The China Startup Pulse

Fintech has come a long way in China, from barely being recognized to one of the fastest growing markets in the region. As the world’s leader in Fintech technology, China is a breeding ground for Internet finance companies, and accordingly, investment in the industry. With millions of users and an ever-growing number of fintech unicorns, the future of Internet finance looks exceedingly bright in China.

Today, we present another special episode recorded live at RISE Conference 2018, where Oscar Ramos sat down with venture capitalist and fintech investor Wei Hopeman. After beginning her career in financial services and investment banking, Wei co-founded Arbor Ventures in 2013, the first VC fund specialized in fintech in the Asian ecosystem. She talks to us about the growth of fintech, the benefits of corporate VCs, and how founders and corporate VCs can improve their interactions with each other, as well as many other topics.

Many thanks to RISE Conference 2018 for gathering global elites in Hong Kong and supporting China Startup Pulse to present good quality content for our listeners.

On this day 2 years ago, China’s ride-hailing industry experienced a major turning point - Didi purchased Uber’s China operations and Uber took a 20% stake in Didi. So far Uber has expanded in more than 449 cities and 66 countries. Today, many companies are still trying to elbow into this crowded industry.

In this episode, we are lucky to have Sam Gellman as our guest, the first international Uber employee that took care of the company’s expansion in Asia and China. Sam shared his past experience in redesigning Uber’s playbook to adjust to China’s unique ecosystem, channels for communication and user acquisition. Despite knowing only a bit of Chinese, Sam was assigned to create a Chinese name for Uber. Fortunately, the Chinese name 优步 turned out to be one of the most well-received foreign company names. As the person who worked on market localization for Uber, Sam also shared how they took the company from nothing to a massive exit within 3 years.

China is obsessed with data. But how can you access it, and leverage it to your benefit? Kenneth Cheung shines a light on how you should be using data to market yourself or your company, and shares with us the “golden rule of WeChat marketing”. From initially acquiring data to actually learning how to use it properly, Kenneth walks this integral process while talking about his work in consulting on brand management and KOL influencer marketing in China. He also talks about the power of mini-apps, the first principals of market, and much, much more! If you want to market your brand on WeChat to its maximum potential, this is a can’t-miss episode.

What do investors look for in startups? This week, we have invited Jörn Helms, Senior Advisor at the Bank of Taizhou and Country Director for China with Portier Technologies, which helps hotels improve revenue, guest satisfaction, and reduce opex. With an extensive background in small business landing (as the former VP of Bank of Taizhou) and angel investing, Jörn is experienced with both large companies and small startups entering China.

Both new startup founders and veteran business owners may often find themselves confronted by conflict, whether they’re personal, familial, or business-related complications. This week, our mentors share some of their own personal experiences in conquering these obstacles and their words of wisdom on what helps a company succeed.

Join us for our 8x8 Series Finale, where our final three speakers emphasize the value in venturing out into the unknown to revive passion and to crush fear, stress the importance in organizing a proper IP strategy for a business in China’s vast market, and offer strategic advice to help better the life of a startup. We hope you enjoy!

Being a good entrepreneur is a multi-faceted skill. Proficiency in one aspect does not guarantee overall success, but failure or inefficiency in one discipline could cost you your business. Our guests this week provide sage advice on topics ranging from securing funding to proper networking.

With years of experience in the China Startup scene, this week’s guests speak from the heart on their mistakes and lessons learned: how they sought the wrong advice, pursued the wrong business ideas, and how you should deal with the problems you will inevitably face while building your business. Whether you are an experienced entrepreneur or someone struggling with their first start-up, this episode is worth a listen!

Being an entrepreneur is often defined not by one’s success, but by the way one deals with failure. This week’s three guests have all used their past experiences, both positive and negative, to find success in their current endeavors.

From a past career as a skateboarder to the challenge of overcoming a midlife crisis, this week’s speakers have experienced a unique set of highs and lows which have enhanced their focus, creativity, and self-awareness, among other things. Make sure you don’t miss this episode!

This episode’s guest is a pioneer and innovator in blockchain technology and cryptocurrency: Emurgo senior advisor and Chinaccelerator alumnus Darren Camas! He talks about his career and experiences in crypto, an industry for which he has been at the forefront since the beginning. He stresses the importance of having responsible business practices, the inability to plan for luck, and other lessons learned. Also interesting is his discussion of Cardano, the revolutionary generation 3 blockchain technology, which pushes improved scalability, interoperability, and sustainability. This podcast is sure to be thought-provoking and informational to both blockchain enthusiasts and those less accustomed with the industry.

In this episode, we have invited Florian Bohnert, head of global partnerships for Mobike. As an entrepreneur, Florian developed an interest for Asian culture and the East very early on and has been leading Mobike’s global expansion journey, especially in China. He stresses the importance of being in the country where you want to expand your business and letting passion drive you. He also touches upon the positive impact mobike has on people’s health other than the obvious convenience it has brought to people’s lives.

Running a business is an exciting and rewarding process, but at times, can also be very stressful and fraught with many pitfalls. In this episode, Mike Burns, Founding Partner of Asia Growth Solutions, talks about his experiences as an executive coach, business coach, and strategy consultant in China. He highlights the challenges his clients often encounter and gives crucial advice to leaders of all levels. This includes the importance of having a good support network, the need for strong personal values compatible with business, and the 4 key issues most leaders face! With prior leadership experience at Walmart and General Electric, Mike’s advice is invaluable to all those trying to navigate the difficult task of starting a successful business in China.