Contributors

Kirsty Dougan

Kirsty Dougan is Managing Director of Asia for Vario at Pinsent Masons. Kirsty joined Vario in March 2019, and led the Hong Kong launch. Kirsty is responsible for Vario’s operations across Asia and the growth of the business in the region. Vario has become the leading law firm led provider of flexible legal solutions, representing over 500 lawyers across numerous jurisdictions. Kirsty possesses significant experience in this field and is a pioneer of alternative legal services in Asia as co-founder of an international ALSP business in the region and was the Managing Director there for over 8 years.

Konrad Chan

Konrad Chan is President, Asia Pacific of Global Payments and responsible for overseeing our business in all 12 markets throughout the entire Asia Pacific region.

Konrad has been with Global Payments since the inception of the Asia Pacific business in 2006 and most recently served as President, North Asia where he managed all the sales and business activities in the Greater China region and was responsible for the operational and compliance areas in Asia. He was previously Senior Vice President, Operations and Products where he led the launch of the mobile payment acceptance solution and the award-winning Premier customer service proposition.

Prior to Global Payments, Konrad served in several positions within HSBC Asia Pacific merchant acquiring function where he conducted strategic review of the merchant acquiring business in Asia Pacific, led new production development with the introduction of internet payment gateway and was responsible for the management of the bank’s acquiring business and daily operations in Mainland China.

Konrad began his career in the payment cards industry with Visa International in the client servicing area and progressed to serve as Director, Emerging Technology. He is a Member of the Visa Client Council for Asia Pacific and Councilor of UnionPay International Member Council.

Kristina Koehler

Kristina has worked in the Chinese legal and accounting industry since 2003 when she joined Klako Group as its China Director. Fluent in English, German, French and Mandarin, Kristina advises and represents Western clients (mainly European, North & South American and Australian) with their business interests in China. She has worked on numerous complex transactions including foreign direct investment including corporate (re)structuring and company liquidations, M&A deals and frequently advises on and represents foreign clients in tax, accounting and trade related matters.

Kristine Stewart

Kristine Stewart is the director of The Hong Kong Institute of Etiquette. She has received etiquette certification from Paris and London, and is a graduate of the prestigious Institut Villa Pierrefeu in Geneva, Switzerland's globally recognized finishing school.

Lam Kwok Tai Sunny

Lam Kwok Tai Sunny has been a columnist and retail professional in Asia for over 10 years. He was born and raised in Hong Kong and graduated from the MBA program at the University of Northern Iowa, U.S. He is dedicated to writing with insight into the retail industry in Asia for different columns in both print and digital media.

Lauren Zhao

Lauren Zhao is Managing Director of UPS Hong Kong and Macau. Lauren has overall responsibility for UPS’s package delivery and supply chain business entities, as well as strategic business planning in the Hong Kong.

Prior to this, Lauren was Vice President of Freight Forwarding of UPS China. She was responsible for overseeing the operational effectiveness and overall strategic growth of air, ocean and rail freight forwarding services in China.

Lawrence Chau

Lawrence Chau is VP for Business Development at financial comparison site MoneyHero.

Lawrence Chia

Lawrence Chia is the Group Chairman and CEO of the Hong Kong-listed Pico Far East Holdings Limited (752.HK). Founded in Singapore in 1969, Pico is a global leader in total brand activation with a proven track record of more than five decades. Experience-led, digital-first thinking and capabilities matter more than ever in today’s fast-changing world. Pico merges experiential, communication and technological talent to create extraordinary experiences and powerful activations engineered for superior results, engaging target audiences everywhere. Pico’s uniqueness and strengths lie in the diversity of some 2,000 inspired professionals working in over 30 cities worldwide, backed by about 90,000 sq. m. of production facilities. In financial year 2021, Pico Far East Holdings Limited reported revenue of nearly US$521 million and a market capitalisation of nearly US$205 million.

Chia was educated in the United States, graduating from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with highest honours. In 2006, he received the International Executive in Sport and Entertainment Award from the University of South Carolina in the United States. In 2016, Chia received the University of Tennessee Outstanding International Alumni Award.

Before assuming the Chairmanship of Pico Far East Holdings Limited, he was the Managing Director of the Pico Group of companies in Europe and North America, and was based in London for six years. With more than three decades of experience in the event marketing industry, Mr Chia embodies a forward-looking vision to continuously drive the growth of the company – particularly in the areas of business process innovation and digital transformation.

In 2022, the Pico Group won the Gold award for ‘B2B Agency of the Year’ and Silver for ‘Event Agency of the Year’ presented by Marketing Magazine in Hong Kong. The Group won ‘Company with Most Investment Value’ and ‘Best ESG’ awards at the China Financial Market Awards 2021.

Lawrence Lam

Lawrence Lam is a Registered Massage Therapist at Sutherland-Chan Centre.

Lawrence Tsi

As the Head of Accounting and Tax (APAC) in TMF Group, Lawrence Tsi manages the client services team across the whole region. He has advised multinational, private equity and local clients on accounting and tax and M&A related issues.

With more than 10 years of experience in accounting and finance in the Asia Pacific and Americas regions, Lawrence has significant international exposure and a proven track record of delivering integrated and high-quality client services to a wide range of clients across the globe.

Lawrence had received a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce from University of Sydney in Australia and is a dual member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand and the Institute of Certified Public Accountants Hong Kong.