Singapore (Oct 7): David Lee, CEO of IYUNO Media Group, was told that his business — providing dubbing and subtitling services for movies and videos — would not succeed in the US, especially since it was run by a non-American. That did not deter him. “Everyone told me, no way an Asian businessman can make it in the US,” he recalls in an interview with <i>The Edge Singapore</i>.

Lee (pictured above) went ahead anyway. IYUNO opened its US office within three days and has been winning contracts there ever since. “I am a believer in instinct,” he says. Lee went on to build a company that would become a global market leader in the industry. It attracted an investment of US$24 million from Softbank Ventures for a 25% stake.

On Oct 3, Lee was named Entrepreneur Of The Year at the 18th edition of the awards, organised by professional services firm EY. He was also named EY Entrepreneur Of The Year — Digital Media Supply Chain.

Besides Lee, four other category winners were announced. They are Ron Tan, executive chairman and group CEO of City­neon Holdings, who was named Entrepreneur Of The Year — Media and Entertainment; Ng Gim Choo, founder and managing director of EtonHouse International Education Group, for Education; Kong Wan Sing, founder and CEO of JustCo, for Workspace Solutions; and Yeah Hiang Nam, managing director and CEO of ValueMax Group, for Financial Services.

The event was held at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore. Ng Chee Meng, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress, was the guest of honour.

Ron Sim, chairman of the judging panel, applauds Lee’s “visionary leadership”.

“Beyond commercial success, David has distinguished himself for his tenacity in riding out the disruptions in the industry through technology innovation, his agility in building a global footprint, and his belief in fulfilling the larger purpose of fostering inclusiveness by bridging cultures through quality localisation of the spoken word,” says Sim, who is also the executive chairman and CEO of V3 Group.

Max Loh, Singapore managing partner, EY, calls the five category winners a “special group” because “they don’t give up, they don’t stop”. “They cut through the noise of this transformative age by breaking away from the pack, forging on no matter what difficulties they face, fuelled by their vision and passion, the trust that their families, stakeholders and employees place in them, and their belief in innovation to grow regardless of how long they have been in the business.”

In addition to the five entrepreneur awards, two special awards were given out. Dennis A Uy, founder, chairman and president of Udenna Corp, received the EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence award. Far East Organization, one of the largest developers in Singapore, received the EY Family Business Award of Excellence.

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