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Talk:Finian Tan

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Latest comment: 1 day ago by Wluo13 in topic References
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Latest comment: 8 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion

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Revert to a previous version

[edit]
Latest comment: 1 year ago1 comment1 person in discussion

Stumbling upon the article and finding it exceedingly spammy, I have taken the article back to a more neutral version. I have also removed a section od non-biographical content.  Ohc revolution of our times 23:16, 11 June 2025 (UTC)Reply

Proposed rewrite to address COI and résumé-style concerns

[edit]

I have disclosed a professional connection to Dr. Finian Tan and Vickers Venture Partners on my user page.

In accordance with Wikipedia's conflict-of-interest guidance, I am not editing the article directly and am instead requesting review by independent editors.

The current article is tagged for:

  • possible autobiography / conflict of interest concerns
  • being written like a résumé

The proposed rewrite removes or substantially reduces:

  • long lists of board memberships
  • investment-return multiples
  • portfolio performance statements
  • extensive role inventories
  • promotional language

Proposed replacement article text

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Finian Tan is a Singapore-based venture capitalist and founder of Vickers Venture Partners. He is known for early investments in technology companies, including Baidu, and for investments in technology and deep-technology companies across sectors such as healthcare, biotechnology and other innovation-driven industries.[1][2][3][4][5]

Tan has been profiled by publications including Forbes Asia, Asian Venture Capital Journal, The Straits Times, The Sunday Times, The Edge Malaysia, The Edge Singapore and Asian Scientist.[1][2][3][6][7][4][5]

Early life and education

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Tan obtained a doctorate from the University of Cambridge in 1990.[8] Later profiles described his academic background as being in engineering.[9][4][7]

After graduating, Tan joined Shell in Singapore and was later posted to Shell Japan, where he became chief trader.[8][9][7] He subsequently joined Goldman Sachs as a vice-president in 1994, was posted to its London office as an executive director in 1996, and later became regional director of the firm's commodities division in Singapore.[8]

Career

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Public service

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In April 1997, Tan joined Singapore's Administrative Service under a programme aimed at recruiting experienced private-sector professionals into senior government positions.[8] The Straits Times reported in 1998 that he was one of two private-sector professionals recruited into the Administrative Service under the scheme.[8]

By March 1998, Tan was serving as Second Deputy Secretary at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI).[8] In an interview with The Straits Times, he contrasted the shorter-term decision-making of financial markets with the broader economic and policy considerations involved in public service.[8]

A July 2000 profile in The New Paper reported that Tan later became deputy chairman of the National Science and Technology Board, the predecessor agency to later Singapore science and innovation institutions.[10] Later profiles also connected his public-sector work with Singapore's technology and entrepreneurship initiatives, including the Technopreneurship Investment Fund.[9][2][3][4]

Move to venture capital

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In 2000, Tan left public service to join Draper Fisher Jurvetson ePlanet, a technology-focused venture-capital firm.[10][9][2] The New Paper described the move as a shift from government service into venture investing and reported on his interest in working with entrepreneurs and technology companies.[10]

Asian Venture Capital Journal later described Tan as a founding partner for DFJ ePlanet in Asia.[3] The same publication reported that Baidu was the first DFJ deal in China completed under Tan's stewardship.[3]

Vickers Venture Partners

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Tan later established Vickers Financial Group, which developed into the investment platform associated with Vickers Venture Partners.[1][9][6] Independent profiles have described Vickers as focusing on technology-driven and high-growth companies across Asia and other markets.[1][2][3][7][5]

Coverage in Forbes Asia, Asian Venture Capital Journal, The Edge Malaysia, The Straits Times and The Sunday Times has discussed the firm's investment activities and strategy.[1][2][3][6][7][5]

Investment activities

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Baidu and technology investments

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Several independent profiles identify Baidu as one of the investments most closely associated with Tan's venture-capital career.[1][11][2][3][4][5] Forbes Asia profiled Tan after Baidu's Nasdaq debut and reported that DFJ ePlanet owned 25% of Baidu after investing around US$12 million.[1]

Asian Venture Capital Journal later reported that DFJ led a Series B financing round for Baidu and that the investment generated more than 100 times returns for early investors.[3] A 2008 profile in SIF linked Tan's China investment activities to Baidu, Focus Media, Longcheer and KongZhong.[11]

Expansion into China

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By 2008, Tan had moved the main operations of Vickers Venture Partners to Shanghai.[11] In the SIF profile, he said that venture investing depended heavily on deal flow and argued that being close to entrepreneurial activity was important for identifying investment opportunities.[11]

The same profile described China as a significant market for technology and venture-capital activity because of the scale and growth of its entrepreneurial sector.[11] A 2013 profile in The Straits Times also reported that Vickers had offices in Shanghai and Singapore and that Tan travelled frequently between the two cities.[6]

Cambridge Industrial REIT

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In 2005, Tan served as chairman of Cambridge Real Estate Investment Management, the manager of the proposed Cambridge Industrial REIT.[12] The Edge Singapore described the proposed trust as an industrial real estate investment trust based on a collective-sale structure involving multiple industrial-property owners.[12]

The article quoted Tan discussing the structure of the proposed trust and the alignment of interests between participating property owners and REIT investors.[12] Forbes Asia also reported in 2005 that a Vickers-backed industrial-property company could form the basis for a REIT.[1]

Investment approach and public commentary

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Profiles and interviews have described Tan's investment approach as focused on technology, entrepreneurship and innovation-driven businesses.[9][6][4][5] In Prestige, Tan described evaluating potential investments by looking at the competitive advantage of a business, the growth potential of the market it addresses and the quality of the management team.[9]

The Straits Times reported in 2013 that Tan placed particular emphasis on the people behind a business, arguing that capable entrepreneurs could adapt even when an initial business model or market choice proved difficult.[6] The same article also reported that his investment approach was influenced by his background in trading and by an emphasis on diversification and risk reduction.[6]

Asian Scientist profiled Tan in relation to deep-technology investing and discussed his technical background and investment approach.[4] A Bloomberg article republished by The Edge Singapore covered his investment in Samumed and his interest in biotechnology and regenerative medicine.[13]

Philanthropy

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A 2020 profile in The Sunday Times discussed Tan's interest in medical research, healthcare innovation and philanthropy.[5] The article reported that he and his wife had started a foundation and that he intended to support charitable and medical-innovation-related causes.[5]

References

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Latest comment: 1 day ago1 comment1 person in discussion
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Cite error: The named reference Forbes2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cite error: The named reference AVCJ2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Cite error: The named reference AVCJ2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cite error: The named reference AsianScientist2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Cite error: The named reference SundayTimes2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cite error: The named reference ST2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Cite error: The named reference EdgeMalaysia2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cite error: The named reference ST1998 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cite error: The named reference Prestige2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. 1 2 3 Cite error: The named reference NewPaper2000 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Cite error: The named reference SIF2008 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. 1 2 3 Cite error: The named reference EdgeSingapore2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ↑ Cite error: The named reference BloombergEdge2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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Wluo13 (talk) 10:13, 6 August 2026 (UTC)Reply

  1. ↑ Fernandez, Walter (31 March 1998). "Former investment banker Finian Tan hopes that his 'market instincts' could still prove very useful in his job at the Ministry of Trade and Industry". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. 36 – via NewspaperSG.
  2. ↑ "Dr Who?". The New Paper. Singapore. 2 July 2000. p. 7 – via NewspaperSG.
  3. ↑ Flannery, Russell (17 October 2005). "Life After Baidu". Smart Money. Forbes Asia. Vol. 1, no. 5. pp. 46–47.
  4. ↑ Low, Yit Leng (July 2005). "Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained". Prestige. Singapore. pp. 74–75.
  5. ↑ Chow, Cecilia (22 August 2005). "Riding the REIT Boom". The Edge Singapore. Singapore. pp. CC6–CC7.
  6. ↑ Tan, Jeanine (June 2008). "The Real Deal". SIF. Singapore. pp. 5–6.
  7. ↑ Birkwood, Susannah (25 April 2012). "Profile: Vickers Capital's Finian Tan – Master of all trades". Asian Venture Capital Journal. PDF clipping p. 1.
  8. ↑ Burroughs, Tim (15 March 2013). "AVCJ at 25: Finian Tan of Vickers Capital". Asian Venture Capital Journal. PDF pp. 1–4.
  9. ↑ Chia, Yan Min (13 May 2013). "Focus on people key to his success". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. B10. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
  10. ↑ Lee, Yoolim (10 February 2017). "Baidu backer Finian Tan bets on the next big thing: Immortality". The Edge Singapore. Bloomberg.
  11. ↑ Sim, Shuzhen (25 January 2018). "A Deep Dive Into Tech". Asian Scientist Magazine.
  12. ↑ Gomez, Oliver Christopher (27 March 2018). "Cover Story: Venture capital Virtuoso". Personal Wealth. The Edge Malaysia. This article first appeared in Personal Wealth, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on March 19, 2018 – March 25, 2018.
  13. ↑ Choo, Yun Ting (23 August 2020). "Venture capitalist's credo: To whom much is given, much is required". The Sunday Times. Singapore.
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