Tan
Kah Yong

BSc Real Estate
Ceremony 13

ELIZABETH HARLOW PEASE

MSc in Management and CEMS MIM
Ceremony 14

Pauline
Romanoff

EMBA (English)
Ceremony 15

Yeo
Jen Wei

BBA
Ceremony 16

Tan
Wan Ling

BBA (Accountancy)
Ceremony 17

Akanksha
Batura Pai

Executive Director
Sinoda Shipping Agency Pte Ltd
Ceremony 14

Akanksha is the Executive Director of Sinoda Shipping Agency, the Strategy Head for Raks International and Director of Seamind Blue Ocean. In these roles, she is committed to digitizing the maritime services industry, building the talent pipeline and developing an inclusive and sustainable strategy for the companies.

She is the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO) Goodwill Maritime Ambassador Emerita. She sits on the Council of the Singapore Shipping Association, is a Mission To Seafarers Global Ambassador and a Maritime SheEO Ambassador. She is also part of the Singapore committees of Nautical Institute, the Mission To Seafarers and leads the Women in Logistics community at the Singapore Logistics Association (SLA). She is a mentor at PIER71 – a maritime accelerator set up in collaboration with NUS Enterprise and Maritime and Port Authority (MPA). She also led Sinoda Shipping to be the first and only FONASBA Member in Singapore; FONASBA has consultative status at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), United Nations Conference on Trade & Development (UNCTAD) and the World Customs Organisation (WCO). She consequently sits on FONASBA’s Education & Quality Committee as well. In these capacities she is passionate about contributing meaningfully to the advocacy of the industry, increasing the profile of maritime and drives visibility of women in maritime and logistics.

Beyond professional arenas, Akanksha serves as the Liaison Officer at Consulate-General of Malta to Singapore and facilities cultural and diplomatic bilateral relations. She also sits on the NUS Business School Alumni Association Board of Directors.

She holds a BBA Honors , an MSc (Management) and a CEMS MIM from the National University of Singapore (NUS). She’s also an alumna of the NUS University Scholars Programme (USP) and has recently received an Honorary Professional Doctorate from the European International University. She is currently pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Executive Maritime Management from the World Maritime University (WMU).

She has won various awards from her alma maters and the industry that validate her work. Ms. Batura Pai was awarded the CEMS Alumni of the Year 2021, NUS Outstanding Young Alumni 2023, MCC Woman Achiever of the Year 2023, Fame Times International Excellence Award (FTIEA) 2024, Maritime SheEO Leader of The Year 2024 and Shiptek’s Rising Star Award 2025. Most recently she was awarded the SeaTrade 20 Under 40 during UAE Maritime Week 2025 and was awarded with the 10 Women to Watch during NorShipping in Oslo 2025. She has been featured in the Marex Media’s “India Maritime Icons 2024” List. She also debuted on the acclaimed Top 100 Women in Shipping list as Number 11 in 2024. And this year in February 2025, she topped the link by being ranked #1 globally in the prestigious Top 100 Women in Shipping list conducted annually by AllAboutShipping.

Akanksha is the daughter of a seafarer and resides in Singapore with her family and has two young daughters who are 4 and 1. In her spare time, she enjoys crocheting, reading, making (and drinking) cocktails and traveling to new countries (she has already hit 71 countries).

Laurence
Lien

Chairman, Lien Foundation
Chairman and Co-Founder, Asia Philanthropy Circle
Ceremony 15

Laurence Lien is Co-Founder and Chairman of the Asia Philanthropy Circle, a membership-based platform for philanthropists in Asia to exchange and collaborate. Laurence is also the Chairman of Lien Foundation, a family foundation established in 1980, which has become well-regarded for its forward-thinking and radical approach.  He is also Co-Founder and a Board Member of the Asia Community Foundation.

Laurence was the CEO of the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre in Singapore from 2008-2014. Prior to his work in the non-profit sector, Laurence served in the Singapore Administrative Service in the Singapore Government. Laurence holds degrees from Oxford University, the National University of Singapore, and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. In 2010, Laurence was awarded the Eisenhower Fellowship. He was also a Nominated Member of Parliament in Singapore from 2012-2014.

Simon
KAHN

Chief Marketing Officer,
Google Asia Pacific
Ceremony 16

As Chief Marketing Officer for Google Asia Pacific, Simon Kahn oversees marketing across sixteen markets. He has been instrumental in establishing APAC as one of Google’s fastest-growing regions, contributing to product launches, local innovation, digital literacy initiatives, in addition to championing women’s growth as executive sponsor of women@. Simon is a key voice for APAC, seeing its evolution from “Catch Up” to “Catch Us” as a window to the future. He has been recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice and Campaign Asia Power Profile.

Beyond Google, Simon dedicated over a decade to the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, including five years as Chairman, and serves on prominent boards. His career began with public service, co-founding a non-profit, followed by 13 years at American Express in key marketing and general management roles.

LIM
Him Chuan

Country Head
DBS Singapore
Ceremony 17

Lim Him Chuan is Country Head of DBS Singapore, where he is responsible for leading the franchise in the Group’s largest market.

Prior to this, he was Group Head of Strategy, Transformation, Analytics & Research (GSTAR), where he was responsible for driving the ongoing transformation agenda of DBS, including the institutionalisation of Artificial Intelligence and Gen AI. Additionally, DBS further entrenched the Managing through Journeys way of working under his leadership.

Before that, he was General Manager and Chief Executive Officer of DBS Bank Taiwan, a role he held from 2018 to 2023. Under his leadership, DBS Taiwan’s income increased at a compounded annual growth rate of 6%, while net profit before tax grew at a CAGR of 12%. DBS Taiwan also won multiple accolades including Best International Foreign Bank in Taiwan by Asiamoney.

Him Chuan’s other senior leadership roles at DBS include being Group Head of Product Management for Global Transaction Services, Group Chief Operating Officer for Institutional Banking Group and International Markets, Risk Management Group and Head of Group Audit.

Before joining DBS, he worked as a Vice President with the Risk Management Group at JP Morgan and held positions as Audit Manager and Management Consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Singapore and New York.

Him Chuan holds a bachelor’s degree in Accountancy (Honours) from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and completed the Accelerated Development Programme (business leadership) at the Chicago Booth School of Business. He was conferred the title of Singapore Institute of Banking and Finance Fellow in 2014 in recognition of his contributions to the Singapore financial services industry and his industry thought leadership.