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This week, Bureau Chief Andrea Tan looks at the repercussions of Optus' outages in Australia. Ishika Mookerjee meets the multi-billionaire who wants to chart the ocean floor, and Josh Xiao puts an upmarket Chinese restaurant through an authenticity test. 

Oh, Optus…

Boring but safe? That view of telcos is being tested by SingTel’s Australian unit Optus.

Optus suffered a fatal failure after a network upgrade on Sept. 18 disrupted calls to emergency services, a catastrophe that has been linked to four deaths. Hours later, Optus said the issue was rectified and it would probe the matter. Chief Executive Officer Stephen Rue apologized. “What has happened is completely unacceptable. We have let you down,” he said.

Separately, days later, an Australian court imposed a A$100 million ($66 million) penalty over Optus’ “unconscionable conduct” when selling mobile phones and contracts from 2019 to 2023.

Then, in the last weekend of September, there was another outage. This one involved a mobile phone tower in a New South Wales suburb, and a person who required emergency services had to call for assistance on another device. Australians have been outraged by the disruptions, which have triggered public distrust in the network and speculation that SingTel, which is backed by state-owned investment firm Temasek, and Optus underinvested in the business.

For its part, Optus Chairman John Arthur disputed the speculation, saying that “the incident on the 18th was a process-related incident. People make mistakes. It was not a question of money, it was not a question of investment.”  

The reputational crisis continues. SingTel’s stock fell 3.3% on Sept. 29, the day it announced Optus’ second disruption. Australia’s Communications Minister Anika Wells summoned SingTel boss Yuen Kuan Moon, together with Rue and Arthur over the fallout. Yuen pledged that SingTel would support Optus and there would be no further recurrence.

That’s a familiar line. Back in November 2023, Optus had a crippling nationwide outage that disconnected millions of customers and disabled parts of the public-transport network. The company blamed incorrect routing information and said changes to its network meant the same issue can’t happen again, with CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin subsequently resigning. That followed September 2022 revelations of a massive security breach in which Bayer Rosmarin said hackers, not Optus, were the culprits.

In came Rue, who was hired as a fixer. Optus Chairman Arthur said Sept. 30 the board is satisfied that Rue is “making progress but it’s a work in progress.”

The outages cast a shadow on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s visit to Australia earlier this week. His counterpart Anthony Albanese raised the matter and Wong offered his condolences for victims of the Sept. 18 outage and backed strong follow-up action. 

With the recent failures raised at the highest levels of governments, the telecom’s bosses must be praying that they’ve finally got a grip on the connectivity issues. —Andrea Tan

Weekend Catch-Up

A selection of the best of Bloomberg storytelling, from podcasts and video to explainers and feature stories.

Read:

• This Singapore trader’s wrong-way, 11,000-to-one bet cost banks $250 million
• Gold’s record rally is helping China challenge Trump and the dollar
• Christiano Ronaldo becomes football’s first billionaire thanks to Saudi deal

Watch:

HSBC Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery. The China Show. Bloomberg

• Haslinda Amin speaks to Stock Exchange of Thailand President Asadej Kongsiri
• A dangerous corner of the global shipping industry

Listen:

• The rise of Japan’s `Iron Lady’ and its political shift to the right
• The AI deals raising fears of a new tech bubble

The Billionaire and the Sea

As gold topped $4,000 an ounce for the first time, billionaire investor Ray Dalio made headlines this week by calling the precious metal safer than the US dollar and suggesting it should account for 15% of portfolios. But the famed founder of Bridgewater Associates is also putting his billions to work elsewhere — with no expectation of returns.

A former oil exploration ship operated by Dalio’s nonprofit OceanX set sail Tuesday from Singapore to map part of the Indian Ocean to better understand its biodiversity. The aim is to protect marine life at a time nations are preparing to mine the seas for critical metals.

Advanced research vessel OceanXplorer in Singapore. Photographer: Ishika Mookerjee/Bloomberg

Armed with submersibles and remotely operated vehicles, the research vessel OceanXplorer will study a chain of underwater mountains across an area of more than 17,000 square kilometers (6,560 square miles) between Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands.

The effort comes after dozens of countries ratified a landmark United Nations treaty on conservation in international waters that was heavily promoted by Singapore. In fact, this expedition is supported by a S$6 million ($4.6 million) grant from the National Research Foundation and jointly conducted with researchers from the National University of Singapore.

“Once we explore the oceans and increase our understanding, there’s also the need to safeguard the resources of the high seas and the deep sea,” Singapore Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan said at a briefing last Saturday, ahead of the launch.

Dalio has a strong connection to both the island nation and the ocean. Not only has he cultivated relationships with its policymakers for decades, but his family office runs a branch here and he reportedly purchased two shophouses in Club Street for more than S$25 million in 2024. Dalio is also channeling money toward training its next generation of investment professionals.

“For 32 years, I’ve been coming to Singapore and Singapore is our second home,” he said at the briefing. The veteran investor explained that his interest in the marine environment had been inspired by famed French explorer Jacques Cousteau, adding that this region “is primarily ocean, and ocean is the most important asset.”

Singapore has long been lauded by the rich and famous for its rule of law and infrastructure, and the government has been providing tax incentives to attract more assets. The city-state now hosts more than 240,000 millionaires and has seen a boom in philanthropy.

In May, the Gates Foundation announced plans for an office in the city-state, following in the footsteps of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin and Low Tuck Kwong, founder of Indonesian coal miner Bayan Resources. The James Dyson Foundation has pledged millions to support engineers.

Now, the city aims to lead in marine research. “Hopefully we can set the gold standard for scientific work in the high seas to then replicate for other countries,” said Mark Dalio, Ray’s son and co-chief executive officer of OceanX. —Ishika Mookerjee

The Review: Wenzhou Mansion

From the best spots for a business lunch to drinks with the boss, we sample the city’s eateries, bars and new experiences.

South of Shanghai, resource-strapped and caught between endless hills and the East China Sea, the people of Wenzhou had to travel far for money and opportunities, earning a reputation for business-savviness.

Just as clever but lesser-known is their cuisine. Thanks to the nearby ocean, Wenzhou offers a wide range of seafood that’s lightly seasoned to bring out the original flavor. With the arrival of Wenzhou Mansion, Singaporeans can savor a slice of culture from the Chinese city that’s not pure capitalism.

Marinated roe gren crab. Photographer: Photographer: Josh Xiao/Bloomberg/Bloomberg

The vibe. I was reminded of the upscale Taizhou-based chain Xin Rong Ji. The two-floored eatery is elegant with dark-colored wood and soft lighting. The ground floor features large, round tables and a private room, plus an open kitchen and tanks filled with fresh fish for your selection, like gladiators awaiting the arena. There are more private rooms on the second floor, many named in traditional solar terms in a nice little nod to Chinese culture.

Can you conduct a meeting here? Definitely. For a casual catchup with friends that don’t feature a lot of confidential information, the main dining room has generous space between the tables. But if the gossip is going to get intense, book one of the eight private rooms. The biggest can accommodate up to 13 people and has its own entrance, pantry, and toilet. 

What about a romantic dinner? Sure. The food is plated beautifully (more on that later) and typically shared in Chinese style. It might be a tad formal for a date, but could be a great anniversary option. Situated in Tanjong Pagar, you can easily hop across the street for a drink at Night Hawk or Jigger & Pony.

Stir fried rice cake with preserved meat. Photographer: Josh Xiao/Bloomberg

What we’d order again. The raw marinated crab (S$128). Being a Teochew, I know what makes a good raw marinated dish, and this crab fits the bill. The slightly garlicky sauce accentuated the freshness of the crab’s meat and roe. The dish wasn’t overly salty or fishy, and the presentation is beautiful and convenient too — the crab is pre-peeled! I also enjoyed the stir-fried rice cakes (S$38) in which the glutinous bits soaked up the flavor from the dried shrimp, pork and cabbage. The yellow croaker (S$158) was good enough for my guest, though I felt that the sauce was a tad porcine and the fish could have been fresher. For dessert we had red bean paste with orange peel ($12), which was a letdown in an otherwise decent meal. The texture wasn’t very smooth and the dish was weirdly served at room temperature. But the waitress took our feedback on board and waived the dish, so that’s nice service. —Josh Xiao

Need to know. Wenzhou Mansion is at 60 Tanjong Pagar Road and is open daily for lunch and dinner, with reservations welcomed. My dinner came to about S$255 per head without alcohol. —Josh Xiao

Have a place you’d like us to review or feedback to share? Get in touch at sgedition@bloomberg.net.

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