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I have a lateral question about Singapore. Everything I have read about the country says that it is one of the best in the world for business and, in particula

I have a lateral question about Singapore. Everything I have read about the country says that it is one of the best in the world for business and, in particular, startups. Yet some of the commentary here leads me to believe there's a dark side to the reality of this nation. Anyone with first hand knowledge care to comment on this? I am puzzled because it so happens we might have to do some business in Singapore and a friend was telling me about the business/startup environment. I did a bunch of research and found articles with nothing but praise. Is the truth more nuanced than this?

draw_down 7y ago
Perhaps suppressing speech and being business friendly are not mutually exclusive. Perhaps.
eej2ya1K 7y ago
Of course there's a dark side, but the truth is that a lack of real democracy, fair elections, human rights etc. just isn't going to matter to your average startup. In fact, it's not going to matter to the average person, either.
phs318u 7y ago
It’s a benevolent dictatorship. Benevolence is in the eye of the beholder. As a visitor to that country it is easily one of the safest and cleanest countries in SE Asia.
Cayde-6 7y ago
It's a bit more nuanced. My understanding is that for Singaporean citizens and PRs living in the country, registering a business is pretty fast, cheap, and easy. When the small foreign company I work for set up a subsidiary there, however, it was far more difficult. A lot of paperwork, required a SG legal firm and associated fees, answering a bunch of questions from the government about the business, required an existing local as the Director, etc. and it took months. The timezone difference certainly didn't help communication speed either. Then there's the visa process if you want to bring in anyone from outside of SG. Maybe it's less difficult for large multi-nationals.
Lunatic666 7y ago
Only my opinion – I'm living and working in Singapore since 7 years and it definitely is a good environment to do business. The justice system is reliable and predictable to not startle potential investors and the government itself does not misuse their undoubtedly great power they have over the country. Misusing it however would result in losing money and that's pretty much the only natural resource they have. I'm feeling more free in Singapore than in my home country because whenever I have to do with the government, I know there's someone to talk to with common sense and nearly everything can be done online. You can look forward to doing business there.
xuki 7y ago
As long as you don't go against the government, it's pretty close to perfect. It's a different system, and it works. Many people think a country needs to follow Western's steps to be a good country, but maybe there are more than one way to govern? For a normal person, living in Singapore would pretty be the same as living in any other metropolitan.
ponyfleisch 7y ago
pro: * Many overseas educated locals helping with cultural cross pollination * Locals often live with their parents until their late twenties (when they get married), so there are a lot of young people with low personal burn rates * Lots of government funding and plenty of private capital around as well * A good amount of big tech companies have offices here * Major finance hub * Very business friendly regulations * Cost of living is reasonably scalable (meaning you can slum it out here or live like a king, depending on your success) * Good access to Indonesia, Vietnam etc. for talent * Thriving e-commerce ecosystem in Southeast Asia * Decent meet up ecosystem con: * Rent is expensive (both residential and office space) * Foreigner visas are not always easy to come by I might add more later in a separate comment if i can think of more.
paulmooreparks 7y ago
I've been living and working in Singapore for two years now, coming from the United States. I'm a libertarian who finds politics and economics in the US to be horribly broken, and while in principle I don't agree with authoritarianism or planned economies, I'm also of the mind that one cannot apply a single concept of government to every culture. That's a colonial mindset. America's liberal tradition came from many, many factors over hundreds of years. By comparison, Singapore is still in its infancy. While I don't agree with everything I see here, the system does work. All that said, I'm applying for permanent residency here, because when I look at what's happening in America, in either major party, I don't have much of a desire to return. At least the Singaporean government is much more honest about what it is. It's not perfect, by any means, and it's expensive to live here, but it's clean and safe, it has the world's best airport, and it is a great place to do business.
- ponyfleisch 7y ago
  I've met quite a few libertarians in Singapore but i continue to be puzzled by why someone with libertarian leanings would choose to live here. Can you explain why it appeals to you? Do the low taxes make up for the limitations on personal liberty?
- zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 7y ago
  > while in principle I don't agree with authoritarianism or planned economies, I'm also of the mind that one cannot apply a single concept of government to every culture. That's a colonial mindset. WTF? Fighting evil anywhere but in your own home now is a colonial mindset? You have to be kidding me! I guess I should be happy people like you didn't manage to prevent people from putting an end to Hitler, or else I would be living in a dictatorship that fits the German culture ... seriously, WTF?
  - dang 7y ago
    We've asked you several times to stop breaking the site guidelines. If you keep doing it, we're going to have to ban you. Would you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and fix this?
arvinsim 7y ago
Lots of startups in SG yet the way the system runs seem to be stifling innovation.

draw_down 7y ago

Perhaps suppressing speech and being business friendly are not mutually exclusive. Perhaps.

eej2ya1K 7y ago

Of course there's a dark side, but the truth is that a lack of real democracy, fair elections, human rights etc. just isn't going to matter to your average startup. In fact, it's not going to matter to the average person, either.

phs318u 7y ago

It’s a benevolent dictatorship. Benevolence is in the eye of the beholder. As a visitor to that country it is easily one of the safest and cleanest countries in SE Asia.

Cayde-6 7y ago

It's a bit more nuanced. My understanding is that for Singaporean citizens and PRs living in the country, registering a business is pretty fast, cheap, and easy. When the small foreign company I work for set up a subsidiary there, however, it was far more difficult. A lot of paperwork, required a SG legal firm and associated fees, answering a bunch of questions from the government about the business, required an existing local as the Director, etc. and it took months. The timezone difference certainly didn't help communication speed either. Then there's the visa process if you want to bring in anyone from outside of SG. Maybe it's less difficult for large multi-nationals.

Lunatic666 7y ago

Only my opinion – I'm living and working in Singapore since 7 years and it definitely is a good environment to do business. The justice system is reliable and predictable to not startle potential investors and the government itself does not misuse their undoubtedly great power they have over the country. Misusing it however would result in losing money and that's pretty much the only natural resource they have. I'm feeling more free in Singapore than in my home country because whenever I have to do with the government, I know there's someone to talk to with common sense and nearly everything can be done online. You can look forward to doing business there.

xuki 7y ago

As long as you don't go against the government, it's pretty close to perfect. It's a different system, and it works. Many people think a country needs to follow Western's steps to be a good country, but maybe there are more than one way to govern? For a normal person, living in Singapore would pretty be the same as living in any other metropolitan.

ponyfleisch 7y ago

pro: * Many overseas educated locals helping with cultural cross pollination * Locals often live with their parents until their late twenties (when they get married), so there are a lot of young people with low personal burn rates * Lots of government funding and plenty of private capital around as well * A good amount of big tech companies have offices here * Major finance hub * Very business friendly regulations * Cost of living is reasonably scalable (meaning you can slum it out here or live like a king, depending on your success) * Good access to Indonesia, Vietnam etc. for talent * Thriving e-commerce ecosystem in Southeast Asia * Decent meet up ecosystem con: * Rent is expensive (both residential and office space) * Foreigner visas are not always easy to come by I might add more later in a separate comment if i can think of more.

paulmooreparks 7y ago

I've been living and working in Singapore for two years now, coming from the United States. I'm a libertarian who finds politics and economics in the US to be horribly broken, and while in principle I don't agree with authoritarianism or planned economies, I'm also of the mind that one cannot apply a single concept of government to every culture. That's a colonial mindset. America's liberal tradition came from many, many factors over hundreds of years. By comparison, Singapore is still in its infancy. While I don't agree with everything I see here, the system does work. All that said, I'm applying for permanent residency here, because when I look at what's happening in America, in either major party, I don't have much of a desire to return. At least the Singaporean government is much more honest about what it is. It's not perfect, by any means, and it's expensive to live here, but it's clean and safe, it has the world's best airport, and it is a great place to do business.

ponyfleisch 7y ago
I've met quite a few libertarians in Singapore but i continue to be puzzled by why someone with libertarian leanings would choose to live here. Can you explain why it appeals to you? Do the low taxes make up for the limitations on personal liberty?
zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 7y ago
> while in principle I don't agree with authoritarianism or planned economies, I'm also of the mind that one cannot apply a single concept of government to every culture. That's a colonial mindset. WTF? Fighting evil anywhere but in your own home now is a colonial mindset? You have to be kidding me! I guess I should be happy people like you didn't manage to prevent people from putting an end to Hitler, or else I would be living in a dictatorship that fits the German culture ... seriously, WTF?
- dang 7y ago
  We've asked you several times to stop breaking the site guidelines. If you keep doing it, we're going to have to ban you. Would you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and fix this?

arvinsim 7y ago

Lots of startups in SG yet the way the system runs seem to be stifling innovation.