Mr. Highfly graduated with an accounting and finance degree in 2023, after which he was hired as an accountant by SG Development Limited (SDL). SDL was listed in the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and had established a reputation as a reliable provider of trading and shipping services in ASEAN countries. It planned to expand its operations to the real estate segment in Southeast Asia. In the first week after Mr. Highfly reported for duty, he was tasked to investigate the accounting treatments for investment properties and their implications on the company's financial statements.

Happy Ice, a Singapore-based startup, is a vending machine developer and ice-cream wholesaler cum distributor with an operation team of eight members. As of August 2017, Happy Ice operated 60 vending machines in the city-state to sell its healthier-choice ice cream, with less sugar, fat and calories, imported from Taiwan. With its successful operations in the Singapore market, the company planned to launch similar operations in Malaysia with a franchise model by the end of 2017. With the expansion plan in mind, the founder cum director of Happy Ice, Mr. Daniel Ma, wondered if anything could be done to improve the internal control system of the company, especially that of the working capital.

Alan Wong, an intern at Gem Asset Management, was pleasantly surprised when, as per his supervisor's instructions, reviewed the stock multiples (P/E, P/Sales, P/Book Value, and EV/EBITDA) of healthcare stocks listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX). He recalled from his Equity Analysis 101 class at business school that the stock valuation metrics of companies in the same industry tended to trade within a narrow range. But certain stock valuation metrics of Healthway Medical Corporation appeared attractive in relation to SGX-listed peers. Alan performs the Du Pont analysis and financial statement analysis to ascertain if the Healthway stock was indeed attractive against the backdrop of its performance. Did the conclusions of his analysis support his initial impression?

In 2008, the Multinational Natural Gas Pipeline Project was sponsored by China National Group Corporation to undertake a major international infrastructure project in Asia. The Pipeline Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of China National Group Corporation, established joint ventures with the host countries and took the lead in financing the project, which was required to be completed by the end of 2009. Initial investments and procurements were made, and payment would soon be due. However, there was a large gap between the estimated total investment and the funds available. Numerous banks expressed interest in the pipeline project, but most required the sponsor to provide a guarantee for the project’s loan. Some banks also asked for an increase in the capital ratio from less than 1 per cent to 20 per cent. The treasurer responsible for the financing of the project was now tasked with the issue of arranging the most effective way to finance the project.

In 2008, the Multinational Natural Gas Pipeline Project was sponsored by China National Group Corporation to undertake a major international infrastructure project in Asia. The Pipeline Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of China National Group Corporation, established joint ventures with the host countries and took the lead in financing the project, which was required to be completed by the end of 2009. Initial investments and procurements were made, and payment would soon be due. However, there was a large gap between the estimated total investment and the funds available. Numerous banks expressed interest in the pipeline project, but most required the sponsor to provide a guarantee for the project's loan. Some banks also asked for an increase in the capital ratio from less than 1 per cent to 20 per cent. The treasurer responsible for the financing of the project was now tasked with the issue of arranging the most effective way to finance the project.

On Monday, 19 November 2012, during a speech at the Investment Forum in London, Carson Block, the founder and research director of Muddy Waters LLC (MW), challenged Olam International (Olam), a major agricultural trading company on the Singapore Exchange. He questioned the company's huge debts and accounting practices and indicated that he was short selling the stock. Following this news, trading on Olam's stock was immediately suspended at Singapore Exchange. In less than ten minutes after trading resumed, the stock price plummeted by 11%, creating the largest single-day drop in six months. One week later, on Tuesday, 27 November 2012, MW released a 133-page-long research report on Olam, challenging its solvency, business model, accounting practices and capital expenditure. On December 17, Olam's stock price closed at S$1.395. It was the first time since March 2009 that the stock price had fallen below S$1.40. In the month following Block's critique, Olam's stock price fell nearly 20%. The case examines the reasons for the highly negative response to Block's analysis and reviews Olam's responses to the crisis aiming to uncover insights and lessons from the episode.

Biosensors International Group (BIG), a biotechnology company listed in Singapore Exchange, acquired JW Medical Systems Ltd in 2011. This resulted in a significant increase in reported goodwill and other intangible assets. On 2 July 2012, Matthew Tay, an analyst with MMB Ltd (an equity research company in Singapore), sat staring at the balance sheets of BIG. The sum total of intangible assets and goodwill constituted 62% of total assets compared to 4% the year before. He knew that the huge increase was due to the acquisition of JW Medical Systems in 2011. He wondered what these intangible assets and goodwill represented, how they were accounted for and how they should be interpreted. This case study deals with the valuation and the impairment testing of intangibles (including goodwill) reported in the financial statements of BIG, and describes the acquisition transaction and BIG's post-acquisition financial position.