ABU DHABIÊ'S CHIEF REGULATOR RICHARD TENG FLIES THE SINGAPORE FLAG FROM THE FAR EAST TO THE MIDDLE EAST.
If the eyes are the windows to one’s soul, Richard Teng’s lively gaze is not about to betray his state of mind. In fact, his bright complexion is seemingly exemplary of a good night’s rest. Truth is, he’s slept only four hours and has been up since 2.30am.
Blame jet lag. Over these two weeks, the chief executive of the Abu Dhabi Global Market’s (ADGM) Financial Services Regulatory Authority has made six brief stops in territories from the Middle East across the Atlantic and then to the Far East, before returning to Abu Dhabi where he is based. Teng, who has just commenced his second term, does a similar travel schedule at least once a month, and dismisses any fuss made about his ability to keep up with the hustle.
“Many corporates do the same, if not more frequently. But if I ask you to repeat a question, you’d know I’d zoned off,” the 48-year-old says with a chortle, and sips his latte. It’s his second cup of joe – his daily quota is four. “I try to follow the new time zone as quickly as I can. It takes a day or two, but, sometimes, you don’t have that luxury of time.”
The last three years have been a whirlwind for Teng, who’s the first Singaporean to set up and helm an overseas regulator and financial centre. He was handpicked to establish ADGM as part of Abu Dhabi’s aggressive diversification away from petrochemicals – the non-oil sector now contributes more than half of the capital’s GDP.
ADGM, which was named Financial Centre of the Year (Mena) last year for a second year running by leading financial publication Global Investor/ISF, is also on track to becoming the region’s largest asset management hub in the next two years.
This story is from the May 2018 edition of The PEAK Singapore.
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This story is from the May 2018 edition of The PEAK Singapore.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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