Advancing Women’s Leadership: SMU Marked International Women’s Day (IWD) 2026 across Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam
Singapore Management University’s (SMU) regional offices curated a series of engagements across Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, reflecting a grounded and regionally attuned understanding of women’s leadership.
From Adversity to Innovation: The Start-Up Journeys of SMU Student Entrepreneurs
Kirby Teo (BBM 2025) and Nicholas Chen (BSc IS 2025) turned personal and financial setbacks into start-up success, supported by SMU’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
From Finance to the Frontlines of Pro Bono Justice: Asoka Markandu’s Journey of Mentoring Aspiring Lawyers
After leaving a decades-long career in finance, Asoka Markandu (JD 2011) embarked on a new path by enrolling in the Juris Doctor (JD) programme at SMU. Following graduation, he began his legal career as a prosecutor, before moving into criminal defence.
From normal stream to law school, new lawyer: your starting point doesn’t define your life
Chong Kai Sheng (LLB 2024) struggled with poor PSLE results and entering the Normal Academic stream, but he persevered to qualify to study law at Yong Pung How School of Law (YPHSL).
ICON List 2026: Cindy Karim ensures that giving back does not become a mere formality
CK Star Entertainment founder Cindy Karim (BBM 2014), guided by her parents’ values of giving back, leads the Karim Family Foundation in supporting sports, arts, education, and mental health.
‘The most important client I could ever have’: Why this law grad now defends Singapore through military intelligence
Dexter Chow (LLB 2022) is a senior military intelligence expert at the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS), the fourth branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), specialising in developing a deep analytical acumen and understanding of Singapore’s regional security environment.
Alumni Gift to SMU Fuels Next Generation of Entrepreneurs
Singapore Management University (SMU) has received a S$5 million gift from alumni Jeff Tung (BBM 2013) and Benjamin Twoon (BBM 2013) to accelerate the development of student-founded ventures, supporting Singapore’s growing startup pipeline.
The accelerator Effect: How Singapore develops digital leaders
Derrick Lee (BSc IS 2020), who is the cofounder of Accredify, took a non-traditional path into technology.
From Lebanon’s war zone to S’pore shelves: Why this 28y/o won’t let conflict kill her traditional olive oil business
Alia Ballout (JD 2024) launched Beît Ballout, Singapore’s first traditional olive oil brand, sourcing produce from her family’s grove in southern Lebanon, air-freighting it to Singapore, and bottling it locally by hand.
Singapore-based WhyQ evolves to AI-powered corporate dining partner for Singapore enterprises
Varun Saraf (BSc ISM 2012) and Rishabh Singhvi (BSc ISM 2012) founded WhyQ in 2016 with the mission of bringing Singapore's hawker heritage into the digital age.
