Beyond his dedication to growing the businesses he is involved in, Kiat Lim is equally passionate about creating a ripple effect of positive change. Recognising his fortunate position of wealth, Lim believes it is his responsibility – and his family’s — to use it to bridge gaps and create opportunities for others.
Lim recalls doing charity work in primary school as part of the family’s outreach initiative, “Operation Redshirt”. For 24 years, every Chinese New Year, the family would pack essentials such as cooking oil, Axe brand medicated oil, Milo packets, toilet paper and other products into care packages, which were then delivered to elderly people in need.
This tradition had a profound impact on Lim. When delivering the care packages, Lim observed elderly residents living modestly, often alone, in small flats in challenging circumstances. He says this instilled in him a strong sense of gratitude and understanding of the importance of giving back. Lim is now involving his toddler in the initiative to keep the tradition alive.
Lim stresses that his father has been an incredible role model, always giving back in meaningful ways. For instance, the elder Lim established the Singapore Olympic Foundation in 2009, pledging an initial $10 million and another $10 million later. The financier has also contributed significantly to initiatives like the NParks Award and numerous other community projects — many of which support alternative career paths.
This perspective resonated with Lim when a Member of Parliament Desmond Choo introduced him to Shaping Hearts, an initiative that supports people with disabilities in pursuing artistic expression. “I then got to see the project first-hand. Many beneficiaries create high-quality paintings despite their physical or mental challenges, on the back of hurdles like the high cost of materials,” he adds.
Lim has become Shaping Heart’s new patron, providing a $1 million donation to the cause — the largest donation made to the initiative in a personal capacity. “Beyond the monetary input, I can also help with strategic involvement, given I know many people in the arts and entertainment industry. I think I could provide the kind of support the beneficiaries need,” he adds.
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While his passion for philanthropy reflects a deep desire to create a meaningful impact, Lim’s foray into cryptocurrencies showcases another facet of his philosophy. He views crypto as an opportunity to innovate, take calculated risks and explore uncharted territories.
In early 2022, Lim and Elroy Cheo, members of the family behind Singapore Exchange -listed Mewah International, and prominent local Mandopop musician JJ Lin founded ARC Community, a members-only non-fungible token (NFT) gated private platform. This follows the well-documented NFT craze, which started around January 2021.
Noting the gruelling cryptocurrency market over the past three years, Lim highlights that ARC has now turned profitable. “It has been a tough journey, but we have recovered everything we invested and are now thriving. Earlier this year, we closed a small fundraising round of US$4.5 million ($6.08 million) — a step in the right direction. That round was raised before the [recent] rally.
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“Although we have had many offers since, we declined them because we focus on sustainable growth. As founders and key members are all from traditional business backgrounds, so we don’t want to risk everything for short-term gains,” says Lim.
Ironically, Lim does not take this approach for his own cryptocurrency portfolio. He believes in “go big or go home”. Lim has a mix of allocations within his portfolio, some in high-speculative assets such as “meme coins” and others that are more stable and yield-focused.
Lim was first drawn into the industry via the NFT space before the previous bull cycle. Lim says Cheo and him share the same crypto wallet — thus, the duo executes crypto investments together. A notable one involved the N Project, which allows investors to purchase NFTs featuring random numbers — somewhat similar to Toto. “We decided to go for it after much deliberation, even creating funny stories about which numbers to pick.”
The NFT, then worth about US$10,000, was staked on the Magic platform within the Arbitrum ecosystem. A few weeks later, the duo discovered that the Magic tokens they received from the stake had reached US$30,000 in value, in addition to the NFT retaining its value.
From then on, Lim decided to invest directly in Magic tokens. He bought the tokens at various price points, ranging from 30 US cents to US$1 apiece. Eventually, he could sell at around US$6 per token, making a 30-fold return on his initial investment.
Lim admits that his trading strategy was not particularly technical, relying more on momentum and gut instincts instead. “It was a whirlwind experience, turning an initial US$10,000 into over US$300,000. I barely slept during those months, waking up at 3am to close trades and secure profits. It felt surreal and gave me a glimpse into why so many people are drawn to the crypto space,” he adds.
Today, however, Lim is no longer actively involved in the crypto space beyond his involvement with ARC. While recognising the potential for higher profits in the current crypto rally, Lim prioritises his operational roles, which demand significant time and attention. “I am proud of what we do at ARC and intend to continue supporting the team with our vision to create a Web3 world.”
