Interview with Calvin NG, General Partner at Plutus VC – How To Successfully Manage a $200 Million Blockchain And Innovation Fund – IntelligentHQ

Calvin NG is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor with many successes and achievements on his belt (Digital Hollywood 2017: HKE2022 / Retech 2017: ASX:RTE / Citic Telecom 2007: HKE1883 / THE9 2004: NCTY). Today Calvin NG manages a $200 million blockchain and innovation fund at Plutus Ventures, which invests into many blockchain and technology companies worldwide.

Calvin NG Interview Focus

1. Professional and Academic Career. 

2. First steps as an entrepreneur

3. What did you learn from your experience in Malaysia? And from a lifestyle perspective and how business is done, what’s the difference between Hong Kong, China and Malaysia?

4. Can you tell us more about some of your achievements back in the day?

5. How is it to manage a successful fund?

6. How and when did you discover blockchain and crypto?

7. What do you -and Plutus VC- look at when it comes to investing in a new project?

8. How do you see blockchain and crypto right now? What are your thoughts on DeFi?

9. What is real DeFi?

10. Can you tell us about DAO and your company MantroDAO?

11. How do you see decentralization and centralization of systems today?

12. What are your views on NFTs and other blockchain trends?

Discovering Bitcoin And Blockchain – The Next Big Thing?

It wasn’t until 2016 that my very good friend from GRL, he’s a managing director of a fund, a property fund, a very big property fund, introduced me to Bitcoin. Right, that was in 2016. One day he sent me a wechat message with a newspaper article that said that this guy raised funding using cryptocurrency. And I think: maybe that is the future? And then I look up, what is Bitcoin?. I’ve heard of it before, but it wasn’t until 2016 that I really looked into Bitcoin and you know, my first impression of Bitcoin was; I told my friend, this is a perfect scam. That was my first impression. Really. I say: they don’t have a founder, you launch a token, it goes up in value, just like that. And nobody can find who is the person behind it. Isn’t that a perfect scam? There is nobody for you to arrest if anything goes wrong. So, that was my first perception and when my friend came to Shanghai, we started going deep into crypto, into Bitcoin, into Blockchain, then I suddenly realised, after a month and a half, I told my friend: I am taking back what I told you about what was my first impression of Bitcoin. This is another chance in the Internet space.

How To Be Successful As An Investor

Investment is a good way to learn more, because I meet a lot of entrepreneurs, a lot of smart people. Some people are even much smarter than me, you know. So the people of the younger generation, with brilliant ideas and so on. And as an investor you see a lot, you learn a lot. And you can also, from the experience, because we could put money into the companies, and some companies, even if we don’t invest, we follow up, seeing: were they able to get successful? And if they fail, we would like to know why, why they failed. At least, I was telling myself that if I were to launch my own company again and become an entrepreneur, I would at least know one thing: what road that I could take would definitely fail.

Calvin NG Biography

Calvin NG is the current general partner at Plutus VC, managing a $200 million blockchain and innovation and investing into many blockchain and technology companies worldwide. Calvin NG  is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor with many successes and achievements on his belt (Digital Hollywood 2017: HKE2022 / Retech 2017: ASX:RTE / Citic Telecom 2007: HKE1883 / THE9 2004: NCTY). 

Alongside his work as general partner at Plutus VC, He sits on the board of two online games start-ups, an ecommerce Company and an entertainment fashion commerce Company in China. Calvin has extensive experience in the digital media, social networking, online games and gaming space. His past includes consultant to SULAKE *Habbo.com (world largest teens virtual world). He was also the Vice President of CITIC PACIFIC (*SEHK0627) and CITIC TELECOM 1616 (*IPO-2007: SEHK1883) responsible for their new strategy and new media development. 

Prior to this Calvin was part of the team that successfully clinched the deal for World of Warcraft in China in partnership with THE 9 (*IPO-2004: NCTY) and also developed China’s first digital comics magazine and 3G comics on mobile. 

In 2007 Calvin won third place in China Entrepreneur Competition (he was the only foreigner to have won a top placing till today). 

Back in 2000 Calvin master-minded the control of more than 90% of cyber cafes in Malaysia and is the only Company that partners with all the major PC games publishers worldwide. A former veteran in the promotional advertising industry, Calvin had won numerous awards and tenders from top international clients for four years straight (Triumph International and Public Bank). During the Daytona USA craze back in 1994, Calvin took a video arcade game company from USD 5 million in sales to USD 50 million within just a year. 

His entrepreneurship career started at the age of 17 where he was featured almost every year on the Malaysia Newspapers for operating the biggest teen charity events. Calvin started trading biscuits for toys in kindergarten, initiated his school 1st Computer club at the age of 13 and founded LSCC (Leaque of Schools Computers Clubs) and the biggest inter-school challenge ‘COMP QUIZ’ in Malaysia. At school he’s the 1st person to hold a Funding Director position in both INTERACT and LEO club because his projects bring in the bucks. At the age of 16 he started STEP ONE a Co that organizes weekly tea dances and parties making him the richest kid in school. 

Calvin NG Links & Sources

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.