It's not something that K.C. did by choice; he was being interrogated because he was believed by Lee Kuan Yew's regime in 1987 to be part of a "Marxist conspiracy" involving 22 Singaporeans allegedly plotting the overthrow of the People's Action Party.

It was nonsense then, and still is. All KC was doing was discussing with a group of like-minded intellectuals how the city-state could create a more open, pluralist kind of place. A self-made millionaire, KC is about as Marxist and conspiratorial as Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad is Jewish. But the Singaporean government of the day -- essentially the same one today -- imagined a threat, and KC became a victim when he should have been celebrated. He was, at the time, a Harvard graduate.

The city-state has moved on -- sort of -- and so has KC. Today, having done well in the real estate market and in the printing field during the '90s, he's plying the Internet, backing a bold new idea called Indigoz.com.

At its most successful, Indigoz theoretically challenges the traditional authority of a central bank and its management of currencies. It's a long way off that, but KC and his partners envision big benefits extending from encouraging what amounts to a change in the way consumers spend.

Part consumer loyalty reward program -- a la frequent flyer programs -- and part new currency (it even has its own notes), Indigoz.com is adventurous and could bring consumers big discounts and rewards. And with its unique data-mining technology, it can also help vendors manage stock and demand.

Sure, Internet Land has seen lots of new and good ideas -- and as we've seen most of them have been consigned to the dustbin of history -- but KC says what separates Indigoz from other e-commerce plays is that it's not strictly speaking an e-commerce play.

Essentially, consumers proffer their Indigoz card at the point of purchase with an affiliated merchant (there are currently 300 in Singapore who have signed on) and accumulate points or "indigoz" not unlike an airline reward program. There's no discount at the point of sale -- it gets transmitted to Indigoz the company -- but the consumers' accumulation of Indigoz currency can be used to buy discounted products elsewhere. Or to get deals on products that KC and partners have negotiated (because of the volume of consumers willing to use their Indigoz currency). The moneymaking part is about playing the margins of transactions.

Where the Internet aspect kicks in is the interaction between merchants and consumers. Merchants can see how much of their products are being sold to Indigoz customers, and directly pitch to them via Indigoz technology, via the Web.

KC uses the example of a bar that has yummy oysters on sale that won't keep for another day. Rather than hope the stock will be sold – and it never is -- the merchant sends a WAP message or e-mails customers via Indigoz to tell them of a great deal on oysters (knowing of their frequent patronage to this particular oyster bar). Scale this model up and you have a more precise stock and customer management program. And scale and volume is everything.

It's still early days for KC and Indigoz.com, but an imminent deal with a big insurance company could see the company's client base blossom to 500,000 by years end. With its realistic-looking currency, KC also envisions a day when "Indigoz" are as interchangeable across Singaporean counters as the local dollar. He just hopes he'll get that backing from the country's central bank -- then Indigoz.com will really have taken off. And this time it won't involve enforced exposure to the Arctic in Singapore.