Q: Tell us more about yourself, Kelvin!
I’m the co-founder of Funding Societies | Modalku. Launched in 2015, we’re the largest SME digital financing platform in Southeast Asia, having given out S$2 billion loans to 65,000 SMEs. After graduating from NUS BIZ as the class valedictorian, I followed the ‘traditional’ career path of becoming a management consultant with Accenture, before moving on to McKinsey, KKR and finally Harvard Business School for my MBA.
I found a like-minded MBA classmate, Reynold, and sharing a common vision, we decided to start Funding Societies (otherwise known as “Modalku” or My Capital in Indonesia).
Q: What made you decide to take Accountancy?
Well, no one ever goes hungry doing Accountancy. It is a professional degree, which unlocks the mystery of a company through numbers. This knowledge and framework is fundamental, in my opinion.
Q: What were some interesting NUS BIZ experience that helped you discover and develop yourself?
Many. I was fortunate to be given tremendous exposure to figure out what I want to do, thanks to the kind support of BBA Assistant Dean and Director, Dr Helen Chai. I was able to specialise in Accountancy, join the University Scholars Programme (“USP”), complete a Technopreneurship minor in USA via the NUS Overseas College (“NOC”) Programme, and represent NUS in international case competitions with successes. Nowadays, I find many young graduates with much richer experience. But it was relatively rare in those days and such cross-disciplinary learning has been fundamental to innovation for me.
Q: What is one challenge you experienced in your career journey and how did your time in NUSBIZ help you overcome it?
I was passionate about management consulting, because if companies could be better run, lives of many could be better too. However, the big 3 firms did not hire undergrad consultants from local universities at that time, given returning Singaporeans from the Ivy League. The experience from international case competitions helped me to break into Accenture and later McKinsey, as the first consultant from NUS.
Q: How has your NUS BIZ education helped in the transition from corporate role to start-up environment?
The biggest adjustment from a corporate to a start-up environment is mindset. The start-up scene was relatively new in 2010, with investment banking being the preeminent career choice. Founding or joining a start-up was uncommon and not looked up to. Thanks to the encouragement and exposure of NUS (BIZ), there was a budding community with Startup@Singapore competition, NUS Overseas College and NUS Entrepreneurship Society. NUS senior Darius Cheung became the first entrepreneur we knew to have a successful exit. The late-night brainstorming, evening entrepreneur sharing sessions and after-class chat of the community instill a start-up mindset and made the transition relatively smooth.
Q: If you had one word to share with the juniors on how to make the most of their NUS BIZ experience, what would it be and why?
Be Humble.
Given knowledge, hard work and smart are becoming commodities. One has to differentiate with humility and wisdom.
A growing cynicism is capturing our society. While there is a place for healthy skepticism, I believe faith and hope are a more steadfast compass to guide one’s journey.