Author: Fintech News Singapore

OCBC has launched a generative AI training programme for 900 wealth advisors in Singapore, as the bank looks to standardise coaching and improve advisory skills at scale. The six-month programme covers investment advisory, client management, product knowledge, and wealth planning. Previously, coaching was conducted in person and depended on the availability of supervisors. Advisors could wait up to three weeks for a session, while supervisors often coached as many as 10 staff alongside other responsibilities. This reliance on manual scheduling often led to uneven feedback and inconsistent evaluation standards. The introduction of OCBC generative AI wealth advisors coaching uses large…

Visa has officially launched its validator node on the Tempo network, marking a key milestone in the company’s push into blockchain infrastructure and stablecoin payments. The move underscores a commitment to running critical blockchain operations in-house to strengthen the foundations of onchain payment innovation. Tempo is a purpose-built Layer 1 blockchain designed for agentic commerce and real-time machine-to-machine payments. Visa, alongside Stripe and Zodia Custody, will serve as the first external validators to join the network as it expands its ecosystem of financial and commerce partners. The validator node was configured and managed internally by Visa following six months of…

DBS has appointed Kelvin Wong as its new Chief Sustainability Officer, effective 11 May 2026. Wong succeeds Helge Muenkel, who is leaving the bank to relocate overseas after leading the bank’s sustainability agenda since 2022. Wong currently serves as Managing Director and Head of Energy, Renewables and Infrastructure within the Institutional Banking Group at DBS. Since joining the bank in 2016, he has played a central role in advising on and arranging sustainable finance, carbon credits, and renewable energy transactions across the Asia Pacific region. Prior to his tenure at DBS, Wong held senior leadership positions at Commonwealth Bank of…

Singlife and Singapore Management University (SMU) are partnering to research retirement readiness, aiming to address the financial challenges of Singapore’s rapidly ageing population. The two organisations signed a MoU during the launch of the SMU Longevity Societies and Economies Institute (LSEI). This collaboration will combine Singlife’s industry data with the academic frameworks of the LSEI to identify specific gaps in retirement adequacy. According to the Singlife Financial Freedom Index 2024, 71% of Singaporean consumers lack confidence in their ability to retire at will. While most respondents aim to retire by 65, they expect to need a median of S$2,856 per…

Choco Up has launched a US$30 million private credit facility in partnership with tech-driven credit specialist CHUAN to provide faster and more reliable financing for SMEs across Asia Pacific. The Choco Up credit facility aims to automate the delivery of working capital to match the operational cycles of small businesses. The first drawdown from the facility has already been completed, marking the start of its deployment across the region. The partnership combines CHUAN’s access to institutional capital with Choco Up’s data-driven credit assessment. This enables funding approvals in as little as a few hours, compared with traditional lending timelines that…

Banking Circle Group will appoint former UBS and ING Group CEO Ralph Hamers as Chairman of its Group Board of Directors from 20 April 2026. Hamers has also advised companies in the fintech ecosystem, including Arta and Grab. He will work with management to expand into new markets, deepen Banking Circle’s product ecosystem, and strengthen its operational and regulatory foundations. Ralph Hamers said, “For more than a decade, Banking Circle Group has innovated at the intersection of banking, technology and regulation. The team has built a one-of-a-kind platform and ecosystem, delivering real and compounding value to clients as they scale.…

LankaPay and SLTDA have partnered with Alipay+ to attract more regional travellers and widen QR payment acceptance in Sri Lanka. The tie-up will market Sri Lanka through Alipay+’s network of more than 40 e-wallets and banking apps in Asia Pacific, which reaches over 1.8 billion user accounts. Travellers using Alipay+ partner apps will also get access to offers and promotions when making purchases through LankaQR, Sri Lanka’s national QR payment network. The initiative is expected to influence travel decisions, support tourist spending and contribute to tourism earnings. It also aims to bring more local merchants, especially micro and small businesses,…

Vertex Holdings will appoint Temasek CEO Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara as Chairman from 15 April, as the firm posted more than US$100 million in FY2025 profit. He will succeed Teo Ming Kian, who is retiring from the Board, while Deputy Chairman Lee Kheng Nam will also step down. The Singapore-based venture capital firm said its FY2025 result was supported by portfolio exits, listings and valuation gains. Dilhan previously served on the Vertex Holdings Board from 2015 to 2018. Vertex said at least five portfolio companies could pursue listings over the next 12 months, subject to market conditions. The group manages close…

Thailand’s SEC has opened a public consultation on rules that would allow crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the country. The proposal covers crypto ETFs, the outsourcing of digital asset investment management for mutual funds, and the role of fund supervisors. Public comments are open until 11 May 2026. The SEC is proposing to allow spot crypto ETFs in the form of mutual funds that invest directly in crypto assets. These funds would follow a passive strategy and maintain average net exposure of at least 80 percent of NAV to a single crypto asset over the accounting year. Bitcoin and Ethereum…

Shipping companies paying crypto tolls to pass through the Strait of Hormuz could face significant sanctions exposure. According to Chainalysis, such payments could leave maritime operators exposed to enforcement action, fines and reputational damage, as Iran remains subject to broad US and international sanctions. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, is reportedly extracting fees starting at US$1 per barrel of oil from vessels seeking safe passage. These payments reportedly involve IRGC-linked intermediaries, with fees negotiated in yuan, stablecoins or other digital currencies. Chainalysis noted that transacting with sanctioned entities typically requires specific approval or a licence from the relevant…

ASEAN’s push to link payment systems across borders gathered pace in 2025, with cross-border QR payments reaching 36.2 million transactions worth US$716.4 million. The figures were disclosed in a joint statement issued after the 13th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting in the Philippines. As of December 2025, ASEAN had established 29 QR payment and person-to-person instant payment linkages within the region and with external partners. P2P transfers reached 1.6 million transactions worth US$305.7 million in 2025, reflecting the growing relevance of these payment links for households, businesses and migrant workers across the region. The trend mirrors wider…

Adyen, the global financial technology platform, announced its Intelligent Money Movement product, which aims to connect payments, liquidity management, and payouts together on a single platform. The Adyen Intelligent Money Movement product is for large global enterprises. It is said to enable businesses to move funds faster, gain real-time visibility into their cash positions, and reduce operational complexity. Ethan Tandowsky, the Chief Financial Officer for Adyen, shared, “Intelligent Money Movement is designed to eliminate the gaps between payments, liquidity management, and payouts. By consolidating the lifecycle of funds on a single platform, we’re enabling businesses to access capital faster, improve…

ShopBack posted a net profit of US$208.4 million in FY2025 after a year of layoffs and cost cuts. Audited filings reviewed by DealStreetAsia show the turnaround was driven mainly by fair value gains rather than a recovery in its core business. The Singapore-based cashback platform, through its local entity Ecommerce Enablers Pte. Ltd., reversed a US$65.1 million loss a year earlier. The swing was driven largely by net finance income of US$231.9 million, compared with a US$5.7 million cost in FY2024, mainly due to fair value adjustments linked to preference shares. Its underlying business, however, remained loss-making. Revenue slipped 2.8%…

Standard Chartered is weighing changes to its digital-asset structure, with Bloomberg reporting that parts of Zodia Custody could be moved into one of the bank’s own operations. The plan under review would shift part of Zodia’s crypto custody activity into a unit within the bank’s corporate and investment bank that already provides similar services. Zodia could still remain a separate software-as-a-service business focused on digital-asset custody under the structure being considered. Bloomberg also reported that an announcement could come as soon as this month, though it remains unclear whether Standard Chartered has held talks with all of Zodia’s minority investors.…

Money20/20 has announced the complete jury lineup for The Money Awards 2026, ahead of its global awards ceremony taking place at Money20/20 USA in Las Vegas on 18 October 2026. The program, now in its second year, received hundreds of entries from more than 41 countries and recognised 27 winners in the last year’s edition. The 2026 edition spans five categories: Banking, Payments, Partnerships & Strategic Alliance, Startup (Early Stage & Growth Stage), and the Diamond Award. The Startup Early & Growth Stage category recognises founders who are currently at key milestones in their journey, pushing the industry forward. Meanwhile,…

Thunes has joined Circle Payments Network Managed Payments to expand stablecoin-based settlement across its global payments network. The move builds on a partnership between Thunes and Circle that began in 2024 with the use of stablecoin-powered liquidity. Through the latest integration, Thunes customers will be able to access Circle Payments Network Managed Payments while continuing to operate within existing fiat-based workflows. The two companies have already integrated USDC into Thunes’ Direct Global Network, which spans more than 140 countries. This has helped reduce reliance on traditional banking hours and cut the need for heavy prefunding in local accounts. The setup…

Payment giant Visa has launched a new solution that helps businesses support and accept payments initiated by AI agents. Intelligent Commerce Connect is part of Visa’s Intelligent Commerce portfolio and is aimed at businesses building AI agents, selling through them or processing those transactions. Available through a single integration on the Visa Acceptance Platform, the product supports payment initiation, tokenisation, authentication and spend controls. It also connects with Visa’s Intelligent Commerce APIs and other networks’ APIs, allowing AI agents to pay with both Visa and non-Visa cards. The product supports payments initiated through several agent protocols, including Trusted Agent Protocol,…

Airwallex has named Carolyn Renzin as Chief Regulatory and Compliance Officer as it expands across major global markets. Based in New York, Renzin will lead the company’s global regulatory and compliance programme. Renzin joins from FanDuel, where she served as Chief Legal and Compliance Officer during a period of rapid growth in the online betting and gaming sector. Prior to that, she spent more than six years at JPMorgan Chase, where she worked on regulatory engagement and compliance remediation following the global financial crisis. Her appointment comes as Airwallex broadens its regulated product suite in the U.S., including the recent…

CARSOME, CarTimes and Japan Consumer Credit Service (JACCS), a member of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), have formalised a strategic auto financing partnership in Singapore. The collaboration aims to strengthen financing capabilities in one of Southeast Asia’s most established automotive markets. The agreement follows JACCS’s acquisition of a 49% stake in CarTimes Capital in February. CarTimes, a majority-owned subsidiary of CARSOME, anchors the partnership in Singapore, building on CARSOME and JACCS’s 2025 collaboration in Malaysia through CARSOME Capital. CarTimes and CarTimes Capital have established a significant presence in Singapore, providing vehicle ownership solutions supported by an understanding of local customer…

The disruption to DBS digital banking services on March 19 was caused by an “erroneous step” when performing a system change, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong on Wednesday (April 8). In a written parliamentary reply, Gan, who is also the Minister for Trade and Industry and Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), stated that the authority will “follow-up with DBS to strengthen their change management process.” The disruption lasted for approximately one hour, from 12:03 pm to 1:19 pm, and prevented customers from viewing their deposit balances. Some customers also could not make payments through digital…