Author: Fintech News Singapore

Amazon will invest more than US$35 billion across its businesses in India through 2030, adding to the nearly US$40 billion it has already committed. The announcement was made at the sixth Amazon Smbhav Summit in New Delhi. Amazon expects its next phase of investment to generate another one million direct, indirect, induced and seasonal jobs by 2030. This will come from the expansion of fulfilment and delivery networks that also support packaging, manufacturing and transportation sectors. The company said it will continue building infrastructure, advancing AI capabilities and supporting small business growth. As part of its AI plans, Amazon aims…

Pakistani fintech NayaPay has launched global QR payments through a collaboration with Alipay+, enabling users to make payments at merchants in more than 50 countries. The service connects Pakistani consumers to Alipay+’s network of 40 mobile payment partners and more than 150 million merchants worldwide across retail, dining, transport, healthcare and entertainment. The feature expands NayaPay’s existing services, which include Visa debit cards, local and international transfers, bill payments and home remittances. The company said it was the first Pakistani fintech to enable direct QR payments in China through its 2024 partnership with Alipay+, which connected users to over 80…

Not long ago, banking in Asia Pacific meant standing in line at a branch, filling out slips of paper, and waiting patiently for transactions to be processed. Fraud, when it occurred, was relatively visible and often easier to contain, counterfeit notes, forged signatures, or cheque tampering were the risks banks kept a close watch on. Those threats were tangible, localised, and limited in scale. Fast forward to today, and the contrast is striking. Payments move at the speed of a tap, digital wallets are used as readily as cash once was, cross-border transactions settle in seconds, and modern AI agents…

TenPay Global and Mastercard have formed a partnership that enables fast and secure remittances to Weixin Pay. This move lets eligible users abroad send salaries or family support to a recipient’s Weixin Pay Wallet Balance or linked bank card through Mastercard Move. TenPay Global is Tencent’s cross-border payment platform, and Weixin Pay is a widely used mobile payment service in China. China received about US$31.41 billion in personal remittances in 2024, according to the World Bank. Cross-border transfer needs continue to grow as more people work, study and travel overseas and as global commerce expands. The collaboration links Mastercard Move’s…

Airwallex has acquired a majority stake in Skye Sab Indonesia, a Category 1 PJP (Penyedia Jasa Pembayaran) license holder. The acquisition enables Indonesian merchants seeking international expansion to access Airwallex’s financial infrastructure, while facilitating foreign businesses’ entry into Indonesia. It also extends Airwallex’s presence in Asia-Pacific markets, including Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Korea, Singapore, and Vietnam. This follows Airwallex’s US$330 million Series G funding round at an US$8 billion valuation, marking a roughly 30% increase from its previous round six months earlier. The investment will support the company’s growth in key markets, including Indonesia, and…

Microsoft will invest US$17.5 billion in India over four years to expand its cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, scale up skilling programmes and support local operations. It said this is its largest investment in Asia and follows the US$3 billion announced earlier this year, which is expected to be fully deployed by end-2026. The announcement came after Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss India’s AI roadmap. When it comes to AI, the world is optimistic about India! Had a very productive discussion with Mr. Satya Nadella. Happy to see India being the…

At this year’s Singapore FinTech Festival, one statistic kept coming up in our conversations with industry leaders. 79% of organisations were victims of payment fraud last year. This means nearly four in five companies suffered some form of financial loss due to increasingly sophisticated scams. The figure is rather jarring, considering the expectations around payments continue to rise. Customers now want their money to move instantly, and, at the same time, the systems moving those very same funds must stay secure at all times. Yet with criminals now trying new avenues to steal your money, staying secure isn’t as easy…

Endowus, an independent wealth advisor and investment platform in Asia, has launched its Income Enhanced Portfolio, available to professional and accredited investors in Hong Kong and Singapore. The portfolio is designed to provide diversified income solutions, drawing on a broader range of opportunities to manage risk and potentially enhance returns. As global interest rates begin to ease and yields on traditional income products decline, investors are seeking reliable income without excessive concentration risk. The Income Enhanced Portfolio offers two approaches: Conservative and Aggressive. The Income Enhanced Conservative strategy aims for reliable income with a focus on capital preservation. It combines…

Singapore-based payment services provider MetaComp has raised US$22 million in a Pre-A funding round aimed at scaling its cross-border stablecoin payment infrastructure. The company announced the funding on 9 December 2025. It is regulated as a Major Payment Institution by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Eastern Bell Capital, Noah, Sky9 Capital, Freshwave Fund, and Beingboom Capital participated in the funding round. According to the company, the funds will support the expansion of its StableX Network. This hybrid payment rail is designed to bridge traditional finance systems like SWIFT with stablecoin networks. MetaComp stated that the capital injection will facilitate…

Universities have long operated beyond the boundaries of traditional classrooms. Their value lies in academic instruction while also acting as connectors, linking students, researchers, employers, and industry leaders in ways that accelerate learning and innovation. This symbiotic ecosystem matters as it exposes students to real-world expectations early, gives companies access to emerging talent, and allows research to be tested against practical industry needs. This was evident at the NTU FinTech Industry Day 2025, hosted by the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences (SPMS) in November. The event brought together more than 450 participants and over 20 industry partners, supported by…

Bybit has announced a strategic partnership with an affiliate of Circle. The partnership will expand USDC access across Bybit’s global ecosystem and will strengthen liquidity in the stablecoin and support Bybit’s position as a regulated platform. Under the partnership, Bybit will enhance USDC liquidity across spot and derivatives markets. This aims to provide a more efficient trading environment for retail and institutional users. Both companies plan to introduce initiatives to increase the use of USDC across Bybit’s products. These include Bybit Earn for savings, Bybit Card for cashback rewards, and Bybit Pay for everyday transactions. Fiat on- and off-ramp solutions will…

The way we pay has changed more in the past five years than in the previous fifty. But as real-time payments become the global standard, the industry is entering a new phase. In this interview, Fintech News Network’s Vincent Fong sits down with Hasan Khan, Business Head for Cards & Unsecured Lending at Trust Bank, to unpack what The Next Chapter in Payments looks like. They discuss why the industry’s obsession with “speed” is shifting toward “strategic friction” to combat the $4 billion lost to scams in Singapore. Hasan also reveals how Trust Bank utilizes cloud-native infrastructure to achieve the…

Granite Asia has completed the first close of its Pan-Asia private credit strategy, Libra Hybrid, raising more than US$350 million. The strategy, which targets US$500 million in total commitments, is anchored by Temasek through its private credit platform Aranda Principal Strategies, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, and the Indonesia Investment Authority (INA). It also drew capital from global institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds. Additional commitments came from Granite Asia’s general partners and the firm’s long-standing network of founders and entrepreneurs. The fund has deployed and committed around 30% of its available capital across six transactions. Several additional deals are in progress…

Identity verification platform Trulioo has announced it is joining Google’s Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) initiative to support secure, agent-led payments across digital platforms. The collaboration aims to establish a framework for trust and accountability as AI agents increasingly handle transactions on behalf of users. Google launched AP2 to provide an open, standardised framework for digital payments that connects financial institutions, fintechs, and merchants. The protocol creates a common language designed to allow AI agents to initiate and complete transactions. Crucially, it maintains necessary transparency, authorisation, and compliance standards across different ecosystems. As part of the initiative, Trulioo will apply its…

PvX, a Singapore-based financial services platform for consumer applications, has announced it has surpassed US$250 million in committed user acquisition (UA) financing facilities. The platform has committed this capital to 20 mobile gaming and consumer app companies in its existing portfolio. The balance sheet for these financing commitments is provided by General Catalyst, an existing investor, through its Customer Value Fund (CVF). Alongside this milestone, PvX has raised a US$4.7 million seed extension led by Z Venture Capital, the corporate venture capital arm of LY Corporation. The round also saw participation from Drive by DraftKings and existing investors General Catalyst,…

Airwallex has raised US$330 million in a Series G funding round led by Addition, with participation from T. Rowe Price, Activant, Lingotto, Robinhood Ventures, and TIAA Ventures. The round values the company at US$8 billion, a roughly 30% increase since its Series F six months ago. The funding will support growth in the US and other key markets, alongside expanded AI recruitment and product development. The company has established a second global headquarters in San Francisco and plans to invest over US$1 billion from 2026 to 2029 to scale US operations, attract talent, and extend its presence. “We believe the…

10x Banking, a cloud-native core banking platform, has partnered with audax, a digital banking technology provider supported by Standard Chartered, to help banks in Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East modernise their core systems and expand digital offerings. Research by 10x Banking indicates that 93% of APAC banking leaders consider the right platform critical to future success, yet two-thirds remain concerned about migration risk. In APAC, 67% of executives acknowledge they are falling behind in digital transformation, while only 8% prioritise core banking. Fintech in the region is expected to grow at over 21% CAGR through 2028, as QR…

Citi has appointed Minh Ngo as the new Citi Country Officer and Banking Head (CCOBH) for Vietnam, marking the first time a Vietnamese national has held the CCO post since the bank began operations in the country 32 years ago. In addition to her country leadership role, Ngo will assume the position of General Director of Citi’s Ho Chi Minh City branch. As the bank’s most senior representative in Vietnam, she will act as the primary representative of the franchise in the local market. According to the bank, Ngo will be responsible for leading Citi’s strategy across all client segments…

Coda has announced its new executive leadership team and board composition following the acquisition of Recharge, a European prepaid payments platform. The combined company will operate under the Coda brand, integrating capabilities across payments, consumer storefronts, and digital content distribution. The parent entity will consolidate operations under the Coda brand. Meanwhile, Recharge’s established consumer-facing brands (including Recharge.com, Startselect, and Giftcloud) will continue to operate within the global portfolio. According to the company, the move brings together B2B and B2C capabilities. The goal is to build a unified global infrastructure that streamlines how digital products are discovered and purchased. Shane Happach…

Adoption of AI is accelerating across Southeast Asia, with Singapore leading in overall adoption and Malaysia emerging as one of the region’s fastest-growing markets, according to a new study by Amazon Web Services. Much of this growth is being propelled by the startup community. The study, which polled 1,000 members of the public and 1,000 business in each of the 13 markets studied, found that while large enterprises remain the largest adopters of AI, startups are actually the true leaders in AI innovation, positioning Malaysia’s dynamic startup sector as a key engine of AI-driven competitiveness in the region. Despite this…