Arowana & Co. (“Arowana”), the global B Corporation investment group, announced today that it has launched a holding company headquartered in Singapore to specifically invest in companies committed to the B Corp triple bottom line of People, Planet and Profit across the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region.
The primary purpose of this holding company, AIC Group Holdings, is to provide companies that are B Corp or want to become B Corp with an ownership succession pathway, which will respect and perpetuate the B Corp ethos and culture instilled by their founders. AIC Group Holdings is privately held.
In tandem with the launch of the holding company, Arowana has appointed Andrew Kassoy, co-founder of B Lab Global, the non-profit behind the B Corp movement, to the Advisory Board of AIC Group Holdings. In addition, Thomas Ng, a leading B Corp entrepreneur and founder of Genashtim, a fast-growing global social enterprise, has agreed to join the Advisory Board.
Arowana founder and chairman, Kevin Chin, commented: “We have been working on optimising a structure for two years and believe a holding company that has no restrictions in terms of investment entry and exit horizons is the best model that matches the succession and growth objectives of B Corp founders and their businesses. As a B Corp ourselves, we appreciate the dilemma that founders face in this regard. We consider Singapore to be the ideal headquarters for this holding company as we see many enterprises across the fast-growing ASEAN region that would be a good fit. This is consistent with Arowana’s broader strategy of pivoting our focus to developing markets across ASEAN and, in due time, Africa and Latin America with large and growing populations and economies.”
He further added: “I am honoured that two luminaries of the B Corp movement, Andrew Kassoy and Thomas Ng, have agreed to join the Arowana holding company advisory board members. Not only are Andrew and Thomas great stewards, but also world-class entrepreneurs who have led the scale-up of high-growth global enterprises. We expect to announce further additions to the advisory board and the holding company team in due course. Meanwhile, our team is already in exclusive due diligence processes on four proprietary investment opportunities in the ASEAN region that have come about because of Arowana’s veritable commitment to the B Corp ethos.”
Andrew Kassoy, co-founder of B Lab Global, commented: “Since the earliest days of the B Corp movement, we have seen first-hand the issues of succession and ownership transition faced by B Corp founders, especially when deliberating on acquisition proposals from non-B Corp entities. I am excited to join the Arowana B Corp holding company advisory board as I share the vision that Kevin Chin has in creating a permanent capital holding company structure with a genuine B Corp ethos that provides a compelling option for B Corp founders exploring succession and exit.”
Thomas Ng, B Corp steward and founder, said: “Having known Kevin Chin for some time and seeing first-hand his steadfast commitment to the B Corp values and mission, I am delighted to be joining the Arowana B Corp holding company advisory board. Across Genashtim’s operations in the ASEAN, African and Latin America regions, we see many businesses that the Arowana B Corp holding company would represent an attractive alternative to consider for succession and ownership transition.”
