Hanoi, not London: The government’s aim for startups in the next decade
Australia’s special envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore wants tech startups to look at the region for expansion, rather than traditional bases in the US and UK.
Vientiane: The man tasked with spearheading Australia’s economic drive in Southeast Asia has played down fears that corruption in the region would impede Australian companies looking to invest.
Speaking to Capital Brief on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Laos on Thursday, Australia’s special envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore is also urging Australian tech start-ups to overlook London and Silicon Valley in favour of Hanoi and Jakarta.
Moore, former Macquarie Group chief executive, was tapped by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to write Labor’s Southeast Asia Strategy 2040, which he unveiled at last year's ASEAN summit in Jakarta. This included new start-up 'landing pads' in Jakarta and Ho Chi Ming City to help Australian businesses expand into the region.
Collectively, ASEAN will rank as the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2040, making it an obvious target for Australian investment. But Australia's economic engagement in the region has historically been undercooked, with less than 4% of its investment going to the region.
