Pilgrim's Albert Ee: "Hard skills and experience are key"
March 2022 — Albert Ee, one of the best-known persons in Singapore's hedge fund industry, talks with Hedge Funds Club's Stefan Nilsson about his career, the skills it takes to succeed as a hedge fund manager, risk management and Singapore's role in the industry.
MAS was brilliant in introducing the VCC. The structure is extremely attractive in attracting family offices and helping them manage their funds out of Singapore. I do think that the growth will continue into the medium to long term. While there have been a few prominent family offices, there is a lot of new wealth being created from new industries like fintech and crypto, and also wealthy families and money seeking a safe environment.
As a geography, Singapore is also a recipient of geopolitical flows from Europe, North Asia and the region. This is something we have to realise; that our positioning as a country is a result of years of crafting policy and being able to adapt to these geopolitical changes. But regulatory and fiduciary responsibilities remain. Family offices coming to set up in Singapore need to work with local partners who have proven track records and can help them sidestep compliance, fiduciary and regulatory minefields as well. Look for partners with local knowledge and regional outlook who have done this before.