1. Best place in the world to conduct business

• Source: Cornell University, European Institute of Business Administration (INSEAD) and World Intellectual Property Organization, Global Innovation Index 2019

2. Most innovative in Asia

• Source: Economist Intelligence Unit, Business Environment Rankings from 2018 to 2022

3. The easiest place for business - No. 2 in the world

• Source: World Bank Group, Doing Business 2020

1.Top location choice to establish headquarters of leading enterprises

The top four choices for situating regional headquarters of transnational technology enterprises in Asia are listed in order as follows: Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Philippines and China.

• Source: KPMG, The case for a Hong Kong RHQ tax incentive, October 2017 (2017 Forbes 2000, Ranking of Regional HQ Locations of Multinational Technology Enterprises in Asia)

With the rise of Southeast Asia, Singapore has become a business and innovation base for enterprises in the region. Enterprises can use Singapore to gain a deep understanding of consumers in Southeast Asia, enhance their innovative efforts with their findings, and commercialize solutions to serve Southeast Asia and the world.

For enterprises, Singapore has long been a gateway to Southeast Asia. Be it a large multinational enterprise or a rapidly growing start-up, decision-makers, without exception, regard Singapore as a paradise for business and elect to establish their headquarters in Singapore.

2. Leading innovation center in Asia

The top five Asian economies in the Global Innovation Index are: Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong SAR, China and Japan.

• Source: Cornell University, European Institute of Business Administration (INSEAD) and the World Intellectual Property Organization, Global Innovation Index 2019 (ranking of Asian economies)

As a global innovation center, Singapore has built a vibrant ecosystem for Fortune 500 companies, featuring global research and development laboratories. At the same time, Singapore is home to more than 150 venture capital funds, business incubators and accelerators. You can also track the footprints of "unicorns" such as Grab, Lazada, Razer and Sea here, where their Asia-Pacific headquarters are located.

Singapore is committed to partnering with enterprises to provide solutions to the trickiest problems in the world, and has been continuously rated as one of the most innovative cities globally.

3. Hotspot for advanced manufacturing

The top five Asian economies that are the "future of manufacturing" are: Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, South Korea and Malaysia.

• Source: World Economic Forum, Readiness for the Future of Production Report 2018 (ranking of Asian economies)

With its strong engineering and innovation capabilities, Singapore is regarded as a global leader in high-value manufacturing. At the same time, Singapore is also the fourth largest exporter of high-tech products in the world.

According to the Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship 2020 (RIE2020) plan, the Singapore government will spend SGD 3.2 billion (about RMB 16 billion) in five years to further enhance Singapore's advanced manufacturing capabilities.

Fast-tracking the setting up of companies

1.It only takes 15 minutes to register a company online - the fastest by far among Southeast Asian countries

• Source: Singapore Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), Registering a Foreign Company. Retrieved February 14, 2020.

2. It only takes 1.5 days to set up a company, far exceeding the regional average (25.5 days)

• Source: World Bank Group, Doing Business 2020

3. The minimum paid-up capital of a registered new company is only 1 Singapore dollar (about RMB 5)

• Source: Singapore Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), Shares and Shareholders. Retrieved February 14, 2020

Singapore's start-up ecosystem is booming. Up to now, Singapore has connected more than 3000 start-ups to the global network, which covers 300 investors and more than 100 business incubators and accelerators.

In this compact business ecosystem, multinational companies work closely with start-ups to test, commercialize and expand solutions globally.

In Singapore's business parks and innovation centers, you can be situated right beside your vital business partners, which enable you to establish deeper connections with professionals and industry networks here.

1. Strong government support

The Singapore government is committed to creating a business-friendly environment through economic and human resources policies. The Singapore government works with enterprises to promote high-value and substantive economic activities in Singapore.

By participating in business-friendly projects organized by the Singapore government, you can obtain grants and funding for R&D activities, and thereby expand your business, improve efficiency and upskill your staff.

2. Competitive tax system

Singapore's tax system is designed to support long-term, sustainable substantial economic activities in Singapore.

3. Dedicated intellectual property protection

Singapore's intellectual property system has been at the global forefront for many years. By implementing an advanced intellectual property system, the Singapore government helps to protect your business interests under a fair system, which also encourages the free flow of ideas.

On average, it usually takes two to four years to obtain a patent. However, in Singapore's initiative that fast-tracks AI patent applications, Alibaba, a Chinese e-commerce giant, only took three months to obtain AI patents.

By consolidating its IPR protection framework, Singapore has the largest number of registered patents among Southeast Asian countries.