Four exceptional YPO members have been named country winners in the 2018 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ program. They will be gathering in Monaco this June for the announcement of the coveted EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award. EY is YPO’s Strategic Learning Advisor.

Congratulations to these forward-thinking YPO members whose different entrepreneurial journeys are leading business transformation across different industries.

For Malaysia Country Winner Chiau Haw Choon, Group Managing Director of Chin Hin Group Berhad, the journey to success was not a straightforward path. “I only started my secondary school experience at age 17. I always felt that I was far behind my other peers. Paradoxically, I was awarded as the youngest EY Country Winner in Malaysia. I wish to dedicate this award to my family, my team and I hope this sends a clear message that it is never too late to make a change in life,” says Haw Choon. Over the past 10 years, Haw Choon has transformed Chin Hin from a traditional, small, family-run company into the country’s only listed, integrated business materials specialist.

South Korea Winner Yoon Kim, Chairman & CEO of Samyang Holdings Corporation says, “I am truly honored and humbled to have received this award in Korea. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my family and colleagues for their support and hard work.” Kim was able to restructure and grow his family business founded by his father in 1924 to a holding company headquartered in Seoul. Under Kim’s leadership, the Samyang Biopharm division has developed anti-cancer drugs and a nicotine patch, and its pioneering biodegradable sutures are exported worldwide.

“Entrepreneurs are agents of social and economic transformation. This blue-ribbon award is a testament to our success in building a diversified business that evolves with the needs of the community and yet meets the test of sustainability in every facet of its operation,” says China—Hong Kong/Macau Winner George Hongchoy, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, Link Asset Management Limited, Hong Kong. Hongchoy is also a governor of the World Economic Forum’s Infrastructure and Urban Development Community.

Referring to mottainai, the Japanese term conveying a sense of regret concerning waste, Japan country winner Takateru Kawano, President and Chief Executive Officer of TKP Corporation, says, “First of all, I am very honored to be awarded this opportunity. With my belief of mottainai spirits, we will contribute to the world by reviving anything underutilized and idle assets, and I hope these actions will be the foundation to our global expansion.” Kawano founded TKP Corporation in 2005 to transform vacant commercial offices into conference centers that meet the demand for social and corporate event space in Japan. Since then, TKP Corporation has expanded globally.