If we use two words to summarize the characteristics of Southeast Asian e-commerce, it is “dispersion”. There are rivers and waterways of all sizes on the Southeast Asian continent, such as the Mekong, Chao Phraya and Red River. They are all important trade routes, transporting crops from the fertile plains to other places, and spreading commerce, culture and religion to all parts of Southeast Asia. At the same time, these rivers are also natural geographical barriers, allowing some unique cultures to thrive and evolve. These big rivers converge in the low-lying delta areas, where people settle down. These settlements gradually became commercial centers and evolved into today’s large cities and trade centers in the region. The Southeast Asian sea area formed by Indonesia, East Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines connects India and China, plays the role of an important maritime trade route, and also brought Buddhism and Islam from India and Arabia to Southeast Asia.
In the era when European powers dominated the world, the maritime hegemons competed for territory around the world, and Southeast Asia was regarded by them as another area to be divided besides the Americas. Although they were once controlled by colonists, the Southeast Asian countries with thousands of years of cultural heritage still retain their unique personalities after independence.