Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong,

Your Excellency, the Singapore Ambassador to the US, Ashok Kumar Mirpuri,

Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen

Thank you all very much for taking time to join us this evening.

As you may know, Singapore is an island nation, just one sixth the size of Long Island, or slightly bigger than Lake Tahoe in California.  Coming from such a small island state, Temasek is not a conventional sovereign investor.

Firstly, unlike most sovereign wealth funds, we pay taxes and distribute dividends, just like any other private commercial company.  This discipline started from day one of our incorporation.

Secondly, we invest our own balance sheet, as an owner and an investment holding company.  We can go bankrupt if we mismanage our balance sheet. This is a sobering responsibility.

Thirdly, we do not have oil, gas, mining or other resource wealth.  Our funds come primarily from the dividends received from our portfolio companies, and from the proceeds of our investment activities. 

We have occasionally received fresh funds from our shareholder, as part of our shareholder’s own strategic asset allocation.  

On other occasions, we received distributions from funds in which we have invested, including PE and VC funds in America, Europe and Asia. 

We have no windfalls from resource wealth – our balance sheet is hard earned capital from years of dedicated work, innovation and risk taking, mostly by our portfolio companies, and in more recent years, by Temasek itself.

Net-net, Temasek and Temasek portfolio companies had the great fortune of growing with a rapidly transforming Singapore in our early years. 

We stepped out over 10 years ago, to ride on Asia’s recovery from the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997/98.  This has given us a second wing, and a second wind, to grow with a transforming Asia.

Today, we mark the opening of our office in New York.  

Our New York office will work closely with our offices in Mexico City and Sao Paolo in Brazil to cover the Americas, both north and south.  

They complement our London office which was established in March this year to cover Europe and Africa.  We look to both of them to provide a non-Asian lift for our portfolio for the longer term.

While we see ourselves as a source of thoughtful long term capital, we are mindful of the promise and opportunities of the digital world of tomorrow. 

Just last month, we had a company-wide Bitcoin experiment – from our drivers to our Board members, we learned how to donate to our chosen charities from our Bitcoin wallets.  

It was a fun exercise to open our minds; a small step in engaging the emerging digital future.

As you can tell, we are an owner interested in the world of tomorrow, even as we invest today. We are not bound by notions of geographic limits, and try not to be trapped in our comfort zones. 

As we celebrate our 40^th anniversary – as I said, just yesterday - we would like to think that we invest like an active and able 40 year old with responsibilities across the generations:

• firstly, as a 40 year old caring parent working for the future of our growing children;
• secondly as a 40 year old trusted adult in the prime of life capable and willing to take risks for longer term returns; and
• finally, as a 40 year old filial adult planning to support his parents' retirement years.

In short, as an active investor, we invest for past, present and future generations, doing things today with tomorrow clearly in our mind.

As a forward looking company, we institute various disciplines some 10 years ago, such as performance bonuses with deferred long term components and clawback features.  Similarly, we issue Temasek Bonds, also as part of our long term discipline.

As a trusted steward, we do our part to learn, earn and return, as individuals and as a company.  This shapes our commitment to open pathways for those in need, and to promote and foster better governance. 

As we celebrate our 40^th anniversary - just yesterday, in fact – our journey has just begun. 

This evening, as we celebrate the opening of our New York office, we look to a future of opportunities, fuelled by the verve and vitality here in New York. 

We know there is much wisdom and experience among friends and partners in this room.  We are privileged to have your friendship, guidance and support.

We are also very honoured to have our Prime Minister to grace this occasion with his kind presence.

Mr Prime Minister, I thank you again and on behalf of Temasek for joining us during your visit to the US.  May I now invite you to the stage on address us?