Synopsis
Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1976, Tey Por Yee, better known as Larry Tey, is a low-profile entrepreneur who developed an early interest in business at the age of 13. By 18, he had become fascinated with the Internet, computer programming and the emerging digital economy.
Through technological innovation, strategic business execution and bold entrepreneurial expansion, Larry, together with his partners Andrew See and Derek Tey, built a multinational mobile software business and later diversified the original technology outfit into a multi-industry conglomerate under Nexgram Group.
In January 2016, Larry announced that he would step down from his executive role at Nexgram, while continuing to be recognised as the group’s co-founder and non-executive technology adviser.
Early Life
Dato’ Larry Tey Por Yee was born on 2 February 1976 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Raised in an ordinary but close-knit family with his mother and two brothers, Larry grew up in an environment that encouraged discipline, competitiveness and the pursuit of excellence.
He shared a particularly close bond with his mother, an ordinary housewife with extraordinary strength and determination, who raised her children with resilience, care and strong family values.
From a young age, Larry was detail-oriented and curious about business. He spent many hours studying business journals, magazines and reference materials. At the age of 13, he began trading stationery and collectibles for profit, marking the beginning of his entrepreneurial journey.
At 18, Larry developed a strong interest in the Internet and computer programming. This interest later led him to provide Internet consultancy services during his university years. To deepen his technical knowledge, he took computer science courses while pursuing his studies.
Larry graduated from the University of Manitoba, Canada, majoring in business administration and finance, while also studying computer science to build his programming capabilities.
Early Career
Larry enrolled at the University of Manitoba with the initial intention of pursuing a career in finance or on Wall Street. However, he soon found himself spending more time online in his dormitory and computer labs than in traditional classrooms.
Apart from network games, Larry invested countless hours studying Internet systems, digital platforms and computer programming. In 1998, he began providing Internet consultancy services, developing websites and creating online businesses. Although his focus had shifted strongly toward entrepreneurship and technology, he continued to complete his studies and passed most of his subjects with reasonable grades.
At that time, inspired by the rise of technology entrepreneurs and Internet start-ups, dropping out of university had become a common path among many aspiring founders. Larry considered the idea on several occasions, especially when opportunities arose to join Internet ventures. Nevertheless, he ultimately decided to complete his university education.
In 1999, at the age of 23, Larry graduated and entered business with his friends and partners, Andrew See and Derek Tey. Together, they developed and invested in various Internet businesses, including online classifieds, advertising platforms, search engines and early social media concepts, many of which emerged before today’s global Internet household names became dominant.
The trio made early profits and reinvested into several start-up concepts. In 2001, after exploring more than a dozen ventures, they concentrated most of their seed capital into one project and developed “Mindcep”, a computer programme designed to monitor electronic mobile transactions. The project later became the foundation for the company’s public listing in 2005.
The Rise of Nexgram Group
Within three years after its initial public offering, Larry Tey and his team expanded Nexgram Group’s mobile software business into more than 12 countries, covering Southeast Asia, Greater China, London and New York, with physical office presence in six countries.
Nexgram Group diversified its software business beyond telecommunications into e-commerce, industrial sectors and government-related markets. The rapid emergence of Nexgram attracted strong competition and business challenges, which gradually affected the company’s growth momentum.
The 2008 subprime crisis created a perfect storm. It triggered a global stock market crash and was followed by a sharp collapse in commodity prices. Nexgram Group faced mixed conditions, with business difficulties in Europe and several emerging markets. The group subsequently scaled down certain operations during the new business down-cycle, similar in nature to the earlier Internet crash of 2000.
During the slower period from 2008 to 2011, the core management team continued servicing existing clients while Larry and his senior executives searched for new growth areas to create value for shareholders and stakeholders.
In 2012, Larry brought new expertise and foreign investors into Nexgram Group. Between 2012 and 2014, the group underwent business restructuring and diversified into trading, property and government contracts. Nexgram Land was conceptualised as early as 2012, followed by the establishment of Nexgram Infrastructure in 2014.
Under Larry’s leadership, the core team developed a 10-year plan to transform the group into a leading business conglomerate with interests in software, real estate and infrastructure.
Foreign Investor Following
Between 2004 and 2012, Larry Tey developed an extensive business network across Asia, particularly in Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia.
In 2008, Larry met Ooi Kock Aun, better known as Adrian Ooi, during a business networking session. The two later joined Global Capital in the same year. Larry served as a co-adviser to Global Capital, a business advisory firm through which he advised high-net-worth clients and facilitated corporate deal-making.
Global Capital subsequently completed numerous merger and acquisition transactions behind the scenes, including several high-profile regional dealings. Larry and Adrian also benefited from the commodity market recovery and bull run between 2009 and 2012.
Through the trust and relationships built at Global Capital, Larry was approached in September 2012 by a Singapore banker to assist in brokering a substantial share takeover involving a Malaysian public listed company. According to the banker, the case involved a management dispute among proxies of the company’s owner, following the removal of the client from his position in June 2012.
At the time, with short notice and Malaysia’s General Election approaching, Larry initially had little interest in Malaysian deals. However, the Singapore banker persuaded him to consider the matter on grounds of national interest and support for a Malaysian Chinese businessman. The banker subsequently arranged for the client to meet Larry personally.
Moved by the client’s account, Larry discussed the matter with his partner Adrian Ooi. Through Global Capital, they signed an agreement with the client on 3 November 2012. The duo then mobilised their network to source investors and oil assets for the transaction, as requested by both the client and prospective investors. They also prepared to act as proxies representing their investors’ interests.
By December 2012, Larry and Adrian faced difficulty securing direct investment commitments from investors within the required timeframe. To honour their mandate, they used personal funds and investor loans to complete the USD30 million transaction within 60 days.
Although the duo had previously closed transactions worth hundreds of millions of dollars for clients, taking on a major deal on their own within such a short period represented a significant milestone. Following the share takeover and the asset deal proposed by the client to the board, Adrian joined the board of the acquired public listed company as part of the governance conditions agreed upon.
After fulfilling their part of the transaction, Larry brought his investments back into Malaysia and helped foreign investors participate in several Malaysian public listed companies, many of which were smaller companies requiring restructuring or new business direction. This following of high-net-worth investors brought Larry into the public spotlight, something he had not anticipated and which later became a constraint in his corporate dealings.
One of Larry’s defining traits was his willingness to invest alongside his followers, effectively putting his own capital behind the opportunities he introduced. In the name of national interest, Larry and Adrian placed their funds and trust in their home country.
However, by September 2014, the duo became involved in a boardroom dispute and legal tussle, allegedly initiated by the same client they had previously assisted. The ongoing control dispute later extended to their other investments. Market observers in Malaysia believed that certain issues may have been deliberately manufactured to discredit Larry and Adrian, while diverting attention from attempts by interested parties to take control of the company they had acquired.
A series of unfortunate events, believed by some to have originated from the same source, caused damage to businesses, employment and minority shareholder interests in public companies. Between 2015 and 2016, Larry and Adrian gradually divested their interests in Malaysia and reduced their loans with investors.
Having fulfilled his obligations to investors, Larry began to reflect on wider gaps in the business world, particularly in relation to ethics, corruption, social responsibility, integrity and governance. In 2016, with the support of his investors, Larry decided to join Gomif Partners and dedicate more of his time to business networking and the pursuit of socialpreneurship.
Socialpreneur Activist
In January 2016, Larry announced that he would step down from his executive role at Nexgram Group. The company retained his status as co-founder and non-executive technology adviser. It was also reported that professional management had been appointed by the board of directors and new substantial shareholders.
Since 2014, Larry had gradually divested his corporate investments and shifted his focus toward corporate advisory and business development work, particularly in Singapore, Hong Kong and London.
Larry continued to devote much of his time and energy to the socialpreneur concept through Gomif Partners, a networking platform established to encourage, support and fund social business start-ups. One of its key objectives was to help Internet-based start-ups become commercially ready and to incubate a sustainable social business ecosystem.
In 2016, Larry, together with his network, jointly launched the Accelerator’17 programme across major start-up hubs, including London, Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore and Jakarta.
Referred and edited, courtesy contribution from VC-Link Official Profile “Tey Por Yee | The Socialpreneur Story”. http://teyporyeestory.wordpress.com/tey-por-yee-about-dato-larry/
Tey Por Yee, or better known as Larry Tey or Dato’ Larry is a Malaysian businessman and venture capitalist. Tey earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree, majoring in Business Administration and Finance from University of Manitoba. Tey invested in various startup companies in North America and Canada, before returning to Malaysia where he joined a corporate advisory company.He joined Gomif Partners (GP) in 2015 to extend his network to back social business concept in venture capital circles.
Tey Por Yee : bio 