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Region’s Top Leaders Named at the 13th CNBC Asia Business Leaders Awards

SINGAPORE, 6 November 2014 – CNBC, First in Business Worldwide, announced the winners of the 13th Asia Business Leaders Awards (ABLA) during an award ceremony that was held this evening at the St. Regis hotel in Singapore.

Asia Business Leader of the Year AwardMr. Prijono Sugiarto, President Director, Astra International for his exceptional leadership skills, innovative strategies and focus on long-term growth, which helped make his vision for his company a reality.

Asia Innovator of the Year Award - Mr. Mark Tucker, Group Chief Executive and President, AIA Group Ltd for his inventive thinking in business and going beyond the traditional product development approach to innovation that helped steer growth for his company across the region.

Asia Talent Management AwardMr. Justo A. Ortiz, Chairman and CEO, UnionBank of the Philippines for his commitment to support, develop and retain talent as well as cultivating the next generation of leaders.

Corporate Social Responsibility AwardMr. Candra Ciputra, President Director, PT Ciputra Development for his exemplary contribution to the arts education, environment and community development.

Lifetime AchievementAward Henry Sy Sr., Founder and Chairman, SM Investments for his vision, leadership and business foresight in transforming a group that has impacted and helped grow the economy.

Singapore Business Leader of the Year - Mr. Piyush Gupta, CEO, DBS Group whose vision and talent helped build his company into a leading financial services group in Asia.

"The 13th annual CNBC Asia BusinessLeaders Awards celebrates and recognizes leaders who have helped shape the Asian economy and who will continue to lead Asia's growth in the years ahead," said KC Sullivan, President and Managing Director, CNBC International. "Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees for their outstanding achievements."

CNBC pioneered the Asia Business Leaders Awards to acknowledge exceptional CEOs across the region. Recipients of the awards are stellar individuals, who are visionaries behind today's outstanding businesses. They epitomize the core values of a successful leader - strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight – values that are imperative to carving out powerful businesses in the global economy.

The 13thABLA will be broadcast in Asia Pacific on November 15 at 8pm (SIN/HK/SYD). The award show will also air in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and in the U.Son CNBC World.

For more information on the 13th ABLA winners please see appendix below or visit our website at abla.cnbc.com

13th Asia Business Leaders Awards is hosted by:

CNBC Asia Pacific

CNBC is the leading global broadcaster of live business and financial news and information, reporting directly from the major financial markets around the globe with three regional networks including CNBC in Asia, CNBC in EMEA and CNBC in the US. CNBC.com is the preeminent financial news source on the web, featuring an unprecedented amount of video, real-time market analysis, web-exclusive live video and analytical financial tools. CNBC is dedicated to CEOs, senior corporate executives; the financial services industry and private investors. The channel is available in more than 371 million homes worldwide. CNBC is a division of NBCUniversal. www.cnbc.com

About CNBC Asia Business Leaders Awards ("CNBC ABLA")

CNBC's Asia Business Leaders Awards acknowledge exceptional CEOs regionally. Recipients of the awards are stellar individuals who are visionaries behind today's outstanding businesses. They epitomize core values of a successful leader - strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight – values that are imperative to carving out powerful businesses in the global economy. ABLA contributes to the development of the business community in Asia as it salutes exceptional regional business leaders for their accomplishments and gives the Asian business community the opportunity to learn valuable lessons from them. The CNBC ABLA not only recognizes these outstanding individuals, but is a platform in which they are able to engage with the business community at large.

Previous CNBC Asia Business Leader Award winners include:

Tan Pheng Hock President and CEO, ST Engineering (2013)
N Chandrasekaran CEO & MD, Tata ConsultancyServices (2012)
Carlos Ghosn Chairman & CEO, NissanMotor Co Ltd (2011)
AM Naik, Chairman Chairman & MD, Larsen & Toubro (2010)
Frank Ning Chairman, COFCOCorporation (2009)
Hirokazu Yoshikawa Chairman & CEO, Dowa Holdings (2008)
Harish Manwani Chairman, Unilever, Asia/Africa (2007)
Anand Mahindra Chairman & MD, Mahindra& Mahindra Ltd (2006)
Chen Feng Chairman,Hainan Airlines Company Limited (2005)
Gerardo Ablaza Jr. CEO ,Globe Telecom Inc. (2004)
S. Ramadorai CEO& MD, Tata Consultancy (2002)
KV Kamath CEO& MD, ICICI Ltd. (2001)

Appendix:

Asia Business Leader of the Year

The 2014 Asia Business Leader of the Year Award recognizes Mr. Prijono Sugiarto, the President Director of Astra International as the business leader who has made his vision for his company a reality. Astra International continues to thrive as one of Indonesia's largest business groups today. Under Mr. Sugiarto's leadership, innovative strategies and focus on long-term growth, Astra is on its way to achieve Astra Vision 2020 where they will continue to strive for excellence in business, human capital and corporate social responsibility.

Asia Innovator of the Year

The Asia Innovator of the Year rewards Mr. Mark Tucker, Group Chief Executive and President, of the AIA Group Ltd for his inventive thinking in business. He led a very successful IPO for the AIA Group where it broke new records in 2010 as the largest IPO in Hong Kong's history. Mr. Tucker is responsible for steering AIA's growth across 17 markets to where AIA is now the fourth largest insurance company globally by market capitalization and the world's largest independent, listed pan-Asian life insurance group. Mr.Tucker's approach to innovation goes beyond the traditional product development where in 2013 he was instrumental in developing the "AIA Vitality" which is a groundbreaking wellness program that rewards customers for sustained changes in behavior towards a healthier lifestyle.

Asia Talent Management Award

The 2014 Asia Talent Management Award is presented to Mr. Justo A. Ortiz, Chairman and Chief Executive Office of the UnionBank of the Philippines for his commitment to support, develop and retain talent as well as cultivating the next generation of leaders. In 2013 alone, 2,401 Union Bankers underwent training in various disciplines where the average classroom hours per participant were raised to 15 hours. Union Bank which serves 5.30 million clients and has 238 branches and 268 ATMs nationwide, is known for its innovative training programs which translate to happily engaged employees who go beyond the call of duty to delight customers, help colleagues and serve communities.

Corporate Social Responsibility Award

The Corporate Social Responsibility Award recognizes Mr. Candra Ciputra, President Director of PT Ciputra Development for his exemplary contribution to the arts, education, environment and community development. Mr. Ciputra believes that entrepreneurship will change Indonesia's future. The company has founded and supports three educational foundations for the promotion of quality entrepreneurship education. Also, as the head of the Ciputra foundation, Mr. Ciputra personally directs programs that encompass the educational, socio-cultural and environmental sectors. To support the environment, the company conducts activities such as planting trees and designing homes according to the Green Building Concept, which creates homes that are environmentally friendly, energy efficient and promote healthy lifestyles. These standards are in use throughout Ciputra's 69 project developments across 35 Indonesian cities.


Lifetime AchievementAward

The Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Henry Sy Sr.of SM Investments for his vision, leadership and business foresight in transforming a group that has impacted and helped grow the economy. Mr. Sy is an icon in the Philippines and the driving force behind SM Investments. The undisputed King of Malls opened the first Shoe mart or SM in 1958, which was a simple store selling shoes. In the early 1980's, he laid the foundations for the Philippines first department store, which cemented his position as the country's retail king. Under his leadership and strong belief in hard work, SM has since evolved into a dynamic group of companies with five lines of businesses – shopping malls, retail, financial services, real estate development and tourism, hotels and conventions. And it's that hard work and dedication that built the house of Sy, and the retail empire that you see across much of the Philippines today.


Singapore Business Leader of the Year

The 2014 Singapore Business Leader of the Year acknowledges Mr. Piyush Gupta, CEO of the DBS Group as an outstanding business leader whose vision and talent have built DBS into a leading financial services group in Asia with over 250 branches across 17 markets. With its headquarters in Singapore, DBS is a market leader in the country with over four million customers and a network of more than 2,300 branches, ATMs and self-service banking machines. In addition, the bank maintained its stronghold position in the domestic loan and deposit market where its full year net profit rose. And with Mr. Gupta's excellent leadership, the company expects to continue to thrive not only in Singapore, but expects significant growth in Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia.