---
title: Why Singapore SMEs Should Invest in Sabah, Says Its New Investment Chief [TBS 62 Sponsored by STTOS]
description: Work Smart, Invest, Retire Well – offers personal finance, investing, career insights, and entrepreneurial stories to help you build wealth, achieve financial independence, and live a richer, wiser life.
---

<https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog>

# [Why Singapore SMEs Should Invest in Sabah, Says Its New Investment Chief \[TBS 62 Sponsored by STTOS\]](https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog/thebusinessshow-62)

 Written by [The Financial Coconut](https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog/author/the-financial-coconut) | Sep 9, 2026, 12:00:00 AM

 

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Every Singapore business that outgrows Singapore looks north. Most stop at Johor. It's close, it's familiar, and anything further feels like a different order of decision. Sabah is three hours away and does not make the shortlist.

Closing that gap is now Kevin George Ukang's job. Five months into running Invest Sabah, after sixteen years inside a regional development authority, his pitch to Singapore SMEs is narrower than you'd expect: tourism, logistics and food processing, with cold chain the loudest gap of the three.

Hotels in Kundasang sell out while travellers are still looking for beds. Cold storage runs short in a state built on perishables. Foreign investors can hold full equity, though native title land stays off the table. None of that makes Sabah easy. It makes it early.

If you've been weighing where to grow next, has Sabah ever made your list, and what would put it there?

Explore STTOS's trade and investment support and watch the full episode on YouTube for the key insights.

**Resources:**

- [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/3tOsPVt9DPaGTO0TTuBLbd?si=CwMbmmD3SP-JHsiSoCL-Xg)
- [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cv9uasXKUxA)
- [Apple podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-singapore-smes-should-invest-in-sabah-according/id1487004505?i=1000788541672)

New episodes every<https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog/tag/wise-and-shine> [Wednesday](https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog/tag/tfc-business-show)  

Share us your thoughts on this episode and let us know what do you want to hear next.

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Join our [community group](https://linkin.bio/thefinancialcoconut/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaY2-JSYItZawSUnNP4YhAicLp0H2wXwx8EBmQgbzOJrjA6YRiPWXtFDSH4_aem_t1DMRY5jrSAapreaSX9ntw) and drop us your insights on this topic.

 

[View full post](https://www.thefinancialcoconut.com/blog/thebusinessshow-62)

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