Author: Fintech News Singapore

The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) has launched a new bootcamp to help local enterprises turn AI plans into practical projects and digital roadmaps. The Digital Leaders Accelerator Bootcamp was announced by Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo at the IMDA DLAB Launch Reception 2026. It is part of the National AI Impact Programme and builds on IMDA’s Digital Leaders Programme, which started in 2021. Aimed at business leaders from digitally progressive enterprises, the bootcamp will run several times a year. Participants will work on AI projects tied to real business challenges, with the aim of creating immediate value…

Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek said the company has cut about 12 percent of its workforce as part of an enterprise-wide AI shift. Marszalek said, “Companies that do not make this pivot immediately will fail. Companies that move slowly will be left behind. Companies that move immediately and pair the best AI tools with top-performers will achieve a level of scale and precision that was previously impossible.” He added the reduction was targeted at roles that do not adapt to the company’s new direction in an AI-led environment. Affected employees have reportedly been notified and are receiving support as they transition…

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has worked with 24 financial institutions, alongside other industry partners, to develop a toolkit for managing AI risks across the financial sector. The toolkit marks the conclusion of phase two of Project MindForge and is intended to help financial institutions manage risks linked to traditional AI, generative AI and emerging agentic AI technologies. At the centre of the toolkit is an AI Risk Management Operationalisation Handbook, which provides detailed, practical guidance on how firms can implement AI risk management frameworks. It is accompanied by a supplement featuring case studies from financial institutions, outlining their…

Matrixport has rebranded as BIT, reflecting the firm’s continued development in digital asset financial infrastructure and services. Alongside the rebrand, BIT published its BIT 2026 Trust Whitepaper, outlining the governance, risk management and operational frameworks supporting its services. The paper provides a structured overview of the firm’s governance, compliance and operational foundations. CEO John Ge said, “Digital asset markets are entering a phase in which governance, transparency and operational discipline are increasingly important. BIT reflects the continued evolution of our business and our commitment to building trusted digital asset financial infrastructure.” The firm said the rebrand will not affect existing…

GrabInsure, the insurance arm of Grab, has rolled out a motor insurance product for private-hire drivers in Singapore. The product is available to Grab driver-partners who use their own vehicles and is aimed at making coverage more affordable and easier to access. The policy was designed for private-hire drivers and includes instalment payment options, 24/7 emergency assistance and personalised pricing. The company described it as a first-of-its-kind product that uses historical platform insights to tailor premiums. According to GrabInsure, drivers can pay premiums through the Grab Driver App Wallet without needing a credit card. Premiums can be broken into smaller…

DBS and POSB digital banking services were restored this afternoon on 19 March 2026 after some customers faced difficulties accessing certain digital services earlier in the day. The bank said its digibank mobile and online services, along with DBS PayLah!, had returned to normal as of 1:19pm. Earlier, the bank said it was working to fully recover services. During the disruption, DBS said customers could still make payments using DBS and POSB cards, check account balances through DBS and POSB ATMs and digiBot, and withdraw cash from DBS and POSB ATMs as well as POSB Cash-Points. Wealth clients were also…

HSBC is weighing deeper workforce cuts as it explores how artificial intelligence could reshape parts of its operations, Bloomberg reported. The review is still at an early stage, with no final decision made on the scale or structure of any reductions. The bank could eventually cut around 20,000 roles over the next several years, according to people familiar with the matter. Some of the reduction may come from not replacing departing staff, while other changes could result from business sales or exits. Non-client-facing roles in global service centres are seen as among the most exposed. The plan, if carried out,…

Snowflake is extending its enterprise AI strategy with Project SnowWork, a platform designed for autonomous task execution. Launched in research preview for a limited set of customers, Project SnowWork is designed to help business users complete multi-step tasks through conversational prompts across planning, analysis and execution. Snowflake said the platform can handle tasks such as preparing forecast presentations, identifying churn risks and uncovering supply chain bottlenecks, executing workflows from start to finish and delivering structured outputs based on business needs. The launch is part of Snowflake’s broader push into what it calls the agentic enterprise. “Project SnowWork looks to put…

David Hardoon is departing Standard Chartered less than a year after joining the bank as Global Head of AI Enablement, according to Bloomberg. Hardoon, who is based in Singapore, is on gardening leave, the report said. Standard Chartered declined to comment on the departure. He joined the bank in April 2025 to support its broader AI ambitions as lenders step up efforts to embed the technology across core business functions. Hardoon brought experience across banking, regulation, academia and AI startups. His earlier roles included serving as the first Chief Data Officer at the Monetary Authority of Singapore. He also held…

Singapore businesses are among the latest users to gain access to PayPal USD as PayPal expands the stablecoin to 70 markets. The stablecoin will not be available to retail users in Singapore. PYUSD, PayPal’s US dollar-backed stablecoin, is being made available through PayPal accounts across Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America. PayPal said users in newly supported markets can buy, hold, send and receive PYUSD directly from their PayPal accounts, subject to local regulations and product availability. Eligible users can also transfer PYUSD to friends and family through PayPal or third-party digital wallets, and convert it into local currency…

Mastercard is building a new generative AI model using anonymised transaction data, with cybersecurity and fraud detection among its first planned uses. The company said the model is designed as an insights engine for payments and commerce rather than a chatbot. It described the system as a large tabular model trained on structured data. Over time, the model could also support services such as loyalty and rewards programmes, personalisation, portfolio optimisation and analytics. Mastercard said it is training the system on billions of anonymised transactions and may later expand it to include other datasets such as merchant location, fraud, authorisation, chargeback…

Finastra has launched a new AI Center of Excellence and named Chris McClellen to lead the effort as it moves to coordinate and scale artificial intelligence initiatives across the company. McClellen has been appointed Senior Vice President, Group Head of AI, and will report to Chief Technology Officer Mike Stawchansky. He brings experience in AI strategy, enterprise software and data platforms, including in regulated environments, and a track record of turning emerging technology platforms into practical, scalable solutions. The company said the new AI Center of Excellence will draw on expertise across engineering, product and other functions to coordinate AI…

Wise has secured the five licences needed to operate in Thailand, paving the way to roll out its foreign currency wallet and card services locally. The company said it is the first non-bank to receive the approvals. The approvals were granted by the Bank of Thailand and the Ministry of Commerce. Wise said the move will allow Thai citizens, businesses and foreign residents to use a digital foreign currency wallet to send, receive and spend money in multiple currencies through a single app. The rollout will take place in stages, with customers now able to join a waitlist for access.…

Thunes has enabled banks to send real-time payments to stablecoin wallets through their existing Swift infrastructure. The move gives financial institutions connected to Swift access to more than 500 million stablecoin wallets worldwide with no additional integration, extending Thunes’ Direct Global Network to existing Swift users. Thunes launched its Pay-to-Stablecoin-Wallets solution in October 2025. The service supports USDC and USDT and allows instant, 24/7 cross-border payments to stablecoin wallets in more than 140 countries. The offering is aimed at use cases such as salary payouts, family remittances and business transfers, allowing funds to move directly from a bank account to…

Circles has partnered with Airwallex to enable telecom operators to launch digital banking services across more than 70 countries through its CirclesX platform. The partnership will integrate Airwallex’s embedded finance capabilities into CirclesX, Circles’ SaaS platform for telecom operators. The companies said telcos will be able to offer services such as global payouts, travel cards, supplier payments and expense management without building or managing their own financial infrastructure. “At Circles, we’re continuously pushing the boundaries of innovation for the industry beyond just core telco products and we are confident that embedded financial products will power the next phase of revenue…

Independent Reserve will expand its offerings for corporate, accredited and institutional customers across APAC, with new products planned for the second half of 2026. The crypto exchange said the new offerings will be introduced in Singapore, Australia and the UAE. Preliminary plans include payment capabilities for corporate customers, as well as yield products, subject to regulatory approval. The expansion follows IG Group’s acquisition of a majority stake in Independent Reserve in February 2026. The company said the deal has advanced its next phase of product development and sharpened its regional growth focus. Lasanka Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Independent Reserve…

Singapore-based dtcpay has secured US$10 million in Series A funding to expand into new licensed markets and grow its stablecoin payments business. The round was led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India, while Singapore-based boutique investment bank Favour Capital acted as exclusive financial advisor. The company said the funding will be used to enhance its product suite, strengthen its infrastructure and support expansion across newly licensed jurisdictions. Founded by Alice Liu and Band Zhao, dtcpay provides payment infrastructure that allows businesses and individuals to accept, store and transact in stablecoins for everyday use. Its platform includes a real-time swap…

Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it is seeking public comment on proposed Travel Rule requirements for digital asset transfers. The proposed rules would require digital asset business operators to collect and transmit information tied to transfers to support anti-money laundering checks and related risk management. The proposal follows coordination between the SEC and other agencies on measures to prevent technology-related crimes. The regulator said a January 2026 meeting of a subcommittee on suspicious transaction monitoring had agreed that the SEC and the Anti-Money Laundering Office would issue interim guidance for digital asset business operators. AMLO is preparing regulations…

Mastercard has tapped Borderless.xyz for its Crypto Partner Program as it expands work on stablecoin-linked payment use cases. Borderless.xyz is joining as a launch partner alongside more than 85 companies across digital assets, payments and financial services, including Binance, Circle, PayPal, Ripple, Fireblocks, Solana and Polygon. The program focuses on cross-border transfers, B2B payments and global payouts using onchain infrastructure. The company joined Mastercard’s Start Path blockchain and digital assets accelerator in September 2025 as one of five selected firms. It has now moved on to the Crypto Partner Program as a launch partner. Borderless.xyz operates an API that connects…

Chubb has appointed Seshadri (Sesh) Iyer as Executive Vice President, Chubb Group, Operations, Technology and Digital Transformation, effective April 6. He succeeds Julie Dillman, who will retire on 2 April after nearly a decade with the company. In the role, Iyer will oversee Chubb’s global operations and technology. He will also work with Sean Ringsted, Chief Digital Business Officer, on the company’s digital transformation across underwriting, sales and service operations worldwide. Iyer will report to Evan G. Greenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Chubb Limited and Chubb Group, and John Keogh, President and Chief Operating Officer of Chubb Group.…