Bamboo Innovator Daily Insight: 28 Apr (Tues) – The remarkable life and lessons of the $8 million janitor; Warren Buffett’s ‘Ringmaster’ Turns Grand Ideas Into Reality

Life 

• Warren Buffett’s ‘Ringmaster’ Turns Grand Ideas Into Reality; At Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting, Carrie Sova makes sure everything runs smoothly: WSJ
• The remarkable life and lessons of the $8 million janitor: WaPo
• ‘Safest bike ever’ devised by British entrepreneur: Reuters
• There’s No Such Thing as Corporate DNA: BCG
• The Eight Outsiders In One Chart: VW
• Lessons from Intraco, Singapore’s original trailblazer: TODAY
• The Future of Reading: There’s No Mystery About It; Walter Mosley, best-selling author of the Easy Rawlins series, has good news for those who love to read: WSJ
• Contortions are required for Cirque du Soleil to keep its magic; The steps to take to prevent innovative businesses turning into bland production lines: FT
• Lotte chief stresses importance of ‘agile workers’: KT
• The 5 Requirements of a Truly Innovative Company: HBR
• The innovators: mist system offers a safer way to control fires; The creators of Automist explain how a fine mist can cool and suppress fires more effectively than sprinkler systems, especially when caused by chip pans: Guardian
• Why A Corporate Culture of ‘Kindness’ Is Great For Your Brand: Forbes
• Junk Science at the F.B.I.: NYT

Investing Process

• Charlie Munger Comments and the Art of Stock Picking: Basehitinvesting
• Charlie Munger – Part Eight: Berkshire At 50: VW
• The House of Wirecard; Wirecard is a little known German tech stock worth €5bn, and a puzzle. : FT

AsianExtractor: Unearthing Accounting Fraud in Asia

• Detecting Accounting Fraud in Asia (Part 4): Introducing Six New Measures: AsianExtractor
• Sihuan (460 HK) Updates on Audit Delay: Improper accounting treatment in consolidation trick of using MRAs (Market Research Agents) to exclude hidden sales and distribution expenses to artificially boost profits: AsianExtractor
• China Environment FY2014: Significant Deterioration in Receivables Collectability And No Provision for Impairment: AsianExtractor
• China Environment (SES: 50U, Bloomberg: CENV SP): Auditor Emphasis of Matter raises more questions on potential accounting tunneling risk: AsianExtractor
• Open Letter to SGX/MAS: Reply to CFO of SGX-Listed China Environment (CENV SP) on report “Potential Accounting Tunneling Fraud at China Environment?” – Address the accounting and governance concerns in an SGX/MAS announcement: AsianExtractor
• Does Auditor Explanatory Language in Unqualified Audit Reports Indicate Increased Financial Misstatement Risk? “Emphasis of matter” language predicts restatements + China Environment’s Auditor Emphasis of Matter: AsianExtractor

Greater China

• China plans mergers to cut number of big state firms to 40: state media: Reuters
• China’s True Growth Is a Mystery; Economists Weigh the Clues; Official first-quarter GDP growth of 7% is overstated, experts agree, but pinning down the real number is a head-scratcher: WSJ
• China’s dumb strategy when it comes to smartphones: SCMP
• The mainland’s regulator is probing the chairman of Shenzhen-based developer Kaisa Group for possible violations in the sale of a trust company that he bought months before his property firm ran into financial trouble. SCMP
• China’s ailing coal firms ‘turn to movie, restaurant businesses’ to offset slump: SCMP
• Reports of massive M&As for China’s SOEs ‘unverified’: WCT
• Zut alors! China now has bigger vineyards than France: Telegraph
• China may join the unconventional monetary club: FT
• China Local Government Debt Surge Boosts Focus on PBOC Help: Bloomberg

Japan & Korea

• Digging for Value in Japan’s Rally; The Nikkei might be expensive, but discerning investors stand to benefit: WSJ
• Japanese Robot Maker Fanuc to Double Dividend, marking a milestone in Japan’s move toward lifting shareholder returns: WSJ
• Old companies still thrive in brand-loyal Japan: ChinaPost
• Sparx’s Shuhei Abe on Shaking up Japan Inc.; The hedge fund CEO says Abenomics is the catalyst for more shareholder friendly practices and higher returns. Barron’s

ASEAN

• Worst Asian Default Forgiven as Indonesia Billionaire Sells Debt: Bloomberg
• Singapore rig builders feel impact of oil price slide; Many existing contracts may be renegotiated as crude price falls: FT

Macro

• Parking Corporate Cash Is Sure to Get More Complicated; Companies start to prepare for new rules on money-market funds that are due out in 18 months: WSJ
• Sydney Home Prices Surging at 5 Times Wages Fuel Bubble Woes: Bloomberg

TMT

• $194B! Apple’s cash pile hits record: WTSP
• Jeff Bezos Is Now Richer Than Three of the Four Wal-Mart Heirs: Bloomberg
• With Nasdaq at records, investors ask what’s next for tech: Reuters
• Tech Expansion Overruns Cities in California’s Silicon Valley; Resistance to office developments raises questions about future of industry’s home base: WSJ
• Etsy CTO On Its Conservatively Crafty Tech Philosophy: Techcrunch
• Haulage company boss offers a cool box for home deliveries: FT

Consumer & Others

• Yoga Wars: What a Lululemon Challenger From Goldman Sachs Means for Retail: Bloomberg