Beyond growth: an evening focused on how founders are rethinking wealth, risk and legacy

The panel discussion, The Founder’s Balance Sheet: Scaling Growth, Impact and Personal Wealth in 2026, followed, moderated by Melissa Bacani, head of credit advisory for South Asia at HSBC Private Bank.

Joining her were two accomplished entrepreneurs: Jaelle Ang, co-founder and former CEO of The Great Room, and Angela Sim, co-founder and CEO of sustainable consumer brand Cloversoft.

The conversation explored the realities of scaling businesses in today’s complex environment, where founders must navigate investor expectations, regional expansion and financial sustainability.

For many founders, the early stages of building a business demand complete immersion. But as companies grow, leadership must evolve from doing everything to building the right team.

Ang reflected on the moment many entrepreneurs eventually face: realising that scaling requires letting go.

“If I’m opening one location, I can do many things myself … but three locations, it becomes unsustainable. Five locations, it’s just arrogance thinking that you can do it.”

Instead, she argued, the founder’s role becomes far more strategic.

“I really only have two main jobs as a CEO. First is cash flow is oxygen … and second is to be super good at hiring A players.”

That philosophy shaped how she built the team at The Great Room, focusing less on credentials and more on mindset.

“We look for two types of people: learning animals and snake killers … people who will stand up and walk right there and kill the snake.”

For Sim, whose company Cloversoft produces safe, sustainable household products, the turning point came when the workload became unsustainable for the founding team.

“There came a time where we realised we couldn’t handle the workload anymore … that’s when we knew we needed to expand our budget and hire.”

But hiring the right people often requires patience—and intuition.

Sim recalled how one of her most impactful hires came not from a seasoned executive but from a candidate who kept applying despite repeated rejections.

“She kept submitting the resume… and today she has become my general.”

While much of the entrepreneurial conversation focuses on raising capital and scaling businesses, both founders acknowledged that personal financial planning is often neglected.

Ang shared a framework that helped her think more clearly about managing wealth beyond the business.

“There are three buckets… wealth preservation, market risk, and the aspirational bucket.”
In the early years of building her company, like most founders, she placed everything in the highest-risk category.

“When I was younger, pretty much everything was in bucket three… it was just all in.”

With experience, she emphasised the importance of separating personal finances from the fortunes of the business.

“We should never confuse founders’ equity with your personal balance sheet—and it’s always a good time to take money off the table.”

Sim agreed that personal wealth management often becomes an afterthought for entrepreneurs consumed by the day-to-day pressures of running a company.

“You tend to forget about your own personal wealth… you’re always concerned about your business balance sheet.”

Today, she makes it a discipline to review her personal portfolio annually—something she believes more founders should do.

The conversation also touched on a common pattern among female entrepreneurs: a tendency to invest deeply—sometimes excessively—in their businesses.

Ang suggested this can stem from a desire to prove commitment.

“We feel like we have to overcompensate… you don’t want to send any signal that you might not be all in.”

The evening continued with a fireside chat titled Beyond Wealth: Structuring Legacy, Purpose and Resilience, featuring Dawn Fung, head of wealth planning for Southeast Asia at HSBC Private Bank, and Michael Wei, chief partnership distribution officer at HSBC Life Singapore.

The discussion explored how wealth planning has evolved in recent years, particularly as families begin discussing succession earlier.

Wei noted that in the past, inheritances were often transferred late in life—sometimes too late to make meaningful impact.

“When you leave assets to the next generation at 60 or 70 years old, that money can’t do much.”

Today, families are increasingly starting those conversations earlier, allowing younger generations to pursue entrepreneurial or social ventures.

“Helping family members in their twenties or thirties makes so much more of a difference because the impact at that age is really significant.”

Fung also highlighted the importance of simply starting the planning process.

“Don’t overthink it… start small. The moment you start, it’s easier to have the conversation.”

From succession planning to structuring wealth across generations, the conversation underscored the growing importance of strategic planning as founders move through different stages of their entrepreneurial journeys.

Closing the evening, Hammad Hashmi, market head for Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia at HSBC Private Bank, reflected on the importance of creating spaces where founders and leaders can exchange ideas, insights and experiences. 

“The discussion reflects a broader shift we are seeing among entrepreneurial clients, where managing personal and business wealth holistically becomes critical as they scale,” he shared. “At HSBC Private Bank, this is increasingly a focus as founders transition from building businesses to preserving and structuring wealth across generations.”

As the evening concluded, guests continued their discussions over drinks, provided by hospitality partners Limwood and Evian, exchanging perspectives on entrepreneurship, investment and the evolving landscape of wealth.

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