September 27, 2022
SINGAPORE – Hundreds of chief executives, crypto investors and innovators, and even a Bollywood star are flying in this week for a series of high-profile Mice events.
Leveraging the return of the Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix F1 race from Friday to Sunday, it is the latest sign that Singapore is returning to pre-Covid-19 pandemic normality.
This week, several large-scale meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (Mice) will make their debut.
That includes the inaugural edition of the Time100 Leadership Forum on Oct 2.
Held at the National Gallery Singapore, it will feature speakers such as former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.
Later that day, there will be a ceremony, in which people who have done extraordinary work to shape the future of their industries and the world will be recognised.
Bollywood actress and producer Alia Bhatt, Broadway star Lea Salonga, and Mr Gregory L. Robinson, the former James Webb Space Telescope programme director at United States space agency Nasa, will be given Time100 Impact Awards.
The Singapore Tourism Board in August said nearly 90,000 delegates are expected to attend about 25 Mice events held around the same time as the F1 race.
The number of events are similar to pre-Covid-19 levels, it added.
Some of these events were moved from Hong Kong to Singapore partly due to the keen interest in people once again meeting face to face and closing deals in person.
For instance, SuperReturn Asia – a key private equity and venture capital conference – was held in Singapore from Sept 19 to Sept 22.
It attracted a record 1,500 people, or almost double the pre-pandemic record of 800 people in 2019.
And this week, the Asia Crypto Week will kick off, focusing on a two-day crypto conference called Token2049, which makes its Singapore debut. It will be held on Wednesday and Thursday.
On Monday, the organisers said they are expecting a record 7,000 people and more than 2,000 global companies to attend, making it the crypto and bitcoin industry’s largest and most well-attended event in years.
Another similar event will be held in London in November.
The Singapore event’s star-studded line-up at Marina Bay Sands includes F1 McLaren race driver Daniel Ricciardo, a brand ambassador for crypto trading app OKX, and Mr Dan Morehead, founder and chief executive of digital currency investment firm Pantera Capital.
Token2049 founder Raphael Strauch said: “The continued interest in Token2049 Singapore is a testament to our industry’s trajectory.”
Singapore’s nightlife industry is also banking on the F1 race to put wind in its sails, with a raft of new and returning F1 after-parties lined up.
This week also sees the return of a slate of high-profile events, such as the 20th Forbes Global CEO Conference and the ninth annual Milken Institute Asia Summit.
Temasek Foundation’s Philanthropy Asia Summit – which will focus on calls to action addressing climate action and sustainable communities, inclusive education, and resilient healthcare – returns on Friday at Shangri-La Singapore.
The two-day Forbes conference, which gathers some 400 prominent business leaders from around the world, is being held on Monday and Tuesday at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore.
It features a dialogue with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, as well as a keynote address by Indian tycoon Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group and the world’s second-richest person.
The two-day Forbes conference gathers some 400 prominent business leaders from around the world. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
The three-day Milken summit, to be held from Wednesday to Friday at the Four Seasons Hotel Singapore, will tackle some of the adverse effects of progress, such as environmental degradation and economic inequalities.
More than 1,200 participants are expected this year.
Speakers include Malaysian Finance Minister Zafrul Aziz and Temasek chief investment officer Rohit Sipahimalani.
“Asia is at the heart of the transformation that defines the global agenda,” Ms Laura Deal Lacey, executive director of the Milken Institute Asia Centre, said previously.
“With our finger on the pulse, our efforts at the Milken Institute in Asia bring together leaders to share valuable insights and highlight critical conversations on issues affecting the region, which often have global implications.”