"The winding but rewarding road to China"

(The Investor, oct.2001)

“ ... Sharing Samid's optimism is Dita Koren-Klein, chief executive officer of Techmatch, a consulting firm that specializes in the Far East. According to Koren-Klein, current developments in China represent a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Israeli communications technology companies. “China is leapfrogging ahead of Europe and the U.S. in ADSL (fast Internet) connections, as well as in the absolute number of cellular telephones in use.” she says. As head of the Industry’s Office of the Chief Scientist, Koren-Klein was tapped to lecture in Augost, where the Israel Export Institute (IEI) organized a pavilion of Israeli exhibitions.
“ADSL has been slower to catch on in the U.S. and Europe than industry analysts had predicted,” Koren-Klein observes, “Here it’s already reached the one million subscribers mark, heralding a bright future for broadband in China. In addition, China will soon hit 100,000 ‘handphones’, as cellphones are called here”.
Koren Klein is quick to dispel widespread misconceptions about the New Economy and China, where the Internet is growing faster than in any other country in the world. “According to conventional wisdom, China is a place for production once the design work has been done in the West,” she remarks. “But design houses originating and operating in China are now on a par with design facilities anywhere else, at very competitive prices.”
Koren-Klein says that Chinese business partners are looking for strategic allies who want to build long-term relationships, not just transact “one-off” deals. She adds that Chinese consumers are also beginning to buy the electronic products they manufacture. “Chinese home viewers are switching to DVD from VCD [video compact disks], and that is double good news got Israeli chip makers like Zoran, which has been selling chips for DVD applications to China for the last few years.”
Koren-Klein’s analysis is borne out by the recent successes of Israeli companies in China, where the various provincinal governments have been given leeway to issue their own tenders and chart their own courses in planning the development of their technology infrastructure.”
“ ... It is clear that the lure is great and the prizes enormous. But gaining access to the business community of the PRC can be a formidable challenge. Koren-Klein gained initial access through two traditional gateways: Hong Kong, the former British colony that reverted back to Chinese control and now bears the appellation Special Autonomous Republic (SAR), and Singapore, whose population is 70 percent Chinese - a diaspora community of the mainland, with none of the charged political baggage that hampers relations between the PRC and the Republic of China (ROC), better known as Taiwan.
“There are numerous advantages to approaching China through Hong Kong or Singapore, where existing partnerships with mainland Chinese entities can be leveraged,” Koren-Klein says. “Language is much less of a problem, since English is an official language in both places. Hong Kong has the added advantage of proximity, as well as actually being an integral part of the PRC. But Singapore has invested heavily in building technology complexes in the PRC in partnership with the Chinese government; and Israel has a long history of very close relations with the Shoutheast Asian city-state, which has served as a staging area for trade between the Jewish nation and countries with whom diplomatic relations did not exist: until recently, China and to this day, Malaysia and Indonesia.””

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Opening TechMatch Singapore - Israeli hub, a technological center for Israeli high-tech companies expanding their activities into Singapore and the Pacific Rim region

The inauguration ceremony of the new Israeli incubator/hub in Singapore, a branch of the Israeli company TechMatch, was held on 28th of August, participating SIIRD, EDB Singapore management, Israeli delegates, and guests from the Hi-Tech communities of Israel and Singapore.
TechMatch Singapore aims to commercialize Israeli technologies and ideas by forming successful collaborations and joint ventures with Singapore-based companies. By expanding into the region, the centre will help Israeli high tech companies penetrate the 2.8 billion people market of the Pacific Rim for the benefits of both sides. TechMatch Singapore will promote business cooperation between Israeli and Singaporean technological companies, as well as assist Israeli companies set a base in Singapore, to further develop state of the art technologies.
Israel invests 3.6% of its GNP in commercial R&D, one of the highest investment rates in the world. Israel also has the highest rate of engineers, doctors and PhD per capita as part of its workforce. All this, along with the large number of Hi-Tech companies – 4000, second only to California’s Silicon Valley, has made the Israeli Hi-Tech community among the world leaders, with innovative technologies and products in the various technological fields such as communication, security, micro-electronics, Biotechnology, medical and bio-medical. There are 50 Israeli companies with offices in Singapore and 90 companies with trading links.
TechMatch Israel is a Business Development consultancy firm, mainly in the area of international cooperation. The company's experts have vast technological knowledge and over 25 years of experience both in managing R&D, business development and in bridging the gap between technologies and their commercial materialization. With a proven track record in assisting Israeli companies in establishing business and R&D collaboration with overseas companies, including Singapore and the region, TechMatch is concentrating its efforts now in Singapore.
Israeli Hi-Tech companies regard Singapore as a natural partner with clear synergy for their technologies and products; Singapore offers to the Israeli companies an open, advanced and supportive environment. “Singapore’s conducive environment is like an enterprise greenhouse where start-ups thrive. Israeli companies will enjoy pro-enterprise conditions where ideas can hatch and take flight. Business friendly rules and regulations, a pro-IP (intellectual property) legal system, attractive tax regime and efficient infrastructure are key ingredients that help start-ups grow, glow and globalize.” Said Mr Teo Ming Kian, Chairman, EDB who graced the official opening of Tech Match Singapore.
TechMatch will also bring to Singapore the innovation, advanced technologies, state of the art products, looking for new partners and markets. Israeli start-ups can thrive in Singapore’s dynamic entrepreneurial climate.
“I am confident the Israeli start-ups will benefit from Singapore’s highly modern industry and well connected infrastructure along a pro-enterprise environment and continual drive towards technology excellence.” Said TechMatch's Israeli spokesperson.
At the official opening, Israeli companies from the electronics and biomedical sectors were presented to leading VC funds, investors and representatives of the Singaporean technology community, signifying a keen interest in the opportunities for collaboration and partnership.
The event was supported by the Singapore Israel Industrial Research and Development foundation (SIIRD) which facilitates joint R&D projects between Singapore and Israeli high-tech companies for commercialization.

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