Alumni Gift to SMU Fuels Next Generation of Entrepreneurs
Singapore Management University (SMU) has received a S$5 million gift from alumni Jeff Tung (BBM 2013) and Benjamin Twoon (BBM 2013) to accelerate the development of student-founded ventures, supporting Singapore’s growing startup pipeline.
The impact-driven gift – SMU’s largest alumni contribution to date - marks the culmination of a giving journey that began in 2015. Motivated by their transformative experience in SMU, and by their desire to see some of the most successful entrepreneurs in Singapore emerge from the University, Jeff and Ben’s gift will enhance the existing Passion, Adventure, Kickstart (PAK) Entrepreneurship Challenge and establish the Design Your Startup Work-Study Elective (WSE).
The enhanced PAK Challenge — a business competition that spotlights start-ups with strong growth potential — will function as a venture launchpad, injecting early-stage capital at a point where most student founders typically stall due to lack of funding and market traction.
The new Work-Study Elective (WSE) at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business (LKCSB) addresses a longstanding challenge for student entrepreneurs: balancing academic commitments with building a startup. By making venture creation a credit-bearing option, SMU integrates entrepreneurship into its academic experience.
Together, these initiatives aim to shift entrepreneurship at SMU towards an integrated, end-to-end venture-building pipeline. It envisions a trajectory towards real-world establishment of profitable and successful startups and unicorn companies.
With this latest commitment, the duo’s total contributions to SMU now stand at S$7 million, signalling a sustained effort to build an entrepreneurship ecosystem as a core institutional impact within SMU.
SMU President Lily Kong said the significance of the gift lies beyond its size. “Jeff and Benjamin are entrepreneurs whose journeys were profoundly shaped during their time at SMU. Having benefitted from mentorship and support themselves, they are now choosing to open doors for others who share similar aspirations. In doing so, they are nurturing a virtuous cycle — one in which alumni success creates opportunities for students, and today’s beneficiaries become tomorrow’s builders and benefactors.”
For Jeff Tung and Benjamin Twoon, the motivation is both personal and strategic.
Jeff said, “Our society today stands to benefit from entrepreneurs who can operate beyond conventional frameworks and devise groundbreaking ideas. Through this gift, we hope to cultivate the next generation of unicorn startups that will redefine the industry and propel society forward.”
Benjamin said, “With the rapidly shifting trends across the globe, the entrepreneurial spirit is needed now more than ever to drive innovation and solutions. On top of providing a pathway for aspiring founders to move beyond ideas and towards building impactful businesses, we believe that SMU has the capability to nurture globally competitive changemakers who will shape society for the better.”
Strengthening Singapore’s startup ecosystem
The initiative comes as Singapore continues to position itself as a leading hub for innovation and enterprise in the region. Efforts to strengthen the pipeline of founders, from education through to venture creation, are increasingly seen as critical to sustaining this momentum.
By integrating funding, curriculum and mentorship, SMU’s approach seeks to contribute to a more robust and sustainable startup ecosystem in Singapore, by connecting SMU students with the entrepreneur community, building a sustained network of changemakers and business leaders.
Alumni Gift to SMU Fuels Next Generation of Entrepreneurs_fin.pdf
