Author: Fintech News Singapore

In Southeast Asia Asia, fintech is one of the most dynamic sectors in the startup landscape – an industry that has kept on growing and evolving throughout the years on the back of new technological developments, increased adoption of digital financial services and supportive governmental initiatives aimed at boosting digital transactions and improving financial inclusion. To showcase Southeast Asia’s fast-changing fintech ecosystem and help industry stakeholders keep up with the latest developments, a plethora of events are being organized each year across the continent. These large-scaled gatherings focus on bringing together the global fintech industry, helping industry professionals connect and…

The Network for Electronic Transfers (NETS) Group has inked agreements with Mastercard and Visa to acquire merchants directly in Singapore. Eligible merchants can now have access to an enhanced suite of digital payment schemes such as NETS, Mastercard, and Visa from a single payment service provider. Most existing merchants who already accept NETS can add on Mastercard and Visa as payment options without needing to upgrade their payment terminals. Meanwhile, new merchants will have to go through an onboarding process that takes about five days or less to get their new terminals to begin accepting payments from Visa and Mastercard.…

Technology startup accelerator Y Combinator (YC) announced that it will be shifting its focus back to early stage investing and is forced to make some layoffs as a result. YC’s President and CEO Garry Tan said in a blog that 17 of its team members will be impacted by the decision as the accelerator will no longer need some of the roles on the late stage investing team. According to a report by TechCrunch, the layoffs following the change in YC’s strategy amount to nearly 20% of its workforce. He said, “YC is rightly known for early stage investing. In…

The Singapore banking system has “insignificant exposures” to the failed Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), Signature Bank and Silvergate Bank in the US, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The regulator added that Singapore’s banking system still remains sound and resilient despite the financial market turbulence due to the spectacular implosion of these banks. “Banks in Singapore are well-capitalised and conduct regular stress tests against interest rate and other risks. Their liquidity positions are healthy, underpinned by a stable and diversified funding base,” MAS said in a statement. MAS is closely monitoring the domestic financial system and international developments.…

Singapore’s digital wealth management platform Endowus announced that it has appointed Hugh Chung as its Chief Investment Advisory Officer. In his new role, Hugh will be leading the collective efforts of the centralised Investment Office across the group. This includes the Endowus digital platform, Endowus Private Wealth, and now the Hong Kong-based Carret Private following the company’s acquisition of a majority stake in October 2022. He will work closely with Samuel Rhee, Chairman and Chief Investment Officer, in providing group strategic direction on the expert curation and management of all investment solutions across public and private markets. Hugh brings with…

Grab’s Chief Financial Officer Peter Oey has sold his stake in the Southeast Asian superapp worth US$1.1 million according to a report by Bloomberg. Oey and, one affiliated person Eve Oey, sold 341,202 shares at an average price of US$3.17 on 28 February through JP Morgan Securities LLC, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission accessed by Bloomberg. The ride-hailing and delivery company said in a message to Bloomberg that the sale was “done strictly to cover tax obligations”. Grab elaborated that this was a common practice by executives of listed companies. and that Oey remains…

Swift said that 18 central and commercial banks found “clear potential and value” in its API-based Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) connector. Following a 12-week period of collaborative sandbox testing, almost 5,000 transactions were simulated between two different blockchain networks and with existing fiat-based payment systems. Swift said in a statement that its “participants expressed strong support for the solution’s continued development, noting that it enabled seamless exchange of CBDCs, even those built on different platforms”. This follows Swift’s announcement in October that it had developed a solution to enable CBDCs to move between DLT-based and fiat-based systems using existing…

Financial services software and cloud solutions provider Finastra has launched its ESG Service, a cloud-native SaaS solution that streamlines sustainability-linked lending. As a cloud-native SaaS solution that uses open APIs, it provides a high degree of flexibility to support varied deal structures, and offers extensibility for inclusion of new capabilities and partner applications. It also has scope to add additional pricing components, beyond interest and ongoing fees, and the ability to support multiple transaction processing systems that require loan pricing adjustments. By providing an automated means for tracking ESG performance and the related margin changes, the service will deliver significant…

With over 41% of the top 100 global fintech innovators originating with the region, it comes as no surprise that APAC is home to the highest growing fintech industry in the world. Unfortunately, with this proliferation and growth comes a significant surge in fraud. In 2022 alone, one in four APAC consumers fell victim to fraud – and that figure is even higher in South East Asia (SEA), with one in three consumers reporting online fraud. Worse still, according to the Global Banking Fraud Survey, over half of respondents recover less than 25% of their fraud losses. Protection against fintech…

Okta, a publicly traded identity and access management firm, has appointed IT and security industry veteran Clarence Cheah as Head of Growth Strategies for Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ). In his new role, Cheah will oversee Okta’s strategic growth initiatives and drive regional business development and expansion. Cheah was pivotal to the successful business launch and market expansion in Japan. He has over two decades of experience in the technology industry, leading sales and engineering teams and executing sales strategies to foster business growth. He was most recently Identity Lead, Asia Pacific and Japan for Okta and has also held senior…

Financial services company Singlife has appointed Citi and investment company BlackRock for a technology platform to transform its asset management capabilities from end-to-end. Singlife’s integration with Citi and BlackRock’s Aladdin platform will provide clients with complete portfolio management capabilities that improve efficiencies, automate controls and enable a seamless front-to-back experience. In addition, it ensures that internal and external portfolio management services are integrated with complete attribution and full reconciliation across all investment and accounting records, while incorporating sustainability and meeting regulatory requirements Singlife will also be able to leverage the platform to better calculate and continuously monitor risk exposures and…

More than 9 out of 10 Singaporeans prefer card payments over cash, according to the latest Consumer Payment Attitudes Study by Visa in 2022. The study, conducted with 1,000 Singaporeans, found that 97% of Singaporeans use credit or debit cards for payment compared to the 82% that prefers the cash option. This trend was found to be consistent across generations from Baby Boomers to Gen Z. It also noted the widespread use and preference of contactless cards in Singapore with more than four in five Singapore consumers (82%) using contactless cards. Contactless cards became the preferred payment method for convenience…

Southeast Asian superapp Grab has prepaid US$600 million (S$806.82 million) in debt ahead of a 2026 maturity as it had excess cash on its balance sheet, according to a report by Bloomberg. This move brought down its debt under an outstanding term loan to US$517 million from the previous balance of US$1.117 billion. Grab also has about US$200 million in other bank debt. Grab’s Chief Financial Officer Peter Oey said that the ride-hailing and delivery company is “taking advantage of our healthy cash position to reduce our gross debt balance and generate interest savings, given the macroeconomic environment”. He added that…

Hong Kong-based crypto lender Babel Finance has filed applications in the Singapore High Court to buy more time from its creditors for up to six months. The moratorium is intended to allow the restructuring efforts made by Babel Finance in the past few months to come to fruition, said the company in a statement. The company said that it has received interest from investors which will enable it to “recapitalise its balance sheet and relaunch its business”. Babel said that the discussions were ongoing and is targeting binding commitments by May 2023. In the meantime, Babel Finance will continue to…

SaaS fintech startup Growfin announced that it has raised a US$7.5 million Series A funding round to provide real-time visibility and predictability in cash flow for modern CFOs. The funding round was led by Singapore’s SWC Global with participation from existing investors 3one4 Capital and angels. With the fresh funds, Growfin said that it will make significant investments in its tech stack and product range in 2023. The fintech is looking to expand its offering from a Finance CRM to an all-in-one integrated cash solution that will enable B2B enterprises to streamline and manage cash flow to enhance its product’s…

Canadian payments company Nuvei has launched its services in Australia as it continues growing its APAC presence following its expansion to Singapore and Hong Kong last year. Australian businesses will have access to Nuvei’s full suite of payments solutions including acquiring, processing, alternative payment methods and risk management. Nuvei is launching in Australia after having secured regulatory and scheme licenses to support customers with local acquiring in the country. Philip Fayer, Chair and CEO of Nuvei said, “Our mission is to help our customers connect with their customers regardless of location, payment method or currency. Launching in Australia is a…

YouBiz, the corporate card and finance management platform by Singapore’s neobank YouTrip, has partnered with cloud-based accounting software provider Xero. The partnership aims to equip local businesses and startups with more capabilities to manage their corporate expenses efficiently through the integration of Xero’s accounting software. Businesses will have a better overview of their spending and effectively digitalises the management of company finances through automated finance workflows. YouBiz users will also be able to unlock automated sync on all multi-currency accounts with Xero, reducing manual reconciliation of expenses and erroneous accounting entries. On top of that, YouBiz users who are new…

Singapore’s digital wealth management platform Endowus has launched a community impact initiative to provide support to four main groups; not-for-profit organisations, women, gig workers, and tertiary students to enable them to reach their wealth and life goals. The Endowus Empower initiative aims to provide these groups with the right tools, advice, opportunities, and community support. Empower is an expansion of the firm’s CSR efforts, beginning with the Endowus Gives Back (EGB) programme in 2021. EGB has raised over S$125,000 in donations for 24 beneficiaries such as the Centre for Fathering, Make-a-Wish Foundation, SPCA, and the Yellow Ribbon Fund in just two…

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said that it is working actively to review and enhance the suite of anti-scam measures in light of the launch of the real-time cross-border retail payment linkages, in a written reply to a parliamentary question. Singapore had launched the world’s first payment linkage of Singapore’s PayNow and Thailand’s PromptPay. Most recently, the payments linkage between Singapore and India went live just last month. MAS has similar plans in the pipeline with the Philippines and Malaysia. Additionally, MAS had also released a blueprint with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to enhance the global payments…

Are you a bank or a non-bank fintech? With 11 countries already having launched their own Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and more than 100 countries in the process of developing one, payment players are taking notice. OpenWay sheds light on what opportunities may arise in this complex and rapidly-developing space through its “What Fintechs Should Know About Central Bank Digital Currencies” report. What are Central Bank Digital Currencies? Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) are also known as digital cash. It is the digital version of a country’s currency. The public can access central bank money as digital coins or…