Every week, we bring you the best IOT news from Asia and around the world. This week, the disaster in Huston proved how open data could help in emergencies. Read: Houston is showing us why open data should be part of every city’ disaster and recovery plan In General: How Asia-Pacific can become the world’s biggest IoT market – IotI.com 30 Internet Of Things Executives Whose Names You Should Know – crn.com 6 Reasons Why Designing UX for IoT is So Difficult – machinedesign.com Organisations align IIoT efforts – smartcitiesworld.net AI: Asia Has The Potential To Become A Leader In…

The Smart City vision for Hong Kong has been further crystalised at Hong Kong Science Park, as Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) unveiled more forward-looking smart city initiatives using Science Park as a test bed and a living lab. A number of highlight smart city innovations were showcased on 7 and 8 September 2017 as HKSTP hosted another round of the well-received APAC Innovation Summit 2017 (AIS) on Smart City. Within Science Park’s optimal controlled environment, notable progress is being made in the research and development of various smart city technologies in the areas of mobility, cashless…

Uniti, Sweden’s new electric car, successfully launched an equity crowdfunding campaign on their own website today. Uniti’s unique crowdfunding video takes the viewer on a tour through the company’s headquarter in the south of Sweden and sheds light on the impressive achievements of the young company. “Working openly with our wide support network of collaborators and major companies from around the world has prepared us for the milestones ahead,” says founder and CEO Lewis Horne. The video includes appearances of prominent figures such as the CEO of KUKA Robotics Nordics, renowned climate change academic Michael Molitor, and representatives from British…

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced the finalists for the 2017 Global FinTech Hackcelerator and FinTech Awards. The Global FinTech Hackcelerator and FinTech Awards are among the highlights of this year’s Singapore FinTech Festival, which will take place in Singapore from 13 to 17 November 2017. Global FinTech Hackcelerator In May 2017, MAS published a catalogue of 100 problem statements gathered from the financial industry and invited the global FinTech community to develop new and innovative solutions to any of the problems for the Global FinTech Hackcelerator. The problem statements fall under 4 categories: Customer-Facing, Financial Inclusion, RegTech, and General.…

Fintechnews.PH picks every Friday for you the top 5 Fintech Philippines News of the week: Here we go: PayMaya pushes for more cashless-transaction solutions DIGITAL-payments provider PayMaya Philippines has rolled out mobile-payment technologies in over 350 business establishments enabled by Smart Wi-fi, as it continues to campaign for the use of cashless tech in the country. (Read more ) BPI ties up with WorldRemit to target OFW remittances MANILA, Philippines – Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) partnered with UK-based remittance giant WorldRemit in a bid to capture more of the overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittance market. (Read more)…

Every week, we bring you the best IOT news from Asia and around the world. This week, it’s been hard to avoid the new announcement from Apple about the iPhone X – the facial recognition technology has everyone talking. The iPhone X overshadowed everything else at the Apple launch event – businessinsider.com Should you be worried about the iPhone X’s facial recognition? – telegraph.co.uk Apple: Face ID didn’t fail at iPhone X launch, our staff did – theguardian.com Can police unlock your iPhone X using Face ID? – dailydot.com iPhone 8 and X: Twitter’s best memes and jokes – NME.com…

BlockShow Asia 2017  is one of the largest conferences showcasing Blockchain solutions, bringing the hottest startups, ICOs and unconventional sensations. The event will take place November 29-30, 2017 in Singapore – a prime global business hub and country which has taken many steps to implement Blockchain technology. BlockShow Asia investments As an international event, BlockShow attracts plenty of investors, venture funds and entrepreneurs from all over the world searching for new projects and business perspectives. Participants enjoy a unique opportunity to grow their companies and attract new clients. One of the crucial parts of BlockShow Asia 2017 is going to be…

Digital nomads are ever more numerous. They have special needs, notably in terms of financial services. Thankfully, fintech startups are coming up with clever solutions that are not just only cheaper than those provided by traditional banking and financial services companies, but also more convenient and accessible from anywhere in the world. We’ve listed some of the most digital-friendly products and services targeted at digital nomads, small business owners, and freelancers that cover anything from banking, international money transfers, and personal finance management, to accounting, investing and bitcoin. Banking There are a few things to consider when choosing which…

UBS says that Asia’s underinsured market presents  ripe opportunities for insurtech startups. In a UBS report titled Shifting Asia, it noted that Asia is one of the most underpenetrated insurance markets in the world. Emerging Asia held 43 per cent of the world’s population but only 13 per cent of total premiums in 2016. The report added that Asia will be home to around 64 per cent of the world’s middle-class population by 2030, up from 40 per cent currently. As disposable incomes grow, the middle class will demand greater protection for their health, wealth, families and property. The strong…

Fintech Vietnam Meetup is back with another newsletter, September 2017 edition. With the fast pace of the recent developments in Fintech, there are a lot of local and international news that we would like to share with you today. For the daily update, you can follow our Facebook Page, join our Facebook Group and Meetup community or follow us on Twitter.  Our meetup group has reached now over 1000 members! Check please out our new sections: Fintech Jobs in Vietnam and Fintech Vietnam Startup of the Month.  Fintech Vietnam Startup of the Month MOCA is a mobile wallet that allows users to make online or direct payments securely and conveniently with their Debit/Credit / JCB…

IDC Financial Insights unveiled a list of 10 fast growing fintech in Malaysia, part of the broader FinTech 101 list for Asia/Pacific, at the FinTech Innovation Summit 2017 held at InterContinental, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “IDC’s FinTech Fast 101” refers to the fast-growing fintech players in Asia/Pacific based on extensive on-ground analysis of the dominant fintech players in the region. 10 Fast Growing Fintech in Malaysia AppPay gives merchants the ability to reward loyal customers and customers to feel more connected with merchants. iMoney.my is a financial comparison website that caters primarily to the Malaysian market. It lets…

Fintechnews.PH picks every Friday for you the top 5 Fintech Philippines News of the week: Here we go: FINTECH Gains Traction as Businesses Embrace Alternative Banking and Financial Solutions Financial technology, or FINTECH, has established new platforms for many businesses and companies. ( Read more) Globe’s GCash partners with Hong Kong-based EMQ for remittances MANILA, Philippines – Ayala-led Globe Telecom added another partner to its digital payments subsidiary G-Xchange Incorporated (GXI), which runs GCash, in order to capture more of the overseas Filipino remittance market. ( Read more) PHL leads Asia in financial inclusion, report says The Philippines led Asian countries…

OCBC Bank has piloted two Fintech solutions to enhance its competency in fighting money laundering and terrorism financing. The two Fintech companies involved – BlackSwan Technologies and Silent Eight – were part of the second Fintech Accelerator Programme run by OCBC Bank’s Fintech unit, The Open Vault at OCBC. The companies leverage artificial intelligence to conduct research on individuals and entities suspected of illegal financing. This is done by searching for information on individual profiles, and mapping how suspicious transactions may be linked to one another to see if they are indeed fraudulent or illegal. Today, this process is carried…

Bangkok Bank InnoHub, a 12-week acceleration program by Bangkok Bank and Bualuang Ventures powered by Hong Kong-based venture capital firm and accelerator Nest, aims to facilitate collaborations between startups and commercial banks in Southeast Asia. The program, launched earlier this year, is targeted at promising fintech startups, and in particular, those working in compliance and KYC, payments, and artificial intelligence. Selected teams receive dedicated mentorship from financial experts of Bangkok Bank and Bualuang Ventures, as well as strategic guidance from Nest. The startups are guided through a process designed to give them the opportunity to secure a proof-of-concept with the…

Airlines in Asia are expecting to churn  a US$7.4 billion profit this year. While regional travel is going strong, the industry is also highly competitive. As a result, some airlines have invested Fintech to improve the online booking experience. Fintechnews.sg examines which airlines. Airlines constantly try to outdo each other not only in terms of inflight service, but in the online space as well. And more often than not, ease of use and payment on an airline’s website or mobile app can make a significant difference in ticket sales. So crucial is the online booking experience that Air Asia is…

Fintechs have materially changed the basis of competition in financial services, but have not yet materially changed the competitive landscape, according to a new report released on Aug 22 by the World Economic Forum with support from Deloitte Consulting. The report, “Beyond Fintech: A pragmatic assessment of disruptive potential in financial services” explores the main drivers of future change, citing that fintechs represent the first wave in a series of disruptive forces that will likely shape the future of the industry. The report represents the culmination of three years of research into the transformative role of fintechs. “Fintechs have changed…

Financial regulators and private sector participants from Singapore and Chongqing discussed , at the second Singapore-China (Chongqing) Financial Conference (SCFC) in Chongqing, opportunities for deeper financial collaboration between the two cities. The areas discussed include financing infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative, promoting cross-border asset securitisation, and developing insurance and risk management solutions to support investment. Jointly organised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Chongqing Financial Affairs Office and the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative Administrative Bureau, the SCFC is the signature event under the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative (CCI) Financial Services pillar. More than 400 financial sector professionals…

TenX, Paycent and Omise are the three winners of the 2017 Florin Asia Innovation Awards, an event aimed at recognizing the region’s most promising talents, and honoring great initiatives and proven solutions in the payments space. The winners were announced last week at the GlobalPaymentSummit in Singapore, and competed against seven other startups including peer-to-peer marketplace for international money transfer Cashaa, mobile banking app Brankas, and Go-Jek’s mobile payment platform Go-Pay. TenX was honored as the Gold Winner. The Singapore-based startup is building a cryptocurrency payment platform that consists of a wallet, physical debit card, bank account, ATM access, and…

So, you may have heard Bitcoin passed the $5000 mark this weekend: $BTC officially over $5000 on @coindesk #Bitcoin5000 #Crypto pic.twitter.com/BeMwfikWCC — Ross 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@12ossT) September 2, 2017 And it got the Twittersphere very excited: We’re about to hit $5000 $btc $crypto pic.twitter.com/URcX1fcWAX — Higo (@CryptoHigo) September 2, 2017 $BTC Approaching $5000 pic.twitter.com/LkYm2cZrRn — Goatronica🐐 (@Goatronica) September 2, 2017 $BTC passed $5000 now are we going to see a pullback and back to trading or is it still bullish? RT$LSK $LTC $ETH $NEO $XRP $IOTA $RISE pic.twitter.com/5Kcl90GCHQ — FallenCryptoAngel (@CryptoFallen) September 2, 2017 1 of coin = 5000 of…

Fintechnews.PH picks every Friday for you the top 5 Fintech Philippines News of the week: Here we go: Blockchain technology can make better governments, plus thoughts on financial inclusion from SCI CEO  John Bailon of Satoshi Citadel Industries (SCI) talks to us about how blockchain technology is faring in the Philippines. (Read more) 1,000 Startups in the PHP Eyed in 2018 THE Philippine startup community targets to reach a total of 1,000 startups next year. (Read more) Latest Blockchain Fundings in Southeast Asia Blockchain startups have raised about US$358 million in venture capital in 2017 so far, with…