Why investors are upbeat on the long-delayed Asean power grid

Stefanus Hadiwidjaja (left), managing director of investment at Danantara, Sriwijaya Capital founder Arsjad Rasjid (centre) and Celera director Eric Wong speak during a panel discussion at the Nusa Dua Forum in Bali, Indonesia, on Friday. Photo: Nora Tam

A long-discussed plan for an Asean power grid is gaining steam, according to investors and Indonesian policymakers gathered in Bali, as surging demand from AI and data centres, as well as the region’s energy transition, fuels optimism over the initiative.

On Friday, representatives from sovereign wealth funds, institutional capital and family principals converged on the St Regis Bali Resort for the Nusa Dua Forum, organised by the South China Morning Post with


Philippine school for exorcists draws priests from Asia as cases ‘pile up’

A priest from the Michael Centre for Spiritual Liberation and Exorcism says he can tell if cases are possessed by ‘a change in behaviour’

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A man watching a footage of a woman being exorcised, in Makati, Metro Manila. Photo: AFP

Asia’s only dedicated exorcism centre – designed to train not only Philippine priests but clergy from across the region – sits just off a busy thoroughfare in Metro Manila.

Inside, neatly made-up rooms for visiting priests line warmly lit halls that lead to a chapel


Wealthy European clients eye Hong Kong for family offices, says BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas, France’s largest lender and the second-largest in Europe, has found that an increasing number of wealthy European clients are seeking to establish family offices in Hong Kong to capitalise on growing opportunities in the region, according to a banker from the lender.

A growing number of wealthy mainland clients were also looking to invest in Europe, said Lemuel Lee, head of wealth management for BNP Paribas in Hong Kong.

“The two-way capital flow between Europe and mainland China is expected to continue in the


Malaysia investigates state pension’s failed eFishery investment

Malaysia ’s anti-corruption agency has opened an investigation into losses tied to state pension fund Kumpulan Wang Persaraan Diperbadankan’s investment in failed Indonesian agritech start-up eFishery.

A team was formed on Friday to “study and examine the issue thoroughly,” Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Chief Commissioner Abdul Halim Aman said in a statement on Saturday.

“The investigation will be conducted fairly, transparently and impartially based on existing legal provisions,” Abdul Halim said. “The public is requested not to speculate on this investigation


For every dollar invested, we bring in more than 8, Hong Kong investment chief says

Official support and collaboration with private capital are critical for sovereign wealth funds to succeed, the head of Hong Kong’s government-owned investment vehicle has said, as she spelled out strategies needed to deliver high returns.

At the inaugural Nusa Dua Forum organised by the South China Morning Post and Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund Danantara in Bali on Friday, Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC) CEO Clara Chan Ka-chai said that partnerships were key to its strong performance.

She was speaking at a panel discussion with Blue

HKIC chief Clara Chan attributed the company’s success to the government’s leadership and political will, defined by “very clear certainty of policy”. Photo: Nora Tam

China team cuts 3D optical chip production time from hours to seconds

New fabrication method speeds up production time for photonic chips via parallel processing technology

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Photonic chips are at the centre of the race to develop next-gen AI hardware. Photo: Getty Images

Artificial intelligence (AI) is driving unprecedented demand for computing, placing photonic chips at the centre of the race to develop next-generation AI hardware.
By transmitting data with light rather than electricity, photonic technologies are widely seen as a way to overcome bandwidth and power constraints.

However, translating that potential into mass-producible hardware


Hong Kong’s 5-year plan must focus on what the city does best

The Star Ferry sails past the Central district skyline in Victoria Harbour, on July 1. Photo: AFP

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee is convenor of the Executive Council and chairwoman of the New People’s Party.

Hong Kong has embarked on the path of drawing up its first five-year plan – a significant moment in its history. Hong Kong’s first five-year plan should be more than a local economic blueprint. Properly conceived, it should define how the city contributes to China’s national development while preserving the global connections

Chinese man discovers family dining table is ancestor’s Qing dynasty academic record

A man in eastern China was stunned to discover that his family’s battered dining table was in fact a Qing dynasty (1644–1912) honour board commemorating an ancestor’s success in the imperial examinations.

Xu, a villager in Anhui province, shared the unusual story in an online video on July 12, which subsequently went viral on mainland social media.

The footage shows a dark-red wooden table scarred by decades of use, with cracked edges and a faded surface.


Tears of anger as Tai Po fire survivors slam negligent authorities after hearing

Tears, anger and exhaustion marked the conclusion of an inquiry into the deadly fire at Hong Kong’s Wang Fuk Court, as survivors condemned government departments for passing the buck and demanded accountability.

Residents have reacted to the conclusion of an inquiry into the deadly fire at Hong Kong’s Wang Fuk Court with tears of anger and exhaustion, as survivors condemned government departments for passing the buck and demanded accountability and apologies.

An independent committee investigating the Tai Po fire, which killed 168 people and displaced about 5,

Yip Ka-kui (pictured) has described the closing submissions by the government’s lawyer as a “cold-blooded, icy and completely unfeeling” attempt to shirk responsibility. Photo: Emily Hung

Indonesia’s Danantara must ‘outlast’ presidencies to prove worth: investment chief

Pandu Sjahrir, Danantara’s chief investment officer, speaks at the Nusa Dua Forum in Bali on Friday. Photo: Nora Tam

Indonesia ’s Danantara must outlive political administrations to prove its worth to investors and most importantly to the people, according to the sovereign wealth fund’s chief investment officer.

Pandu Sjahrir said the fund was focused on the demutualisation of Jakarta’s stock market and to support the establishment of the first financial centre in Bali to boost investor confidence.

“Investment is almost everything for us. Confidence is the name of the game, and we have