The D&O Diary is on assignment in Asia this week, with the first stop on the itinerary in the equatorial city state of Singapore. It was great to finally be back in Singapore after a three-year pandemic-caused hiatus. It was also great to see this dynamic attractive city again and to enjoy its many colorful sights and attractions.

 

The primary purpose of my Singapore trip was to participate in the 2022 PLUS Singapore Professional Liability Symposium. This year’s version represented the event’s Tenth Anniversary. I participated in the original session in 2012, so it felt appropriate for me to be back again for this year’s event. It was pretty clear that as a result of the pandemic-caused hiatus that there was a great deal of pent-up demand for an event of this kind. The turnout was fantastic; there were more attendees for this year’s event than for any prior session. I delivered the keynote address on Global Trends and Developments in D&O Liability and Insurance and then I participated on a panel on the subject of Hot Topics That Will Shape the Risk Exposures and PI Market in Asia. I have to say that this year’s event was very successful and that it was also very well-run, in addition to being well-attended. My congratulations to the PLUS Singapore event committee and chapter leadership on another excellent event. It was great to see many old friends in Singapore and to make new friends as well.

 

The panelists for the Hot Topics panel: from left to right, Aaron Yip, who was the panel moderator, of Berkely Insurance Asia; David Ho, of AIG; Arati Varma of QBE Asia; Deva Kumaran of Marsh; and me.

 

The Claims Team at Marsh Singapore: from left to right, and on my right, Pin Li Lim; Yi Fei Lim; and Gabriel Low.

 

Winnie Chew of Munich Re Syndicate in Malaysia. I was fortunate to sit next to Winnie during the day’s other sessions.

 

The underwriting Team from Berkely Asia: from left to right, Hank Yeo; Kimberly Huang; Carol Lim; and Adeline Lee.

 

With Serena Qi of Allianz in Singapore

 

From left to right, starting on my left: Ray Lim of QBE; Hanis Poh of QBE; Priscilla Yong of QBE; and Melissa Lim of TransRe

 

With Priya Gobal of Clyde & Co Classis in Singapore

 

On the day before the PLUS Chapter event, I was fortunate to have lunch at the American Club in Singapore with several of my good friends (who are also key parts of the leadership of the PLUS Singapore Chapter): from left to right, Shasi Nair of Berkely; Aruno Rajaratnam, the godmother of D&O Insurance in Southeast Asia; Ronak Shah of QBE, me; Arati Varma of QBE; and Dan Jenney of PLUS.

 

While I did have a number of professional commitments and obligations in Singapore I did have some time to look around, as well. Although I have been to Singapore previously, this was my wife’s first visit, and it was great to have the time to see the city’s many famous sights.

 

The Marina Sands Casino, which dominates the Marina district. It is in some ways emblematic of Singapore’s modern urban look and feel.

 

Although Singapore is in so many ways a modern, urban city, it would be a mistake to overlook the city’s colorful history. The city’s very fabric embodies its rich diversity. This picture depicts a restored Chinese trader’s house in Little India.

 

A street scene in Kampong Glam, the city’s colorful Muslim District. Behind me in the picture you can see the Sultan Mosque, one of the city’s iconic landmarks.

 

 

A view of some of the street art off of Arab Street in Kampong Glam.

 

One of the great things to do in Singapore is to enjoy a meal at one of the many Hawker street food markets. We tried several and the one that we liked the best is the Maxwell Food Centre market, which was walking distance from our hotel.

 

Here’s a shot of the Sichuan Chicken we enjoyed at the Maxwell Food Centre. This is seriously spicy food. Zoom in on the picture and take a look at the sheer number of hot peppers in the dish.

 

One of the particularly special things we did while in Singapore was to visit the Singapore Botanic Gardens. The Gardens, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are truly spectacular.

 

The Botanic Gardens’ Orchid Park is a particularly wonderful part of the site.

 

One of the permanent residents of the Botanic Gardens.

 

Here’s another, rather unexpected resident of the Gardens. We saw these feral chickens in a number of places in Singapore, and there quite a few of them, including this rooster, in the Gardens.

 

The Botanic Gardens are truly special. Seriously, it would be a crime to visit Singapore and not visit the Gardens. Our only regret is that we did not allow enough time to see all of the gardens. Clearly, we have to come back again, soon.