Author: Fintech News Singapore

Crypto.com has secured a US$400 million investment from global market maker Citadel Securities. The transaction values the company at US$20 billion and marks its first institutional funding round in a decade of operations. Proceeds from the investment are expected to support Crypto.com’s expansion into new asset classes, including tokenised securities and derivatives. Crypto.com said the funding will help bridge digital and traditional markets while supporting a 24/7 financial ecosystem. The deal comes as traditional financial institutions increasingly engage with blockchain infrastructure and digital assets to improve capital market efficiency. “The size of the opportunity in front of us is staggering,…

Amazon Web Services (AWS) will replace Dave Brown as head of its compute and machine learning business when he leaves at the end of July. Dave Treadwell will take charge of the division on 1 August, Reuters reported. He currently serves as Amazon’s Senior Vice President of eCommerce Foundation. Brown is taking a position outside Amazon after nearly 19 years at AWS. The company has not disclosed his next employer or role. Both executives are members of Amazon’s S-team, which advises CEO Andy Jassy. Brown joined the group in 2023 and was promoted to senior vice president in April 2026.…

Singapore-founded Paymonade can now offer regulated crypto services across 30 European markets under a single MiCA licence. Damoon Technology (Europe), which trades as Paymonade, received the licence from Liechtenstein’s Financial Market Authority. The approval allows the company to provide crypto-asset services across the European Economic Area under a single passportable authorisation. Paymonade provides fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat infrastructure for cryptocurrency exchanges, fintech companies and payment providers. The company reported an annualised transaction volume of US$1.8 billion in the first half of 2026. “The era of lightly regulated crypto is ending. Getting this licence over the finish line, at a time when…

Visa has introduced a stablecoin platform for minting, moving and managing digital dollars. The Visa Stablecoin Platform is designed for financial institutions, fintech companies and payment providers looking to run stablecoin operations through a single Visa-managed environment. The platform will initially support Open USD, a stablecoin introduced by Open Standard. Clients will be able to mint, redeem, hold and transfer the stablecoin for treasury, settlement and liquidity purposes. Visa is also introducing a Wallet-as-a-Service offering that gives institutions access to onchain wallet infrastructure. Clients can use a Visa-managed wallet system or connect their existing wallets. The platform allows users to…

PayPal’s board reportedly views a US$53 billion takeover proposal from Stripe and Advent International as falling short of the company’s potential value, according to Reuters. PayPal has yet to issue a formal response to the US$60.50-per-share offer. The board is expected to hold further meetings as it assesses the proposal and whether competing offers could emerge. The bid would give Stripe and Advent equal stakes in PayPal while keeping the payments company together under joint ownership. The consortium reportedly remains interested in securing a deal despite PayPal’s reservations. Block was involved when the group first approached PayPal in April but…

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has flagged weaknesses in how some crypto firms apply anti-money laundering (AML) controls. MAS found that digital payment token service providers generally understand their obligations but need to improve how some controls are implemented. The regulator identified shortcomings in customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, screening and risk assessments for new tokens. Some firms lacked clear guidance on how staff should assess and document risks before listing tokens. Others relied too heavily on customer declarations when checking the source of wealth and funds for higher-risk customers. MAS also found cases where providers failed to investigate…

Digital financial services now shape everyday life, placing greater pressure on companies to earn and keep customer trust. With more transactions, more touchpoints and more customer data, getting security right has never been more important. eKYC is no longer just a compliance checkbox. It is now a critical part of how financial institutions build and maintain trust across the entire customer journey. This webinar will bring together industry experts from across the region to share practical insights on what comes next for eKYC in APAC. The evolving role of eKYC across the full digital customer journey Tackling identity fraud and…

Triple-A has secured in-principle approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) for broker-dealer services. The Singapore-based payments company must now complete operational readiness requirements and meet the regulator’s remaining conditions as its application moves towards a full licence. Its licensing assessment remains ongoing. VARA oversees the provision, use and exchange of virtual assets in and from Dubai. Triple-A is also licensed in Singapore and the European Union under MAS and MiCA requirements. It has money transmitter licences in more than 20 US jurisdictions and is registered as a money services business in the United States and Canada. Eric Barbier,…

Mambu has been certified as an Enabler of Swift’s Business Connect and Value-Added Services. The cloud banking platform can now provide financial institutions with fully managed access to Swift’s global financial messaging network without needing to operate dedicated infrastructure or rely on legacy services. Integrated directly into the Mambu Payments Hub, the capability allows banks and fintechs to manage cross-border and domestic payment flows from a single platform. Institutions can also use the platform to manage international payment use cases consistently. These include correspondent banking, partner bank connectivity, and direct access to market infrastructures. Under this model, Mambu manages the…

Mastercard has launched wallet-building tools that let banks and fintechs add contactless payments to their apps. The Mastercard Wallet Services supports iOS and Android, allowing companies to build payment features across both operating systems without managing separate integrations or EMVCo certifications. The service includes software development kits and a Secure Element applet. It works with Mastercard Digital Enablement Service, the company’s tokenisation platform. Apple’s NFC Shift Opens More Wallet Options The launch follows Apple’s move to expand third-party access to the iPhone’s near-field communication technology in more markets. Android has long supported multiple contactless wallets, while limited access to Apple’s…

Visa has expanded its Infinite card portfolio in APAC with two new tiers for affluent and ultra-high-net-worth customers. The range now includes Visa Infinite, Visa Infinite Privilege and invitation-only Visa Infinite Private, with different levels of travel, dining, wellness and lifestyle benefits. Visa Infinite offers curated travel experiences, airport fast-track services, hotel privileges, dining programmes and selected subscription benefits. Visa Infinite Privilege adds private travel planning and access to global private members’ clubs, while Visa Infinite Private includes bespoke concierge services and enhanced airport fast-track access. The portfolio also includes benefits from partners such as Accor, Banyan Group, Trip.com and…

Episode Six has established an AI centre in Singapore to develop agentic capabilities for banks, fintech companies and payment infrastructure. The centre will develop AI capabilities anchored on Episode Six’s cloud-native payments and ledger platform, TRITIUM. Its work will include improving internal operations, helping clients streamline their processes and speeding up onboarding, integration and time-to-revenue. The centre will also help banks and fintech companies build agent-driven and AI-assisted payment products on Episode Six’s infrastructure. It will make its technical documentation and development tools accessible to AI agents through a production-grade Model Context Protocol server. The initiative is supported by the…

Adyen has appointed Gary Yang as its Asia-Pacific President, effective 1 August 2026. Based in Singapore, Yang will oversee the company’s commercial growth and operations across the region. He succeeds Warren Hayashi, who will retire at the end of 2026. Hayashi will work with Yang over the coming months to support a smooth handover. Yang joined Adyen in 2018 and most recently served as SVP, Global Head of Account Management and Partnerships. In that role, he oversaw account management and partnerships globally. Prior to joining Adyen, Yang was Vice President of Operations at Peek and an early General Manager at…

Licensed crowdfunding operators must now provide the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) with more detailed quarterly data on issuances and overdue repayments. Under the updated rules, securities-based crowdfunding operators must submit an SCF Questionnaire within 14 days after each quarter ends. The filing must cover debt and other interest-bearing securities that became at least 30 days overdue during the quarter. Operators must also provide updates on cases they reported earlier. More Scrutiny on Defaults The reporting requirement forms part of MAS’ wider framework for licensed crowdfunding platforms. Operators must tell investors what checks they have carried out on issuers. Lending-based…

National Citizen Commercial Joint Stock Bank (NCB) has launched a cross-border QR payment service for international travellers in Vietnam. The integration allows visitors to pay local merchants by scanning a QR code using banking apps or digital wallets from their home countries. The service, branded as VietQR Global, currently supports payment apps from China, including Alipay and UnionPay. It also supports South Korean payment providers GLN, Hana Financial Group, and Naver Pay, alongside users from Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. NCB plans to extend support to payment applications from Singapore, Japan, India, Malaysia, and other markets. Sun World entertainment venues and…

PayPal has received a joint acquisition proposal from Stripe and Advent International at a significant premium to its recent share price. Reuters reported that the bidders are offering US$60.50 per share, valuing PayPal at more than US$53 billion. The price is about 28 percent above the company’s closing level on Tuesday, according to two people familiar with the matter. Under the proposed arrangement, Stripe and Advent would divide ownership of PayPal equally while continuing to operate it as one group. The two firms approached PayPal in early April before submitting a formal offer earlier this month. They have yet to…

Sendo Farm, the online grocery platform operated by e-commerce company Sen Do Technology, has wound down operations, marking the company’s withdrawal from Vietnam’s highly competitive e-commerce industry after more than a decade of competing against well-funded giants. Sen Do Technology announced that the Sendo Farm website and applications would shut down on July 10, 2026 as part of a wider restructuring aimed at optimizing resources, strengthening competitiveness, and restructuring its business portfolio for the next phase of development, Vietnam Investment Review reported on July 05, 2026. Before closing, Sendo Farm said it would continue offering promotional activities until July 09,…

DBS wants to add about S$400 billion in assets under management over five years as it expands its wealth business across Asia. The bank is targeting more than S$1 trillion in retail and wealth AUM by 2030, The Business Times reported. Total AUM reached S$644 billion in the first quarter of 2026, with wealth clients accounting for 77 percent. Its wealth AUM stood at S$492 billion, close to its S$500 billion target for end-2026. About 58 percent was invested in financial products. AI Speeds Up Wealth Operations DBS is using generative and agentic AI to streamline onboarding, improve portfolio tools…

Standard Chartered is adding BlackRock’s Aladdin Wealth tools to help its advisors better assess client portfolios. The platform will be integrated into myWealth Advisor, giving relationship managers and investment advisors access to portfolio risk and return analysis across asset classes including equities, fixed income, funds, ETFs and alternative investments. It will also add stress testing, scenario analysis and portfolio management tools, allowing advisors to assess how portfolios may perform under different market conditions. The initial rollout will cover Priority, Priority Private and Private Banking clients in Singapore and Hong Kong. The bank plans to expand the integration to other markets…

Cumberland has secured a Major Payment Institution licence in Singapore to provide digital payment token and cross-border money transfer services. The Monetary Authority of Singapore granted the licence to Cumberland SG Pte. Ltd. under the Payment Services Act. Cumberland SG is the Singapore arm of Cumberland, the digital asset trading and liquidity business of Chicago-based trading firm DRW. It provides market-making and liquidity services to institutional clients. The full licence follows in-principle approval from MAS in March 2025, when the company was required to meet additional regulatory conditions before receiving final approval. Cumberland said it plans to continue expanding its…