Abstract of the lecture delivered to PSL Dauphine University in January 2021 with Jean-François Di Meglio (Asiacentre - Centrasia). Author: Olivier Coispeau

1. Doing Business in Asia
January 2021

2. Presentation
• A quick positioning of Asia
• The power of Asian business hubs
• Growing a business in Asia
• Promising Asian opportunities
Page 3

3. Doing business in Asia … but what is Asia today?
Source: National Geographic
Page 4

4. In less than 150 years the structure of the Asian
population has dramatically changed
Source : UNESCO
« The wealth of nations », Adam Smith, 1776
Page 6
1950 2010 2100
• Asia represents 60% of the world population: 4.6 billion individuals
• Witnessed the most rapid demographic change in the world since the 1970s
• Considerable diversity: most low-middle-income-countries have a youthful age
structure (Pakistan, the Philippines), high-income countries are aging (Japan, RoK)

5. Living standards in Asia deeply contrast between
Eastern and Western Asia
Page 7
World GDP per capita 1870 – 2016
(adjusted for inflation and price difference between countries)

6. Global energy consumed will have tripled in 60 years
+11% +27%
1970
1.35 tep/hab
2000
1.5 tep/hab
2030
1.9 tep/hab
3.7 Mds hab
5.0 Mds tep
6.0 Mds hab
9.2 Mds tep
8.2 Mds hab
15.3 Mds tep
Source : AIE / BP Stat Review
Page 9

7. Presentation
• A quick positioning of Asia
• The power of Asian business hubs
• Growing a business in Asia
• Promising Asian opportunities
Page 10

8. In 1405, about 6,200 nautical miles from Venice, an army of
shipbuilders was preparing China for its greatest sea adventure
Comments :
• The Great Ming armada was preparing
for its seven diplomatic journeys under
the command of admiral Zheng He
• He visited 37 countries through SEA to
Africa and Arabia
• The Great Fleet included 28,000 men
on 317 ships
• In spite of the Zheng He and Marco
Polo travels, both Western and Eastern
worlds would never trade directly
• But neither the feared galley fleet of
Venice nor the “Great Fleet” ever met
Source: Zheng He statue in Fuzhou (PRC)
Page 13

9. In the Pacific region, Tokyo’s dominance as an international
business center accelerated after WWII
Comments :
• The success of the Dojima rice exchange
(est. 1715) illustrated a long tradition in
using complex financial instruments
• But Japan preferred to live a rather
segregated life until 1853
• After the Meiji restoration (1868), Japan
established a national banking system
• The Japanese market started to deregulate
and opened up in the 1970s
• Tokyo is considered the major financial
center of the Pacific coast as of now
Source: TokyoNews
Page 14

10. Some contenders have already declared a formidable ambition to
become the reference international business center in Asia
“The Chinese government’s State Council has announced a clear goal for
Shanghai to become an international financial center by 2020.”
Booz & Co.
Page 15
Source: China Daily

11. Tokyo already faces serious competition from the regional
finance hubs of Singapore and Hong Kong
“Singapore and Hong Kong have developed both prominent and world class financial
centers and continue to strengthen their positions”
from Finance Masters, a brief history of international financial centers in the last millenium
(World Scientific) Page 16
Source: Strait Times Source: China South Morning Post

12. Presentation
• A quick positioning of Asia
• The power of Asian business hubs
• Growing a business in Asia
• Promising Asian opportunities
Page 19

13. Strategy and organization provide the spine of a
successful Asian business develoment
Comments :
• Strategy:
 the expectations for the Asian management
team are set and well communicated
 focus on resources and delivery, early wins
are essential to ensure credibility
• Organization:
 the target management is clear, decisions
are quickly made if necessary, people
understand well what is expected
 the management team is moving smoothly
and focusing on the execution of the plan,
step by step
Bird’s eye precise picture is essential to focus on key
objectives and pocket early wins
One needs quickly the big picture
Page 20

14. Six keys to define most ot the winning Asian strategies
Source : Maverlinn
Page 21
1. Set the company
objective and
performance, watch
the market
2. Organize
resources to meet
the objective and win
3. Accelerate and
strike access to key
customers
4. Access best local
talents and recruit
them
5. Exploit scalability
opportunity to deliver
faster results and
assert leadership
6. Pick winners or
unlucky losers, engage
them to grow their
business

15. There are a few simple rules to create incremental
value, and three pitfalls that destroy value
Source : Bain & Cie, BoLe Associates
Page 22
2. Failing to define the cash
value drivers and the risks.
Investors will sell
1. Loss of key people. Head
hunters know that growth
creates opportunities
3. Distraction from the core
business resulting in weak
corporate performance.
A. Free the talents, resolve conflicts and
build quickly on human capital. Avoid a
walking dead HR mismanagement
B. Follow the money, work the numbers
in the details, reap low hanging results
first, stick to a precise roadmap

16. Share and discuss a simple but precise integration scorecard on
the on-going process with team, project by project
Page 28
ISSUE RESOLUTION
What does not work and
must be fixed quickly,
ranked and prioritized.
DISCOVERIES
What needs to be
adjusted or discussed in
the process. Things that
could be useful later
PROGRESS
Typically, this is the compass
for the integration process, it
measures the distance to the
end of the process.
ACHIEVEMENTS
What has been done
already and working well.
90%
80%
75%
60%
The integration scorecard must be shared, updated and discussed at least
every week

17. Presentation
• A quick positioning of Asia
• The power of Asian business hubs
• Growing a business in Asia
• Promising Asian opportunities
Page 29

18. The conservation of the common good and the satisfaction of
individual preferences will continue to diverge
Comments :
• Management economics does not
align easily with common good
• Since David Ricardo virtue has not
been seen as a relevant constituent of
economics
• The regulator is in charge of not only
defining the rule of the game but also of
enforcing them
• Most market players will always test the
limits of the game to reap greater
benefits for themselves
• The social conscience of market
players can never be taken for granted
« The political economist [ … ] has to tell you how to become rich » David
Ricardo (1772-1823)
Haze from forest fire in Indonesia
Page 30

19. The icon of the post-industrial revolution is the
automotive industry, a contributor to 6.5% of GDP
Comments :
• About one ton on average per vehicle,
excluding fuel, and only one passenger
weighting 60 kg on average
• Drastic speed limits downtown 30-50
km/h (most cars > 150 km/h)
• 13.6% of the US household disposable
income, i.e. 7.3 x education, 3.3 x
entertainment, 1.35 x food
• 5.6% of the EU workforce and 6.5% of
EU GDP
• 6.5 million premature death related to
air pollution every year (source : IEA)
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Page 31

20. In 100 years, CO2 emissions have increased 2.8 times
Source : Max Roser, Oxford University, World Data
1.33 CO2 MT/Capita
100 years
0.47 CO2 MT/Capita
Page 32

21. The transition to the low carbon economy represents a most
attractive market in Asia i.e. > € 1 trillion worldwide
Comments :
• The end of the carbon economy is the
beginning of a new world
• Nuclear can help filling in the gap but
not a long term suitable alternative
• CleanTech have sufficient reach to
provide necessary energy for all
• By 2050, the EU have pledged to cut
GHG by 80% compared to 1990s levels
• The cost of the switch to clean tech is >
€ 1 Tn for the next 4 decade (€ 270 Bn
for Europe only)
Page 36
Source: EU, 2050 low-carbon economy

22. Conclusion
• Know and understand where you are in Asia
• Make sure you connect well to a large Asian business hub
• Get sufficient ressources to grow in Asia
• Tap large and promising market opportunities
Page 37

23. Biography
Page 2
• Olivier Coispeau, CFA
• Founder of Maverlinn Strategic Finance
• Strategy (Roland Berger) and Finance
(JP Morgan, Schroders, Clinvest)
• Innovative start-up incubation (Antfactory)
• Former economics professor at Paris-
Sorbonne university
• Education: Stanford University, PSL Paris
Dauphine University and Sciences Po. Paris

24. Leading a world of change, together