Question 1

Luc de Waegh  —  Founder

Accepted Answer

Luc (1960) has 17 years experience at country manager level with Philip Morris and British American Tobacco in Africa and South East Asia.

Among many other activities, Luc launched BAT operations in Myanmar in 1993. He was also General Manager for BAT Thailand until the end of 2003.
Born in Belgium, Luc holds an MBA (1988) from INSEAD, Fontainebleau and is a graduate (1982) of IAG (University of Louvain, Belgium).

Luc is a regular speaker at regional conferences on the role responsible businesses can play in the development of Myanmar. Since April 2017 Luc serves as the Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Belgium in Myanmar. Whenever Luc has free time he likes to travel the less frequented roads of South East Asia on his motorbike or dive to enjoy the quiet beauty of the underwater world.

Question 2

U Min Sein  —  Myanmar Legal Expert

Accepted Answer

U Min Sein (1946) is the founder and managing partner of a flourishing legal and financial consultancy with offices in Yangon.

U Min Sein (Michael) is Advocate of the Supreme Court as well as a legal advisor and business consultant to many leading local and foreign companies operating in Myanmar.

Michael is also the legal advisor to many Embassies in Myanmar, U Hla Tun Auditors (ex Price Waterhouse Myanmar), and Medecins Sans Frontieres (Switzerland). Michael is a board member of the AYA Bank and a committee member of the U Hla Tun Hospice (Cancer) Foundation. U Min Sein graduated with a B.Sc. degree in English, Physics, Chemistry and Pure Mathematics. He passed the Registered Accountant exam (R.A.) and is a CPA. Michael is an avid golfer and a member of the Yangon Golf Club.

Question 3

Dr. JP Verbiest  —  Financial Specialist

Accepted Answer

Dr. JP Verbiest (1950) is currently the policy advisor and council member of the Mekong Institute, an intergovernmental organization based in Thailand. He is a regular senior consultant for the Asian Development Bank. He authored and co-authored several major studies on Myanmar, including a comprehensive study of Myanmar’s economy, “Myanmar: Unlocking the Potential” (August 2014).

Previously JP held several senior positions with the ADB including Manager, Strategy and Policy Department, Assistant Chief Economist (Macro-economics and Finance) and Country Director for Vietnam (1996-2000) and Thailand (2005-2010).
JP lives in Bangkok and has been based in Southeast Asia for 40 years. His principal research interests are macroeconomic and financial policies, and regional economic and financial cooperation and integration in East and Southeast Asian countries.

JP holds a BA in economics and finance from FUCAM in Mons (Belgium), a MSC in Econometrics from the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB, Belgium) and a doctorate in economics from Oxford University (UK). Jean Pierre’s wit and good sense of humour makes him a sought after speaker. He regularly addresses prestigious conferences in the region. In his little spare time JP likes to spend time with his family in the quietness of his country home and play golf.

Question 4

Franz von Merhart  —  Hospitality Expert

Accepted Answer

Franz von Merhart (1962) has 25 years experience with the most prestigious names in the Hospitality Industry. Franz started his career with ACCOR International where he held different leadership positions in France, Senegal and Gabon.

From 2002 to 2011 he was an Executive Manager at Orient Express, Trains and Cruises from. During this period Franz was also in charge of the iconic Road to Mandalay luxury cruises on the Irrawaddy River as well as the 5 star Governor’s Residence in Yangon. Prior to that Franz spent 9 years with Pansea Hotels and Resorts and opened hotels in Tunisia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Indonesia.

Franz played a key role in the sale of Pansea Hotels and Resorts to Orient Express Hotels Trains & Cruises which were renamed during a short period Belmond before getting into LVMH Group.

Franz acquired (in partnership) and developed the View Point eco lodge on Inle Lake in 2011. More recently he invested (in partnership) and developed SEEDS restaurant into the top-ranking fine dining place in Myanmar (Trip Advisor). Franz is perfectly fluent in French, German and English.

Question 5

Eric Rosenkranz  —  M&A Guru

Accepted Answer

Eric’s (1952) involvement in Southeast Asia M&A over the years included working with West Indochina to help sell Myanmar Vineyards to Premium Distribution, engineering a trade sale to News Corp of Outdoor Solutions Group, advising Cimigo (HK) on their sale to Hakuhodo and subsequently advising Hakuhodo in numerous additional acquisitions throughout the region, and two successful IPO’s including the NASDAQ listing of Focus Media (China), at one time valued at more than $7.5 billion.

“My firm belief in delivering successful negotiations is creating win-win scenarios for both sides, so that everyone comes away feeling they have achieved their objectives. This yields not only the most value for my client, but also helps ensure a successful post-merger outcome.”

Eric has an MBA from The University of Chicago where he lectures at their Asian campus, in addition to teaching in the Masters of Branding and Marketing Program at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, as well as at SASIN, the Thailand based MBA program.
He has appeared as a panelist and moderator at the World Economic Forum, and wrote a monthly column on strategy for the daily newspaper The Nation in Thailand for 14 years. Eric is a Permanent Resident of Singapore and has worked twenty-four years in Asia, ten in Europe and eleven in North & South America.

Question 6

Leon de Riedmatten —  Social Impact

Accepted Answer

Léon (1952) is is an action-oriented field diplomat. For the last twenty years he has been tackling some of the main issues facing Myanmar and managed to achieve substantial results while keeping a very low and discreet profile.

Prior to this service, Léon carried out humanitarian missions all over the world for many prestigious institutions. At ICRC, serving as head of delegation in Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985, he ran one of the biggest and most valuable operations in the Geneva-based Institution’s history.

As head of ICRC delegation in Myanmar in 1999, Léon managed to get access to all political prisoners. He then became the facilitator on the ground between the authorities and the Burmese opposition under the auspices of the UNSG special envoy as well as the first ILO liaison officer in Myanmar Since 2012 Léon serves as an independent advisor to the peace process.

He has in particular initiated a project related to Business & Peace in one of the ethnic states where a ceasefire had been agreed. He also advises Hanns Seidel Foundation, Maurice Machoud Foundation, Religions for Peace International. He is a Member of the Board of Directors of The Border Consortium (TBC)

Question 7

U Min Zaw —  Distribution Expert

Accepted Answer

U Min Zaw pioneered the professional distribution of consumer goods in Myanmar. In 1993, as the Sales and Marketing Manager of Myanmar Singapura United Tobacco Ltd. (MSUTL), he built up and managed the largest sales force in Myanmar, organizing the distribution, sales and promotion of brands such as 555, Lucky Strike and Benson & Hedges cigarettes, Johnnie Walker Black Label whisky, Lipton tea, Evian water, and Budweiser beer.

In 1997, he set up his own company to become the sole importer and distributor of Amstel beer, and Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Corporation brands as well as other consumer products. He was also the country representative for the advertising agency EURORSCG BALL from Thailand and furthermore has set up Duty Free shops in both Yangon and Mandalay International Airports.

U Min Zaw co-owned and managed a large and successful restaurant and beer pub business from 1998 to 2003. U Min Zaw holds a B.Sc. Physics from the Yangon University. During his free time, he loves to read, play golf, swim with his family, and power walks in the evening as his daily workout.

WHO WE ARE

Luc de Waegh — Founder

U Min Sein — Myanmar Legal Expert

Dr. JP Verbiest — Financial Specialist

Franz von Merhart — Hospitality Expert

Eric Rosenkranz — M&A Guru

Leon de Riedmatten — Social Impact

U Min Zaw — Distribution Expert