In captivity, Asian arowana can live for 25+ years, making the recurring cycle appealing to investors.


“It can be very lucrative if you do it right,” Carr told us. “People who invest $50k-$100k in Asian arowana ponds definitely get their return back.”


Carr sells his arowana to buyers all over the world. In recent years, he says demand has expanded from Asia to the Western world.


“As soon as someone sees the Asian arowana, they fall in love,” he says. “When aquarists want one belter of a fish — the crème de la crème — they [trade] up and get one.”



A few Asian arowana color variations: Super Red, 24k Gold, and Platinum. (Collage, via photos from Getty Images)

Carr, a 41-year-old ex-chef, first got into fish at 17. What began with guppies in a small glass bowl soon evolved into a school of African Cichlids in an 8-foot tank.


One day, he asked himself: “What is the most prestigious, most sought-after, most beautiful fish on the planet?”


“I learned about the Asian arowana and became obsessed,” he says. “There’s nothing else like it. It’s the majestic dragon.”


The Londoner moved to Malaysia, where he spent a year learning everything he could about the fish from local breeders. While there, he set up his own 55’x30’ pond with investors.


The process, he says, works like so:


The pond is filled with 20 arowana (6 males, 14 females).
At around 3 years of age, the fish “get jiggy.” Each female produces between 10-80 eggs.
Every 2-3 months, baby fish (called fingerlings) are harvested.
The fish are shipped to the UK and sold at ~4-6 months of age for between $300 and $4k+ each.

In 2004, a Malaysian shop owner was killed by thieves who were after his trove of 20+ Asian arowana. Armed robberies are frequent — and breeders often secure their lots with concrete walls, barbed wire, watch towers, and dogs.


Some farms also run elaborate international Ponzi schemes, selling the same fish to multiple clients around the globe.


The supply chain
Rather than go directly to customers, many farms in Southeast Asia sell in bulk to dealers in other countries.


Among these dealers is David Carr, who runs Planet Arowana, a 100-tank specialty fish shop in London.



A visitor snaps a shot of the a prize-winning arowana at Singapore’s Aquarama, the largest trade show for exotic fish enthusiasts. (ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

In her book, Voigt tells the story of Kenny Yap (AKA, “Kenny the Fish”), a 55-year-old ex-pig farmer who — when not taking nude photos with his fish — runs Singapore’s largest arowana farm.


Yap’s company, Qian Hu, distributes fish to 80 countries, has 5 global export hubs, and is listed on the Singapore Exchange. In 2019, the firm sold ~$30m worth of fish and spawned more than 7k Asian arowana. (You can take a peek at their annual report here.)



Kenny Yap takes dip with his arowana (Qian Hu)


This potential for big paydays makes the trade extremely competitive — and often dangerous — for farm owners like the Tanotos.


“Competition is fierce and very unhealthy,” Tris’ son and business partner, Toro, tells The Hustle via email. “There have been a lot of frauds using our company’s name, both locally and globally. They pretend to be us and send fake Arowana photos to global customers on social media.”


Voigt says it’s not uncommon to hear tales of arowana-related sabotage, theft, and even murder. She calls the fish “an agent of chaos.”

Scenes from Tanoto’s farm in Indonesia. (Images via Toro Tanoto)


Each year, the company sells around 1k of its 7k stock of Asian arowana, netting ~$3m USD in annual revenue.


This works out to $3k per fish on average, but prices can vary tremendously based on a variety of factors:


Coloration: The fish can be found in red, green, gold, and silver variations. But a market has emerged for “designer-bred” colors like Red Tail Golden Splendor, Violet Fusion Super Red, and Blue Base Golden.
Pedigree: Fish bred from earlier generations of wild-caught arowana tend to fetch higher prices.
Fin size and head shape: Larger dorsal fins up the price.
Tanoto sells 8 varieties of Asian arowana, ranging in price from $1.2k to $5.5k. Once, he says he sold a “flawless” Super Red to a buyer in China for $30k.


Extremely rare Asian arowana can fetch up to 10x that amount.


A breeder in Malaysia who specializes in albino Asian arowana, purportedly sold one of his stock to a high-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party for $300k.


Some of these farms are so lucrative that they’re publicly traded corporations.

Gong Hengliang, who has been a “fish beautician” for 4 years, performs cosmetic surgery on an Asian arowana fish in 2020 in Lanzhou, China. (Photo by Gao Zhan/China News Service via Getty Images)


This fanaticism has turned farm-bred Asian arowana (which are legal in most countries) into an estimated $200m/year global market.


The $300k fish
In the mid-1980s, an Indonesian printing executive named Tris Tanoto quit his job and bought 12 Asian Arowana for $170.


With help from friends, he bought a small farm in East Jakarta, released the fish in a pond on the property, and, through trial and error, taught himself the art of breeding.


Today, Tanoto’s operation is one of at least 250 CITES-approved Asian arowana farms across Southeast Asia, the majority of which are centered in Indonesia and Malaysia.


His company, PT Munjul Prima Utama, is one of Indonesia’s largest exporters of Asian arowana — particularly, the “Super Red,” a bright crimson varietal that is highly desirable to Chinese buyers, who view the color red as a representation of vitality and good fortune.

Over the ensuing decades, hundreds of arowana farms popped up throughout Indonesia and Malaysia and the fish all but disappeared from the wild.


Today, the Asian arowana’s largest market is in China.


Dubbed the “dragon fish” due to its shiny scales, long whiskers, and fierce disposition, the arowana has taken on a spiritual aura.


“It has become this mystical creature that supposedly protects you and helps you make good business decisions,”Voigt tells The Hustle. “It’s thought to bring wealth and prosperity. There are even accounts of arowana leaping out of their tanks to warn of a bad omen.”


Owners will go above and beyond to keep their fish aesthetically pleasing.


Dedicated “fish beauticians run profitable businesses performing plastic surgery on fish. In a bid to flaunt the most beautiful specimen, owners give their pets eye lifts ($90), chin jobs ($60), and tail alterations ($60).

An arowana bought by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at a price of 200m rupiah ($20k USD) swims during an exhibition in Jakarta in 2008. (ADEK BERRY/AFP/Getty Images)


Malaysian smugglers began sneaking Asian arowana into Taiwan. From there, the fish found its way to Japan, where it became a Veblen good among Yakuza gang members.


In a bid to dampen this illicit trade, CITIES allowed farmers in Southeast Asia to legally breed, harvest, and sell Asian arowana. The logic was that a flood of new fish would drive down prices and make them a less desirable commodity.


But once again, things went off the deep end.

But according to Emily Voigt, who spent nearly a decade tracking down the story of the Asian arowana for her book, The Dragon Behind the Glass, it ended up having exactly the opposite effect.


“That official stamp of rarity totally backfired,” she tells The Hustle. “And it actually turned the fish into this limited edition luxury good.”

For centuries, the Asian arowana was nothing more than a meal foraged from the blackwater rivers and swamps of Southeast Asia.

Aside from local markets in Malaysia, the fish wasn’t widely traded — and it certainly wasn’t desirable, or even recognizable, to most foreign aquarium enthusiasts.

Then, in 1975, everything changed.

As Southeast Asia’s wetland habitats declined, Asian arowana began to dwindle in number. CITES, a treaty that limits the trafficking of endangered wildlife, classified the Asian arowana as a threatened species.

The move was meant to ban commercial trade of the fish.

For centuries, the Asian arowana was nothing more than a meal foraged from the blackwater rivers and swamps of Southeast Asia.

Aside from local markets in Malaysia, the fish wasn’t widely traded — and it certainly wasn’t desirable, or even recognizable, to most foreign aquarium enthusiasts.

Then, in 1975, everything changed.

As Southeast Asia’s wetland habitats declined, Asian arowana began to dwindle in number. CITES, a treaty that limits the trafficking of endangered wildlife, classified the Asian arowana as a threatened species.

The move was meant to ban commercial trade of the fish.

Sifu Balian, i pity you because you alone fighting so many AKA here (only 1 person pretending to be… u all fill in the blank).

Wow Sifu Balian is more resilient and witty as ever before.
Then I am happy for you to handle all 🐀 AKAs.
Still lots of AKAs here to shoot Sifu Balian….

Sifu Balian
welcome to club case study buying 100 units of shares.
Popular in i3 investor.

But Sifu Balian told me to dabble Rm3K minimum boh…
;-¥

Sifu Balian i3 lurker,
Then you must convince your friend to buy Red Arowana for Rm180,000 for generating good luck to attract money for your friends.
Just tell your friends, as Red Arowana grows bigger, the price will certainly increase exponentially. Can buy from me… ok???


Posted by Balian de Ibelin > Feb 17, 2024 6:22 PM | Report Abuse
Thats wat I meant.
😁
3K is the EOQ,
if you lost everything, its only 3K, a bottle of wine.
Some of my friends 1 bottle of wine, 18K

No worries. Sifu Balian can destroy bad luck by rearing Arowana.

Sifu Balian i3 lurker,
Then you must convince your friend to buy Red Arowana for Rm180,000 for generating good luck to attract money for your friends.
Just tell your friends, as Red Arowana grows bigger, the price will certainly increase exponentially. Can buy from me… ok???


Posted by Balian de Ibelin > Feb 17, 2024 6:22 PM | Report Abuse
Thats wat I meant.
😁
3K is the EOQ,
if you lost everything, its only 3K, a bottle of wine.
Some of my friends 1 bottle of wine, 18K

Sifu Balian, if we win big here, we both buy Red Arowana this year TARGET. Boleh!
Red Arowana brings good luck.
Sifu Balian, just ask Sslee Sir whether he can find Red Arowana for both of us because Red Arowana mostly comes from Indonesia.
How? Sslee Sir can help to find Red Arowana in Indonesia???

Sifu Balian
welcome to club case study buying 100 units of shares.
Popular in i3 investor.

But Sifu Balian told me to dabble Rm3K minimum boh…
;-¥


Posted by Balian de Ibelin > Feb 17, 2024 5:06 PM | Report Abuse
On monday
I will buy 1 lot aka 100 units of SCIB purely for Case Study purposes.
when someone sees me buy 1 lot, he will go insanely mad and hospitalised for SOB
and he will short SCIB down to 11 sen,
then can all in at 11 sen. 🤣

That is how it works folks!

Ok. Sifu Balian, l leave this Scib to you to prove to 🐀 that you can make tons of money here. Sayurnara

Ok. Ok.👌 Wow Sifu Balian is more resilient and witty as ever before.
Then I am happy for you to handle all 🐀 AKAs.




Posted by Balian de Ibelin > Feb 17, 2024 12:59 PM | Report Abuse

Sifu Income
after the Red Arrow killed off people like EndOfTheCock or Mike 🐀, I will no longer have fun making fun of people with unrated IQ.
Life will be very boring with all my BFFs all buried alive. 🤣

Sifu Balian, so sorry Shoppee doesn’t sell life Red Arowana.
I thought they sell it. Only Lazada sells life Red Arowana.

Red Arowana at Lazada
Faster Sifu Balian, buy it.

https://www.lazada.com.my/products/kalimantan-super-red-arowana-5-8inch-super-red-arowana-arowana-super-red-ikan-hidup-ikan-arowana-import-fish-blood-red-with-cert-live-fish-i3890191401-s22754124849.html?c=&channelLpJumpArgs=&clickTrackInfo=query%253Ared%252Barowana%252Blive%252Bfish%253Bnid%253A3890191401%253Bsrc%253ALazadaMainSrp%253Brn%253A5f3345ecd063c4250e0bc70335162aef%253Bregion%253Amy%253Bsku%253A3890191401_MY%253Bprice%253A488%253Bclient%253Amobile%253Bsupplier_id%253A300152619040%253Bbiz_source%253Ah5_internal%253Bslot%253A2%253Butlog_bucket_id%253A470687%253Basc_category_id%253A10002330%253Bitem_id%253A3890191401%253Bsku_id%253A22754124849%253Bshop_id%253A1779889&fastshipping=0&freeshipping=0&fs_ab=2&fuse_fs=&lang=en&location=&price=488&priceCompare=skuId%3A22754124849%3Bsource%3Alazada-search-voucher%3Bsn%3A5f3345ecd063c4250e0bc70335162aef%3BunionTrace%3A213bd19817081454641777352eaf78%3BoriginPrice%3A48800%3BvoucherPrice%3A48800%3BdisplayPrice%3A48800%3BsourceTag%3A%23auto_collect%231%24auto_collect%24%3BsinglePromotionId%3A-1%3BsingleToolCode%3A-1%3BvoucherPricePlugin%3A1%3BbuyerId%3A0%3ButdId%3AwpNilXHuAxOzwCARt99sMS6UJ%2F%3Btimestamp%3A1708145464728&ratingscore=0&request_id=5f3345ecd063c4250e0bc70335162aef&review=&sale=2&search=1&source=search&spm=a2o4k.searchlist.list.2&stock=1&pdpBucketId=8

Can buy Red Arrow from Shoppee. Go quick to buy one Red Arrow my Sifu Balian

Sifu Balian, i pity you because you alone fighting so many AKA here (only 1 person pretending to be… u all fill in the blank).
That’s why I strongly recommend Sifu Balian to rear at least one Arowana AKA Dragon Fish to ward off negative emotions from piercing your brain 🧠. How? U want or not to rear Red Arrow?

Sifu Balian, StartOfTheBull said u lost in Bitcoin, Hong Kong Stock Exchange and lost his last piece of underwear in SCIB. Are these true or false???
Sifu Balian, don’t be like me B40 poor Rm3k trading. So many AKA coming here to slapping Sifu Balian. I feel sorry for you Sifu Balian. They are from the same gang.
Do not belittle my Sifu Balian.





Posted by StartOfTheBull > Feb 17, 2024 10:19 AM | Report Abuse
i3licker lost in Bitcoin, Hong Kong Stock Exchange and lost his last piece of underwear in SCIB.
Hopefully Sifu Income can help him in Arowana venture.
Meanwhile, Sslee should have extra Crocodile seluar dalam from Medan/Lake Toba to lend him.

Sifu Balian, MikeCC said u wearing Lacoste underwear 🐊 is it true?
The Swak river 🐊 will cause you no harm because they will think you’re one of their own kind. Haha

Sifu Balian, orang puteh called Arowana as Arrow.
Beautiful name lah.

Sifu Balian, MikeCC said u wearing Lacoste underwear 🐊 is it true?
The Swak river 🐊 will cause you no harm because they will think you’re one of their own kind. Haha

That’s why you are my Sifu Balian.
You are really meticulous with your work.


Posted by Balian de Ibelin > Feb 17, 2024 7:53 AM | Report Abuse

rear Arowana?
I need to form a Project Committee to study the viability and feasibility to rear arowana.
Before that I need to form a Steering Committee to flesh out the viability and feasibility of forming a Project Committee.
Before the Steering Commitee can be formed, I need to form a Finance Committee to study the viability of forming a Steering Committee.

I am afraid, the procedure to rear arowana had not been started yet.

Sifu Balian, MikeCC said u wearing Lacoste underwear 🐊 is it true?
The Swak river 🐊 will cause you no harm because they will think you’re one of their own kind. Haha

Sifu Balian, change water every 3-5 days once for Arowana. One third of the original water must remain to prevent Arowana shocks to 100% new water.
You really want to rear Arowana ker

Adult arowanas are solitary fish and it's recommended to keep them separate from other fish. Keeping more than one adult arowana in the same habitat can encourage stress, aggression, and competition.

People will pay for 20% rental increases ker??? They move to suburbs cheaper rental, and sell online boh…

Msia is blessed with the highest price Arowana and highest price Musang 👑.
But we are remembered for worldwide famous Jib kor and Jho Low…

Sifu Balian, orang puteh called Arowana as Arrow.
Beautiful name lah.

Sifu Balian, You better rear Msia Red Arowana or Golden Arowana.
I like both Red and Gold Arrows but need to have 2 separate Aquariums. They are like Tiger… can’t have 2 Tigers in the same jungle boh.

Sifu Balian, your 🐀 is here to troll 🧌 you. Hahahaha 🐀 of Jln Alor, someone says probably also Geylang 🐀 . Shameless rat MikeCC

Aquarium that holds 200 liters of water for my Arowana measures around 100cm (length) x 40cm (width) x 50cm (height).
With a canister filter with a flow rate of 200 liters per hour, suitable for a 200-liter aquarium.

Wahhh, Sifu Balian is seriously considering rearing Arowana is it? Good for you Sifu Arowana

XL HOLDINGS BERHAD
KLSE (MYR): XL (7121)
Xian Leng Holding Berhad strives to be a breeder and supplier of other ornamental fish with unmatched through continuous efforts in research and development.

XL Holdings Bhd, formerly Xian Leng Holdings Berhad, is a Malaysia-based company, which is engaged in investment holding and provision of management services. The Company owns approximately four fish farms and an ornamental fish trading center. Its fish farms in Parit Sulong and Kangkar Senangar, Batu Pahat are focused on the commercial captive breeding of Asian Arowana and Stingray. The fish farm located in Sungai Suluh, Batu Pahat focuses on breeding of other ornamental, fishes, such as Japanese Koi, Anabantids and Gold Fish. The fourth fish farm located in Kluang focuses on the breeding of other tropical fishes, such as Guorami, Pleco and Gold fishes. The ornamental fish trading center situated in Batu Pahat is engaged in the retailing of both local and imported aquarium fishes, as well as the related paraphernalia, such as aquarium tanks and accessories, fish feed and medication. Its subsidiaries include Xian Leng Trading Sdn. Bhd. and Xian Leng Aquatic Merchant Sdn. Bhd.

Address
No. 35 Jalan Penjaja 3, Batu Pahat, Johor Darul Takzim 83000, Malaysia






Sifu Balian, u no need to rear Arowana, just buy this stock.

xiaoeh, you poop and pee into the upstream... NEVER DO THAT TO YOUR SELF
You will finally drinking your own poop and pee because our drinking water is siphoned from the midstream river. Hahahaha



Posted by xiaoeh > Feb 16, 2024 9:52 PM | Report Abuse

Posted by Income > 5 hours ago | Report Abuse
Ah Lian Sir, u r in charge here. Macai here u slap left and right and top and bottom until cannot breathe.🧘 Bravo 👏 to Sifu Balian.
Sifu Balian, u better protect yourself front small tail when you go swimming in Swak River. Haha. Sifu Balian, remember to bring 🐀 to swimming in Swak River.

i will go poop and pee into the upstream...

Aquarium that holds 200 liters of water for my Arowana measures around 100cm (length) x 40cm (width) x 50cm (height).
With a canister filter with a flow rate of 200 liters per hour, suitable for a 200-liter aquarium.

Wahhh, Sifu Balian is seriously considering rearing Arowana is it? Good for you Sifu Arowana.

Big market in Spore, Japan, China, EU and USA…
I rear the silver Arowana… only can get 5 to 8 thousand.
Other colours can sell for Mercedes…

Kambinggg Soonnnn

Sifu Balian, who said Macai cannot keep Arowana as pet? Just buy baby Arowana around Rm50 only. Then rear Arowana until it’s fully adult… and sell to buy Toyota Lexus lah.
Apa susah???

Kambinggg soonnnn

Neck long long already

When?

Umno boxing 👊 Dap

Today only a bit Red. Next week see see first. Buy Arowana as your pet.