TOPICS’ first editorial, published in March 2002 – The situation has improved, but some of the content remains relevant 18 years later. The recent formation of Taiwan’s new Cabinet provides a good opportunity to review the difficulties faced by international companies attempting to implement a globalized business model in Taiwan. Much has been done to…
Each autumn, the Ministry of Economic Affairs holds a Taiwan Business Alliance Conference to promote Taiwan’s advantages as a location for foreign investment and to spotlight new business opportunities. This year’s program, held October 7 at the Taipei International Convention Center, included a new wrinkle. For the first time, the Ministry presented an “Economic Contribution…
There’s more to buoyant two-way FDI flows than generous taxation policies. Back in the 1600s, the Dutch were Taiwan’s first foreign investors, with their legendary Dutch East Indian Company setting up Fort Zeelandia in what is now the Anping district of Tainan. Fast-forwarding to the present, the Netherlands for the past three years has been…
While in Asia in the fall of 1964, American businessman Edward J. Rehfeldt Jr. decided to make a stop in Taipei at the invitation of a friend. Before the visit was over, he had agreed to set up an electronics components factory in one of the first foreign investments on the island. In the more…
More expatriate professionals are coming, but they are often confronted with red tape and a conservative corporate culture. California native Ryan Terribilini moved to Taipei over a year ago to set up his own fintech firm after he received a Taiwan Entrepreneur Visa, designed to streamline the process for foreigners starting businesses on the island….
AmCham Taipei’s Private Equity Committee suspended operations in late 2017 in frustration over the difficulty PE firms were facing in Taiwan in gaining approval for investment applications. In a number of cases over the previous six years, investment plans by PE companies had been either rejected outright or stalled so long that the prospective investor…
A revamped government organization stresses dedication to helping companies solve problems. From early this year, the government agencies dealing with investment matters have been brought together under a new umbrella organization, InvesTaiwan, characterized by a logo featuring a stalk of grain, symbolizing the fertility of Taiwan’s business environment. Three agencies of the Ministry of Economic…
Global and local firms are making new investments in semiconductor fabs in Taiwan. Taiwan is holding its own as a hub for semiconductor manufacturing, attracting steady new investment from chipmakers and other firms in the industry’s supply chain. The island manufactures about 25-30% of integrated circuits (ICs) globally and is home to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing…
As an investment destination, the United States is attracting greater interest from Taiwan’s top corporations – but it’s struggling to attract smaller players. Terry Gou knows an opportunity when he sees one. The Foxconn chief’s fine-tuned business and political instincts seized the chance provided by the new Trump administration’s push to revive the American manufacturing…
The sharing economy relies on shared production or consumption of goods and services, in contrast to the mainstream systems of private ownership. It originated in early Web-based non-profit initiatives such as Wikipedia and Couchsurfing. The first large-scale bike-sharing system was established in Lyon, France in 2005. Taiwan’s own YouBike program was launched in Taipei City…
