IoT Developers Can Gain Deeper Insights from Data on Connected Devices With New Open Standards- Based Capabilities AT&T and IBM are working together to help businesses accelerate their Internet of Things (IoT) initiatives. The two companies will combine their unique strengths in cognitive computing and global connectivity to create open standards-based tools on the IBM Cloud to enable developers to more quickly build and implement a wide variety of IoT solutions. Open standards-based tools allow developers to improve their skills and avoid the churn of learning new tools, which helps protect the investments businesses have made in IoT solution development. As…
Author: Fintech News Singapore
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In the race to become Asia’s fintech hub, Singapore and Hong Kong are undeniably the two most well placed to claim the title. Singapore and Hong Kong, two of the Four Asian Tigers, are global financial centers which rely on a major capitalist service economy. Low taxation, free trade and specialization in areas of competitive advantage, have helped turn these locations into advanced and high-income economies, earning them the title world-leading international financial centers. Singapore, a gateway to Southeast Asia, has carved out its competitive niche as a destination for regional headquartered, branch offices and holding companies. With one of…
Annual investments in insurtech ventures have increased fivefold over the past three year, reaching a cumulative US$3.4 billion since 2010. As investment and interest in insurtech increase, insurers are feeling increasingly threatened by the new innovative ventures that are applying cutting-edge technology to revamp the insurance business. A survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found that 90% of insurers believe that at least part of their business is at risk to fintech. According to Stephen O’Hearn, global insurance leader at PwC, “insurtech will be a game changer for those who choose to embrace it.” He urges the industry to start acting…
• Finquest, the fastest growing global platform to foster cross-border mid-market direct investments in Asia, announced that it has found the solution to build bridges between institutional investors, M&A Advisors, and Asian mid-market Companies. • Its first-of-its kind platform combines the use of smart predictive algorithms, a proprietary database, and industry expertise to deliver quality, curated introductions for its clients. Providing curated introductions to help kick-start cross-border direct investments, mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and deals, Finquest is now connecting M&A advisors with the global investment community and a vibrant ecosystem of mid-sized companies in Asia. The Finquest platform combines…
Like in other regions, digital technology is rapidly expanding its contribution to the economy in ASEAN-6 (i.e. Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam). While the digital revolution is expected to impact the overall economic landscape, Deloitte believes that consumer and retail, telecom, media and technology and financial services are the key sectors that will be the most affected and disrupted. In a report, the consultancy firm assesses the potential impact of digitalization to conglomerates with particular interest in ASEAN. The firm estimates that the contribution of the digital economy will increase from the current 7% of the GDP to…
With one-quarter of the population aged under 25, Vietnam has a real potential for disruptive technology to gain mainstream attention. Launched in June 2014, MoMo, a service of M_Service, which works both as an e-wallet and a payment app, has raised a US$28 million Series B round from Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) and global investment bank Goldman Sachs. It claims to have 2.5 million customers and one million of whom use the e-wallet. According to Pham Thanh Duc, CEO of M-Service, MoMo currently works with more than 100 service providers on the payment app side of its business, which…
Singapore is the first country to get Android Pay in Asia but won’t be the last as Google plans to expand to more countries in the region; although no precision has been made as to where the mobile wallet will head next. Since last week, users in Singapore have been able to download and activate Android Pay on their devices, making Singapore the third country globally to get the Google mobile wallet after the US – since September 2015 -, and the UK – since May 2016. Android Pay is Google’s own version of the Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.…
Innovation takes a lot of time and resources. Large firms and corporations often rely on innovation labs to research, experiment and help them integrate emerging innovations into their businesses. Innovation labs are specific buildings or departments dedicated to working on prototypes and fleshing out ideas. By having a dedicated space to experiment, organizations can explore unconventional, even radical ideas in hopes of inspiring changes or new opportunities that could enhance its business. During the past years, banks and financial institutions have opened innovation labs in Southeast Asia and most particularly in Singapore to explore emerging technologies. Citi was among the…
Supposedly, a transaction involving cash and an apple was performed. In the transaction, there was an agreement that one dollar could be exchanged for an apple. Once completed, the transaction detail is recorded in a ledger. The transaction worked because the one dollar of value is represented by a physical currency, both parties recognized and trusted having been created by a government to facilitate trade. When it comes to digital cash, the situation becomes more complicated. Imagine it’s not that easy to prove a transaction without involving trusted intermediary such as banks. This becomes much more complicated with virtual currency…
GoBear, a Singaporean fintech company providing insurance and financial comparison services throughout Asia, has announced the addition of personal loans into its offerings as well as plans to further expand in the region, now eyeing Hong Kong, Vietnam and the Philippines. Personal loans comparison is currently available in Singapore and Malaysia, but the company said it will soon launch the new offering in Thailand as well. “Personal loans are very much in demand across Southeast Asia,” Andre Hesselink, CEO of GoBear, said in a statement. “With the simplicity and transparency of GoBear’s metasearch engine, all Singapore banks on board and…
An interesting conversation between Fintech News Singapore Founder – Christian König – and Daniel Liebau – Founder of Innovation Research & Advisory firm – Lightbulb Capital. Daniel shared his views on Finance Innovation and gave some great examples. He also explains “show-horse” and “work-horse” Innovation and mentioned his favorite Fintech innovation company. Daniel, please define what Innovation is to you and share an example that you have come across in Asia Pacific recently? I like the definition “creation of new value”. It’s simple and covers two key aspects: – It has to be something new – It has to create value. (Value comes not…
Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending is the loan of money to individuals or businesses through online services that match lenders directly with borrowers without going through a traditional financial intermediary such as a bank. P2P lending first appeared in 2005 with the advent of Zopa in the UK. It spread throughout the western world until to finally became a global phenomenon. Today, providers of alternative finance in western countries are looking at the next growth area: Asia. According to Rhydian Lewis, head of peer-to-peer firm Ratesetter, a lot of lending in Asia is already conducted outside of the banking system. “These countries…
Financial companies in Asia are looking to catch up with the west in using financial technology, but while adoption of fintech is expected to increase, the distrust for online banking systems and the lack of regulatory support may slow down the process. As fintech becomes increasingly ubiquitous in western markets, many financial institutions in Asia are beginning to look into the sector. Ernst & Young has even established a fintech adoption index, which revealed in January a higher adoption rate of fintech by digitally active people in Hong Kong and Singapore than those in the U.S. and U.K. In Thailand,…
DBS Bank, which is at the forefront of re-imagining banking, is leading the charge in transforming its workforce for the digital age. The bank is the first Singapore bank to adopt cloud-based productivity technology, Office 365, in the workplace, enabling its employees to change the way they work, as well as make a leap forward in terms of mobility, efficiency and productivity. DBS’ early adoption of cloud among financial sector players comes amid Singapore’s smart nation drive as well as a digital revolution that is redefining the banking industry. With the increasing threat posed by fintechs, the bank believes it…
While many around the world remain skeptical that cryptocurrency can really demonstrate significant staying power, Bitcoin has had a surprisingly resilient 2016. For reference, it was priced at about $430 on December 31, 2015, and is hovering around $625 as of the time of this writing (having reached a peak of $768 in mid-June). Even the recent news that the UK would be enacting the “Brexit” plan to leave the European Union, which sent global markets into a devastating free-fall, couldn’t phase the leading cryptocurrency. One analysis pointed out that at least Bitcoin is doing OK, and that it has…
Set across 8,600 square feet on the 8th floor of High Street Centre on North Bridge Road, Collision 8 is both a community and a co-working space designed to foster innovation and build collaboration opportunities between its members. Fourth generation leader of construction conglomerate Woh Hup, Michelle Yong leads Aurum Land, the property development arm of Woh Hup, of which Collision 8 is a subsidiary. She has joined forces with John Tan, serial entrepreneur and partner at two micro VC funds, to help build the innovation ecosystem in Asia Pacific. Yong says, “The idea behind Collision 8 was to bring…
Since day one, Braintree has been focused on delivering the best and most robust commerce experiences for our merchants. A very important component of this focus is offering merchants the ability to accept any form of payment they want, wherever their customers are. Today Braintree announced that Android Pay and Apple Pay™ are scheduled to be available in the coming months for merchants in Singapore, through Braintree’s mobile SDK. With just a few lines of code, merchants in Singapore will now be able to add Android Pay and Apple Pay to their checkout flow quickly and easily. These new additions will enable…
Despite its meteoric share price rise in recent years, Apple was the worst performing stock in the Dow Jones Industrial Average over the past twelve months. What’s more, emerging threats and so-called ‘unsustainable growth’ coupled with a decline in iPhone sales and its first revenue drop in 13 years could potentially derail its market dominance. However, this may only be a short-term blip for the world’s biggest tech player, as leading financial firm IG believes Apple must look at the wider picture, which includes an expanding services division. Apple’s reliance on a product ecosystem Even though Apple has managed to…
You have the power of a financial institution in the palm of your hand with your smartphone. Digitalization is transforming financial services in a permanent way so when can you, the customer, start seeing the benefits and what will be your first thoughts? By José Díaz We can now send money with 3 clicks, we can set up a standing order, check our balances, etc. all done on a smartphone while being in the comfort of your sofa or in the back of a taxi. But what is one critical product feature that remains painful? The on-boarding process. All after which,…
Asia is rapidly evolving its Financial Services industry to reflect the local customer behaviors and operating infrastructures. Given the growth of new technologies and communications, mobile being the most powerful, there is an imperative need to implement world-class customer service that can rapidly accommodate the demands of the new generations of customers. Author: José Díaz In Singapore, startups are driving the national vision of using technology to improve the quality of life of the people in the country [1]. In addition to the Smart Nation vision, Singapore is also pursuing customer service excellence for the last few years, and not with…