I have taken an idea about offering a premium LinkedIn marketing service for senior executives and entrepreneurs from 1 person in one country to 30 people in 7 countries and we're still growing.

10. Business events

There are more business events here in Singapore than in any other place I have ever experienced. I could literally go to an event every breakfast, lunch and every night here in Singapore. There are some amazing business and marketing events and some fantastic networking events, morning, noon, and night.

It’s an amazing place to network and learn from engaging content and meet interesting people. It’s not just marketing events, it’s every kind of event. The BritCham puts on 100 events a year, the AmCham 250 events. There are business events of all kinds covering all industries catering for every business and every executive.

I love doing business in Asia but I especially love doing business in Singapore. 

JCEconomics is a premier MOE-registered economics tuition centre in Singapore

Lessons are taught by Mr Anthony Fok, an accomplished and highly experienced economics tutor, highlighted by the Straits Times as the most highly sought after Economics tutor in Singapore. He also holds multiple degrees and is currently pursuing his PhD in Education. He believes that teaching tuition will not only instill in students a thirst for learning today, but also help to groom them to be the leaders of tomorrow. This begins with excelling in Economics as an academic subject. His materials are meticulously prepared for his students, meant to be incisive and succinct in illustrating seemingly complex economics concepts. Many students have enjoyed his lectures and put his notes to good use. Mr Anthony Fok features prominently on mainstream media, such as being on MediaCorp TV’s ‘The 5 Show’ amongst many others. He is also the author of a slew of Economics guidebooks, helping students of all learning styles.


LEARNING RESOURCES
Learning materials are thoughtfully designed by Mr Anthony Fok, and are meant to be succinct – brief but comprehensive. Students are thus able to maximize their revision time as they refer to them. They are also suitable for self-revision since they are student-friendly, guiding the student along as he or she reads it.

LEARNING FROM THE BEST
Model Essays are another way for students to learn quickly and effectively. These essays serve as a way for students to observe the proper approach to answering tough questions. This includes how to dissect the question, what to look out for and how to present one’s arguments in a fluid and succinct manner.

LEARNING TO SCORE
Many of Mr Anthony Fok’s students go on to do well in the A Level’s Examination, scoring As and Bs. Ever since he started teaching, he has had the pleasure of tutoring hundreds of students. Some of his students have gone on to study at prestigious universities such as Cambridge University and Oxford University.

LEARNING APPROACH
While concepts are also being taught, Mr Anthony Fok focuses on the skills, both essay writing and case study handling, during tuition lessons. This is because schools are more content-centred and students may find themselves armed with concepts but unable to apply them when it comes to answering questions.

LEARNING FOR LIFE
Mr Anthony Fok not only helps students to excel in the Singapore-Cambridge GCE ‘A’ Level examination, but also encourages them to apply economics concepts to real life. This will help them to not only understand the concepts currently, but also learn to use them when they grow up. Economics, he believes, is not merely an academic subject, but an important tool students should pick up as they learn to manage their wealth in future. Investments, foreign exchange, taxes – they are what our future generation needs to be aware of. This includes learning the right values and knowing how to make sound decisions. Preparing your child for future success starts today!

More about Mr Anthony Fok

Mr. Anthony Fok is the only Economics Tutor at JCEconomics.com.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Accountacy (Honours) Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and a Masters of Education from Monash University, Australia. He also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) from National Institute of Education (NIE). He is currently pursuing his PhD in Education, specializing in the learning of Economics.

Mr Anthony Fok enjoys sharing his experience as a full time Economics tutor and has been prominently featured in print (The Straits’ Times, Lianhe WanBao, The New Paper, TODAY, Singapore Business Review amongst others) on television (Channel 5) and on radio (938Live).

Mr Anthony Fok is personally passionate in Economics. He invests himself in learning more about economics himself even as he teaches. This includes constantly updating himself with new and recent economics events and theories. This allows him to make Economics a relevant, applicable and compelling subject for his students. He often discusses real world economic events happening in real time during his lessons, providing his own analysis but also encouraging his students to think more about what they read in the news and to apply what they have learnt in Economics itself.

“As he is well known for his ability to deliver results, parents try all means to put their child in his class”
- The Straits Times

“I believe that my popularity as a top Economics tutor in Singapore comes from more than merely imparting Economics knowledge. I motivate the students to love the subject and to look beyond the academic grades. I teach values and life lessons that will be valuable to them even after graduation. I am more than a tutor to the students. I am a friend and a mentor.”

“I help to shorten the learning process and bridge the gap between what was taught in schools and what eventually appears in the national examinations. Students look for me because they want to achieve their ‘A’ grade and I am confident that I can deliver the results they want, as long as they work hard together with me.”

“I enjoy teaching and I am lucky to be able to find great satisfaction in my work.”

Methodology

Scoring in Essays
Firstly, doing well in Economics Essays is particularly challenging to students who are unable to understand the demands of the questions. Knowing the required concepts is the first hurdle to cross. This requires question analysis, and once students learn how to do this under some guidance, they will be able to do this independently with some practice. The next hurdle would be piecing together a cohesive argument, rooted in economics concepts but applied to the relevant context. This cannot be learnt mechanically and this is often why students struggle to do well. This means that pure memory work is no longer enough to do well in examinations where questions are surprising to students. Expecting the unexpected is necessary for students to cope with any question thrown at them and this is a skill that can only be gained through practice, practice and more practice. Students also need to learn how to write fluidly to make their points incisively in order to impress the examiners. This again requires practice, and students can learn through imitation, by reading model essays before attempting to write their own. While it is not an easy task – a student has to fulfill the demands of the question fully, make insightful points that are relevant to the context of the question and sound fluent and coherent – it is not impossible to achieve given that he or she knows the proper approach and is equipped with the necessary skills.

Scoring in Case Studies
Case studies may be difficult due to the time constraint and the variety of questions that students may be asked. Practice is again extremely important for students to familiarize themselves with questions. Students are guided through the entire process of approaching a case study. Firstly, annotating may seem inconsequential but is actually crucial as it helps in efficient information retrieval when the student tries to answer the question. Question analysis is again important, with recurring command words serving as signposts for students on what the question requires. Answer schemes are also provided for students to check against their own understanding, for them to see if they could have produced those answers themselves. There are many skills to be learnt when it comes to tackling case studies, such as how to analyse and describe economic data, how to provide a thesis and anti-thesis, how to quote from the sources etc. Students are also reminded to look out for evaluation points, as this is what will distinguish them from their peers when they answer questions. Common mistakes are constantly and repeatedly highlighted to students so that they may avoid them during the exam. By being careful and being insightful, students can improve their scores dramatically.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where are the lessons held at?
Lessons are held at Bukit Timah or Tampines.

Is Mr Anthony Fok the only tutor at JCEconomics ?
Yes, all lessons are taught by Mr Anthony Fok and no other economics tutors are employed. This ensures the quality of teaching. He has nearing 10 years of teaching experience, having taught in both MOE Schools and as a private tutor. Qualifications wise, he holds a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours) Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and a Masters of Education from Monash University, Australia. He also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) from National Institute of Education (NIE). He is currently pursuing his PhD in Education, specializing in the learning of Economics.

Will I be offered refund if I fail to make it for a particular lesson?
Unfortunately, no refund is offered when a student is absent due to illness, vacation, holidays, or attendance at school activity. However, the student can attempt to arrange for a replacement lesson within the same week based on that week’s tuition schedule.

Are there any other fees in addition to the monthly fees?
The student will be required to make a one-time payment of $100 material fee which will be for the printing of the learning resources (handouts, worksheets, notes etc.) for the entire year.

What is the duration of each lesson?
Each lesson typically lasts for one and a half hour. For extended lessons, students are given breaks so that they remain focused during the actual lesson itself.

What is a typical lesson like?
Lessons are conducted lecture style, and Mr Anthony Fok will go through case studies/ essays. Students are free to pose questions during the lessons, or stay back after them to clarify any doubts. They are also free to contact Mr Anthony Fok outside of lessons should they have any questions via SMS and email.

To get more details please signup to Economics Tuition.

Where should you be based in Asia? Singapore, Hong Kong or Shanghai?

I live in Singapore but I also love spending time in Hong Kong and Shanghai. My business is global, my fastest growing market is China and Hong Kong. I have found that people I visit and know tend to love one city over the others.

On a recent trip to Hong Kong and then Shanghai I met with several entrepreneurs, clients, partners and business associates who all expressed a preference for Hong Kong or Shanghai. Even to the extent of never ever even considering Singapore.

Singapore to me seems like the business natural hub of Asia. They viewed Singapore is the way that  I view KL or Jarkata, nice to visit occasionally but not live and work. I also see Hong Kong and Shanghai in that context too, great for business but wouldn’t want to live there. Everyone has a personal choice for business.

So which one should you choose? Let’s look at various factors that entrepreneurs should look at when deciding on where to place their hub in Asia Pacific.

1. Internet connection.

As my business, Black Marketing - Enabling LinkedIn For you,  is all about LinkedInmyself and my team need to be using the internet constantly. Therefore speed and reliability are key. I was in Shanghai and Beijing for a week recently and what holds these two locations back for me are two things 1) the internet speed and 2) reliability.

Everyone I meet in Shanghai for example complains about the internet speed with or without VPN. The internet is the biggest thing that holds China back. If you can’t get high speed internet in the largest commercial city in the largest country in the world, imagine what it’s like for people in other giant cities in China. It is the biggest factor against putting your business here.

There is only so much that you can use WeChat for. The internet is still essential for everything from research to email and communications. Without it and with it at such a slow rate your productivity and ability to do any kind of white collar job is effectively decreased.

Singapore has one of the fastest internet connections and speeds in the world, allegedly, according to research. Even in Singapore it’s not perfect. I have 4G and like most people who have 4G I still complain about the speed. Nothing is ever perfect but when you experience China then Singapore you appreciate Singapore’s speeds.

Hong Kong is somewhere imbetween. Not as slow as Shanghai but not as fast as Singapore.

Singapore wins.

2) Censorship

This taps into the internet also. When I was in Beijing the Shangri-La, where I stayed, sent me a note with a list of all the internet sites I couldn’t logon to as they were banned in China. They include Google where we have our entire business on the cloud. I took a photo of this and shared it on my China LinkedIn. Within seconds it had vanished. My list of censored sites provided to me by my hotel had itself been censored!

I then of course switched on my VPN and shared it on my Singapore LinkedIn site and it was not only fine it trended for a week gained hundreds of comments and likes and helpful advice. Ironic. It then trended on the China version of LinkedIn anyway. Doubly ironic.

Of course I know this happens in China and always connect via VPN as most people do in China who want access to these banned sites. Either that or there are actually hotels that have a VPN wall to enable all residents to use these censored sites (most American brands not the Asian ones like Shangri-La unfortunately which appears to operate an increased censorship strategy i.e. if i turn on my Shangri-La wifi my gmail doesn’t work, switch it off and bizarrely it does work).

Needing to use VPN all the time is a drag because the Chinese authorities have clearly got wise to this and have started blocking the VPN’s too. I received non-stop complaints from people there that their VPN was being blocked for example. Coupled with slow internet anyway it does make people think twice before being located there, but then if you’re not you do risk missing out on the largest market in the world.

Of course you can get Yahoo and Bing but if you’re business is on Google and you love Google then you need Google. For those of you who like their social westernised then you need facebook and the like which you can only get through VPN.

Singapore wins.

3) Coworking

Since I started Black Marketing 2.5 years ago I have always worked at Jonathan O’Byrne’s amazing coworking (the lack of hyphen is for you Jonathan) space Collective Works. Just last week we moved from his first place to his epic new space which is designed stunningly by Larissa Murphy’s Contrast and is 5 times larger than his previous space.

There is nothing like it in Singapore, it’s quite easily the best designed, best managed, most contemporary, most spacious, most entrepreneurial, most social, most business focused coworking space in Singapore if not Asia Pacific. More meeting rooms, more light, more glass, more views, more opportunities to connect and meet people - just extremely impressive all round. Our clients, partners and potential clients love coming here.

I have yet to see any space in Hong Kong that comes anywhere near it. Even the best spaces there like The Cage and The Garage are pale imitations and remind me of student hangouts more than productive working spaces for entrepreneurs. They might have started earlier with coworking in Hong Kong than Singapore but Singapore learnt about what entrepreneurs wanted faster and better.

Shanghai has some cool spaces, I especially like The Naked Hub. It’s a great place to hang out and speak at but I actually think it’s not the best place to work. Too casual and not enough emphasis on the working side rather than the socialising side. The Naked Hub appears to be cool and a great place to hangout but I actually do need to work there!

Singapore wins.

4) Government support

Singapore government support is vast, wide and amazing. Every week I receive cheques from the government for this scheme that scheme or some other scheme I didn’t even know that I was in. They literally throw money at entrepreneurs to innovate and employ locals. No one comes near matching them for investment and input.

How smart some of this is is open to question. I have heard stories and experienced it myself of people approaching government bodies EDB and SPRING and having either no reply, no encouragement or no help. Their LinkedIn company pages speak volumes for the fact that they are not really focused on understanding entrepreneurs.

You can throw money at something without it actually being effective. I wrote in anearlier blog that productivity has actually gone down since the government's Productivity Scheme PIC was introduced. Something wrong there.

Hong Kong: they would like to do what Singapore does but don’t and can’t it seems. Too many vested family businesses who don’t want the status quo to be rocked or disrupted. They wouldn’t qualify therefore they don’t want others to benefit I get the feeling talking to entrepreneurs there.

Shanghai: free trade zones and enterprise grants abound here. There is a plethora of incentives and benefits if only you know where to look. Very much aimed at Chinese entrepreneurs more than expats of course the authorities do want Shanghai to be the financial and business hub of China and in fact Asia Pacific. There are also many schemes here for expat entrepreneurs if only you can find them.

Singapore wins.

5) The Weather

Having moved from the dark, dismal, cold, wet and miserable London to super sunny, hot and humid Singapore I’m in no mood to experience the other side again which to me would rule out both Hong Kong and Shanghai.  Seasons are overrated when three of them are cold, grey and wet…..

Shanghai and Hong Kong are lovely in the summer when there is no smog/pollution. The trouble is it’s always there. Sunny days, rainy days the smog is always there, more so in Shanghai than Hong Kong but it has a depressing effect on the city, its inhabitants and people’s moods.

Give me sunny skies and warm weather every day and every night any time.

Singapore wins.

6) Being a Start-Up

The startup and entrepreneurial scene in all three Asian hubs is vibrant and exciting. There are many areas where each respective government has designated as being enterprise zones. I always find these rather bizarre. A special place just for entrepreneurs to hangout usually far from anyone else.

Main reason for being there is cheap rents.However this is often counter productive. The zone in Singapore for example is 20-30 minutes outside of the CBD (45-60 minutes from ChangiAirport on the other side of the island) and therefore anyone like us whose clients are in or are quite happy to visit the CBD would have to travel to them taking hours out of their day. That has it’s own cost and is more than cheap rent saves. The opportunity cost of time wasted is just as important as an actual cost for entrepreneurs.

I would much rather be in a CBD coworking space which is often just as cheap and more convenient. People love coming to visit me at Collective Works, they don’t so much at Block 71 the enterprise hub out at One North in Singapore for example.

Singapore wins for effort.

7)  Entrepreneur Organisations

All three locations have interesting entrepreneur organisations. Many have vested interests and are too local and inwardly looking. I find BNI for example in Singapore to be a waste of time which is purely full of local entrepreneurs not international ones who are put off by it. The reverse ironically is true in Hong Kong which is better.

Same goes for Entrepreneur Organisation.  My experience with them in Shanghai has been amazing where they have English speaking only and Chinese speaking versions and that works well for both sides. The people I meet there have been fantastic, many are clients of ours. I have also done many LinkedIn workshops and talks to EO chapters there which have been received engagingly and been fantastic experiences.

It appears in Singapore and Hong Kong that the EO “chapters” there are more for vested interests of local powerful families as opposed to real entrepreneurs. Needless to say we haven’t created any clients from these chapters or joined them.

Shanghai wins.

8) Talent

Singapore is notoriously hard to employ the best person. Easy to employ a local or Permanent Resident but expats have a hard time being employed under a Singaporean first policy.

It is somewhat ironic that Singapore is expanding its CBD. More and more commercial real estate is being built and Singapore is always offering international companies tax breaks and incentives to come here. However at the same time Singapore is restricting who they can employ once they get here. One counters the other in a city where there is effectively full employment. You win on one side but lose on the other.

Yes not everyone has their dream job  (does everyone everywhere?) and locals complain about expats having ones that they aspire to but not everything can be equalised by force, some things are actually based on experience, personality and characteristics. The best person should always be employed not be forced to be in my view. That is not always the person with the MBA or degree as Singapore is obsessed by. Experience trumps qualifications every time for me.

Hong Kong has a more relaxed attitude towards employing foreigners and is therefore potentially more attractive to employers. There are restrictions but not enforced like they are so enthusiastically in Singapore. Like Singapore you can also become a PR although in Hong Kong it’s based on time living there (7 years) as opposed to political pressure and quotas as in Singapore. I have known millionaires to be declined PR status in Singapore and have subsequently moved to Hong Kong.

Shanghai is a mixture of the two others. Some people have told me it’s easy to get a permit others that the bureaucracy is immense and prevents it.

Hong Kong wins.

9) Corporate hospitality and entertainment

This is very much down to your personal choice but each city has amazing nightlife, incredible views (when you can see them in Hong Kong and Shanghai) and fantastic food and drink choices.

To me the deciding factor in is the weather and getting around. Both favour Singapore where you can go out to network or entertain on that rooftop bar 24/7, 365 days of the year. The other two can compete on views and food/drink quality but not that.

Each is as expensive as the other. Even Hong Kong with zero alcohol tax is as expensive when it comes to buying it in a bar/restaurant as massively taxed Singapore.

Singapore wins because of the availablity and access to venues and corporate hospitality venues all year around.

10) Logistics

Setting up a company - easy in Singapore, you only need a local or PR to be a shareholder. Hong Kong is even easier you don’t even need to be that or even be a resident to do so. Shanghai is a mixture of the two.

Getting around - Singapore is easy to get around partly because of the size and partly because the Uber/Grab/taxi system along with the MRT/bus network. It is faster, cleaner and better. Hong Kong’s MTR works well and it’s trying to resist Uber to protect its vested taxi interests but traffic is worse than in Singapore, the taxis dirtier and only Chinese speaking compared to Singapore.

Shanghai is more of a challenge to get around, even if you can find a taxi it takes forever to get anywhere. Uber is coming in force because of this. Their MRT is also ever expanding but not yet complete like Singapore.

Airports - no contest Singapore’s Changi airport thrashes both the other two based on every factor going. From the design/ambience to the queues, Singapore trumps the others. Why do I turn up at HK or Shanghai airport and there are queues to check in, queues to go through security and queues to go through passport control when Singapore doesn't have any of these?

Changi there are none of any. Arrivals are also stress free, quick and you feel you have arrived in a tranquil garden at Changi whereas this is the opposite in HK and Shanghai where the design of the airport alone looks like it’s anti customer friendly and oppressive not positive and enlightening as I always feel coming and going in Changi. Simply the world’s best airport let alone Asia’s.

Getting things done - each has it’s ups and downs, some more bureaucratic than others. I find Singapore less so employment issues aside that is.

Taxation - each has very low and very competitive company taxes and no taxes on company dividends which makes all three attractive especially compared with any western country.

Singapore wins for me. It's a personal choice.  Everyone is different.

Final score: Singapore 8 Hong Kong 1 Shanghai 1

What do you think? Where are you based and why?