Fintech Validus is a SME fund box that links Singaporean and Global investors to Singaporean SMEs. Differentiated from p2p, it is a new asset class that connects investors who are prepared to put in $100,000 and above, looking for better than market returns with eligible Singaporean SMEs who require funding. Formed by three partners Richard Hoon, Yash Poddar, and Vikas Nahata who met as members of worldwide Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), Validus brings together many years of business experience and management expertise. Mr Richard Hoon, Chairman, explained that “We see this as a new asset class…

The technology and digital disruption on banking and financial services will profoundly change a very large, extremely profitable and well-established industry. Alessandro Hatami, a serial corporate entrepreneur with a passion for generating growth through digital innovation in payments and financial services, had observed and shaped his view about this big change through “Banking Myths”.  There are 4 of them: (1) Customers still want human beings interaction at bank branches instead of robo interaction; (2) Banks gains more trust than FinTech start-ups; (3) Banking platform is able to be improved to satisfy any customers’ banking expectations and (4) FinTech identities will replaces the traditional bank. Below is details of…

The most transformative blockchains will be those that can work across geopolitical boundaries and Southeast Asia has the most potential that can be unlocked with this technology, according to a new report by DBS Bank. “Asia’s geopolitical context is unique globally – the region consists of loosely coupled countries who want to trade with each other, yet levels of trust between countries are disparate, preventing the region from realizing its potential,” states a paper by DBS Bank. “We now have the technology for trust. With political will, investment, and industry collaboration, we believe that blockchains can improve the way.” The…

The mobile payment space in Vietnam is ripe for exponential growth and there are three main factors supporting the trend: the relatively young population (42.1% are under 25 years old), the rate of smartphone penetration surpassing 50%, and the majority of the market being unbanked. Many entrepreneurs have understood the opportunity here. In fact, 52% of all domestic fintech startups are providing mobile payments. MoMo, a mobile payments service created by M_Service, had been the most downloaded application in the Apple Store Vietnam last year. The service is reportedly growing 30 to 50% per month in terms of transaction volume…

In the early April, the FinTech festival Money 2020 Europe happened in Copenhagen, Denmark, attracting all kinds of FinTech identities, from start-ups to giants alike all around the world. This global event gave all participants a worldwide view of FinTech. Below is the opinion from Markus Gnirck, Co-Founder of tryb, who was a member of the panel “Opportunities in Asia” at Money 2020. It’s about the differences between Asian FinTech and European FinTech. “Having just spent a few days in Copenhagen (Money2020 was a full on FinTech festival) and London, many were curious what’s going on in Asia. Very common questions…

First time ever in Vietnam, a fintech conference named Blockfin Asia will be held with the centric theme: “Exploring opportunities for organizations and regulators in SEA to leverage emerging Fintech and Blockchain technologies”. Sign up now at here with code FTVNSAVE10 to get 10% discount for the event ticket! The event will take place on June 15th and 16th, location to be confirmed. With 42.1% of population are under 25 and the rate of mobile penetration is more than 50%, this first fintech conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam is the most anticipated event to entrepreneurs and investors who are…

As part of Singapore’s plan to become the world’s first Smart Nation, the city-state’s financial regulator and central bank has announced a series of initiatives aimed at fostering the fintech sector and build its Smart Financial Center. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced yesterday that it will start regulating fintech companies only when they grow to a sufficient size to pose risks to the wider financial system. Speaking to reporters during a visit to New York, MAS’ managing director Ravi Menon said: “If you start regulating every one of those, you stifle a lot of innovation, and they don’t…

Mobile international money transfer services have significant potential to gain traction and market share as 92% of consumers are willing to ditch traditional money transmitter services for a mobile method, according to a new survey. Entitled ‘Mobile Financial Services Consumer Survey: International Remittance,’ the report highlights key findings from a survey which questioned nearly 3,000 members of migrant communities in the US, UK and Germany. The research, conducted by Juniper Research and Amdocs in 2015, was aimed at understanding consumers’ perceptions of and preferences for international money transfer, international top-up and international bill payment. The firms studied 7 particular remittance…

Triggered in August 2014, Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative intends to turn the city-state into the world’s first smart nation. This major digital transformation, expected to be fulfilled by 2030, is aimed at turning Singapore into a hyper-connected country where the pervasive use of technology is expected to bring improvement in the quality of life of people. As part of the Smart Nation initiative, Singapore is also working toward the vision of a Smart Financial Center and is putting a lot of effort into developing the fintech sector. One of the innovations being intensively explored is the blockchain, the core technology…

Asia is becoming a hot bed for fintech with surges in investments and growing interest from foreign investors. Things are moving fast in the fintech world and it gets harder and harder to keep up with the burgeoning industry. What are the emerging trends? Who are the new kids on the block? How are governments responding to new financial disruptors? Thankfully, an increasing number of events and conferences are being held in Asia to stimulate discussion and development. Earlier this week, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) hosted the Financial World: Application Programming…

Changing consumer behavior combined with advances in technology has changed the relationship that customers have with their bank and with their finances. Customers rely less and less on walking into a branch for their banking needs, and instead have digital options to help them. Citi Global Perspectives and Solutions (Citi GPS) has released a new report highlighting key fintech trends and data. Entitled ‘Digital Disruption: How Fintech is Forcing Banking to a Tipping Point,’ the report provides insights on the current state of fintech globally. Citi identifies where fintech investments are being made by financial product and client segment, assesses…

Earlier this month, notorious accelerator program Startupbootcamp Fintech Singapore unveiled the ten teams it had picked to integrate the program, among which PolicyPal, a young and ambitious startup that intends to help us manage our insurance matters more easily. The PolicyPal app, expected to launch in beta in six weeks, will allow users to manage their policies in one place and understand where they have duplicate or missing coverage. It will also let them find the policies that are the most suitable for their needs. According to PolicyPal’s founder and CEO Val Jihsuan, the purpose is to provide consumers with…

New report challenges business leaders to think about where Singapore is heading and the talent they will need in the future. The report, “The Future of Talent in Singapore 2030” includes four thought-provoking scenarios of life in Singapore in 2030 with a range of challenges to the State, organizations and individuals, to help businesses think about their future strategy and the talent they will need. Singapore Future 2030 Imagine a future where technology has transformed nearly every relationship, where borrowers don’t need banks and traditional media has been replaced by networks of individuals creating and sharing their own content. Or imagine…

Financial technology companies are shaping the financial services industry from the outside in, and more than 20% of traditional players being at risk to fintech companies by 2020, according to a new report by PowerwaterhouseCoopers (PwC). In a new report entitled ‘Blurred lines: How fintech is shaping financial services’, Big Four auditor PwC argues that traditional financial services companies are being challenged by new entrants that are leveraging technology to provide products and services that are more suitable for today’s consumers’ needs and habits. The survey, which interviewed 544 top senior executives from the financial services industry and the fintech…

Banking in Vietnam had stood in place for decades before it’s moved to a new stage of Internet banking. For the first time ever, Vietnam has its first Digital Bank. First Mobile-Only Bank in Vietnam — Timo Timo stands for TIME & MONEY, which serves for the right purpose of the product: saving time on many transactions and payments, instead of being tired queuing at the banks or logging with several different internet banking systems. On August 4th, 2015, the National Bank of Vietnam had confirmed that Vietnam Prosperity (VP Bank) bank had registered to issue a new debit card named…

Consumers in Asia Pacific (APAC) are embracing digital wallets as one in five users (19.5%) in the region say they are using these new mobile technologies, citing more convenience when shopping online. This represents an increase of 9.7% from two years ago, according to MasterCard’s latest Mobile Shopping Survey. Most particularly, China (45%), India (36.7%) and Singapore (23.3%) are leading the trend as the region’s top three adopters of digital wallets. “Smartphones are already deemed indispensable to consumers’ highly digital lifestyles in Singapore,” Deborah Heng, group head and general manager at MasterCard Singapore, commented in statements. “In the digital payment…

Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) and Goldman Sachs have respectively invested US$25 million and US$3 million in M_Service, a Vietnamese fintech startup and the operator of mobile digital wallet MoMo. The deal marks the second publicly disclosed investment in M_Service by Goldman Sachs as the bank previously injected US$5.75 million into the startup back in 2013. Prior to the deal, Standard Chartered Bank had partnered with M_Service to develop and launch in 2015 Straight2Bank, an online payment system that allows users in Vietnam to transact with each other in a cashless manner. The service lets Standard Chartered’s corporate clients in Vietnam make…

Mobile bank users globally are forecast to more than double by 2019, according to a 2015 KPMG report, and the millennial generation, born from the 1980s to the early 2000s, may well be the reason of this emerging trend. Real-time mobile access to personal financial information has become a baseline expectation among millennials today and banks are starting to understand that. One of the latest banks to follow the trend is Caixa Bank, one Spain’s largest financial institutions, which launched earlier this year its mobile-only bank called imaginBank. In a release, Caixa Bank pointed out that the reason of this…

Startupbootcamp FinTech, the leading accelerator focused on financial innovation, has announced the 10 international startups selected to join its Singapore program. The finalists, which include teams from across Asia-Pacific have been chosen by a panel of industry experts, including representatives from Startupbootcamp FinTech’s partners. Top 10 FinTech startups reflect important trends in FinTech, including Insurance Technology, Data Analytics and SME Financial Solutions, which are all relevant areas for consumers and businesses in Southeast Asia. They will join the ever-expanding list of successful startups that have been through the Startupbootcamp programs globally. 2016 Startupbootcamp FinTech Singapore program From 18 April, the successful startups will benefit from extensive mentorship…

Aviva, a leading insurer in Singapore, has introduced Aviva ClaimConnect – a mobile application and portal designed exclusively for its group insurance policyholders. It enables users to locate their nearest panel clinic with ease, and eliminates reliance on paperwork by allowing them to submit employee insurance claims electronically. Aviva ClaimConnect The key features of Aviva ClaimConnect are as follows: Locate the nearest panel clinic in either a list or map view for easy navigation to the clinic Submit claims electronically with scans of the relevant documents using the camera function on your phone (no additional paperwork required) Receive updates on the status of claims…