020: The Sustainability Challenge - Balancing Profits & Social Impact w/ PropertyGuru Co-Founder Steve Melhuish

Many of you will know today's guest, Steve Melhuish, as the Co-Founder,former CEO and Vice Chairman of one of the darlings of the SE Asia's start-up ecosystem, PropertyGuru Group, but he's also a Venture Partner with Wavemaker Partners - the venture capital firm, and the Founder and CEO of Planet Rise - a company that invests and supports start-ups that tackle climate change and poverty. In this episode, we are going to discuss sustainability. And more specifically, how do you find the right balance from delivering social impact - while still creating a profitable business.  Show Notes: 02:10 What Steve has been up to since he left his role as CEO of PropertyGuru (hint: Angel investing in startups that address climate change & poverty) 04:10 What characteristics Steve looks for in the start-ups he invests in  07:15 The evolving sustainability ecosystem - and how the economics/business case behind renewables finally stacks up 10:50 Governments seem to be launching more sustainability initiatives during Covid-19 - is there a correlation or is it just a coincidence? 13:45 How well has the sustainability ecosystem progressed - and what will it take to move it forward? 18:50 How do you balance the profits versus social impact dilemma when you evaluate your investments? 21:50 What does Steve understand about the sustainability ecosystem today that he wishes he knew when he started investing in sustainability start-ups? 25:50 What are the "red flags" Steve looks out for when evaluating early stage businesses? 27:00 What lessons did Steve learn during the dotcom era that he still applies to his work with start-ups today? 30:30 What's your craziest start-up story?