Author: Johanan Devanesan

In a world undergoing rapid economic and digital transformation, the face of currency is changing at a revolutionary pace, yielding a proliferation in global crypto adoption. The Chainalysis Global Crypto Adoption Index, now in its fourth annual iteration, amalgamates both on-chain and real-world data to identify the countries experiencing unprecedented growth in grassroots cryptocurrency acceptance. India, embattled by recent global socio-economic turbulence, has ascended as a pioneer, manifesting the most significant growth in grassroots crypto adoption among everyday consumers. Yet, grassroots adoption is not synonymous with high raw transaction volumes; —  the wealthiest and largest nations prevail in this domain.…

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), along with several central banks including the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), launched Project Mandala to examine the potential of embedding jurisdiction-specific policy and regulatory requirements into a common protocol, simplifying cross-border use cases like foreign direct investment, borrowing, and payments. One of the primary barriers to fluid cross-border payments is the inconsistency in policy and regulatory frameworks across jurisdictions, leading to extended transaction times, heightened regulatory compliance responsibilities, and stakeholder uncertainty. Spearheaded by BIS Innovation Hub (BISIH) Singapore Centre with the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Bank of Korea (BOK), Bank Negara Malaysia…

In recent years, the payments industry has undergone a paradigm shift, altering the way consumers and businesses interact financially. According to a McKinsey report, the global payments sector is approaching a staggering revenue opportunity of nearly US$2 trillion. In the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, this transformation is notably pronounced in cross-border payments, with changing consumer expectations, multiple regulatory landscapes, and multiple payment schemes complicating the industry’s growth trajectory. “It’s not an evolution of payments, but it’s a revolution of payment systems that’s happening in the APAC region,” commented Mahendra Shirali, Director, Business Strategy at SmartStream. The Three V’s: Velocity, Volume, and…

What is cryptocurrency? It is a form of digital or virtual currency that leverages cryptography for security. Unlike traditional currencies issued by governments (like the US Dollar or the Euro), cryptocurrencies operate on decentralized networks based on blockchain technology—a distributed ledger that records all transactions across a network of computers. What is Cryptocurrency? The concept of digital money isn’t new, but the arrival of Bitcoin in 2009 revolutionised it. Back then, people have never heard of, let alone thought about what is cryptocurrency. Created by an unknown person or group of people under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin introduced the…

Banks and other financial service providers find themselves at a pivotal juncture in the burgeoning low-value cross-border payments market, currently valued at US$10 trillion. A recent survey by Swift, the international payments messaging firm, offers some crucial insights. The research was conducted in December 2022 and captured the opinions of 4,205 consumers as well as 2,720 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across a variety of countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, India, China, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Germany, and South Africa. All respondents make cross-border payments at least once a month. Consumer and SME Preferences For consumers, the survey…

The financial sector has always been on the frontline of technological advancements. From the invention of paper money to the introduction of credit cards, each new development has promised to make transactions smoother, faster, and more secure. In the 21st century, the digital era has given birth to the ‘e-wallet’, reshaping how we think about and interact with our finances. But what is an e-wallet, exactly? Let’s dive in. What is an E-Wallet? An e-wallet, or digital wallet, refers to an electronic device or online service that allows an individual to make electronic transactions. This can include purchasing items online…

Stablecoins, emerging as a new category of digital payment tokens (DPTs), hold immense potential to transform payment methods. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has streamlined and finalised its approach towards a framework for stablecoins in Singapore, taking into account feedback from stakeholders over the years. Since the initial 2019 consultation paper, developments within the digital asset space have intensified the focus on the regulatory treatment of stablecoins in Singapore, highlighting the need for a standalone framework. On 26 October 2022, MAS released a subsequent consultation paper, shedding light on the impending regulatory norms to be associated with stablecoin issuance…

Real-time payments are transactions made between bank accounts, processed, cleared, and settled within seconds, o any given day or time. The FIS Global Payments Report 2023 highlights the Asia Pacific region as a global frontrunner in real-time payments, propelling account-to-account (A2A) payments and international trade. Currently, over 70 countries across six continents offer real-time payments, with a transaction volume of US$195 billion in 2022 — a 63% growth year-on-year, as per ACI Worldwide’s March 2023 report. Markets in Asia, generally quick to embrace financial innovations like real-time payments, are leading the charge to enhance their global commerce standing. India, having…

The world of business is no stranger to change. In recent years, the upheaval has been profound, sweeping across industries and borders. With the assistance of Mambu cloud-native SaaS platform and remarkable benchmarking data, financial businesses have found a way to weather uncertainty and disruption, and emerge stronger and more resilient. The years following 2020 have been marked by significant disruption, making resilience and adaptability essential for thriving in the current landscape. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation soared to 8.8% by the end of 2022 and 6.5% for the end of 2023, the highest numbers since 1982.…

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, the way we interact with financial services is undergoing a profound transformation. Traditional banking and payment systems are being disrupted by a new paradigm known as “embedded finance.” But what is embedded finance, exactly? Embedded Finance represents a shift in the world of financial services, heralding a new era of ubiquitous finance. This intersection between finance and technology not only disrupts the traditional banking industry but also offers a transformative opportunity for non-financial businesses to include financial services as a part of their offering. What is embedded finance to the financial industry? This revolutionary…

Since its foundation in 1974 Temasek Holdings, the global investment firm based in Singapore, has demonstrated a formidable capacity for navigating an ever-changing financial climate. Despite managing an expansive portfolio valued at S$382 billion as of 31 March 2023, the firm has not been immune to the challenging financial landscape marked by persistent inflation and tightening monetary conditions, which have driven interest rates higher and could lead to lower real returns this year. The Temasek Review 2023 media conference drew attention to several other key factors that have had a direct impact on investment returns. These include the ongoing US-China…

Generative AI, the capacity of computers to craft content in ‘unstructured’ forms such as text or images, is a marked change of AI from the traditional ‘structured’ data formats like tables. Generative AI came into grander limelight for many fields, though not yet wealth management, following the debut of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022. ChatGPT, a chatbot premised on GPT-3, heralded a paradigm shift where individuals could interact with an AI system in a natural, intuitive manner. It generated written output, which in many instances, was on par to mirror human capabilities. However, outputs from AI systems like ChatGPT do…

In 2022, digital fraud experienced a significant increase compared to 2021, with the global attack rate escalating by 20% year-on-year. This escalation continues to reflect the early indications observed in 2021 as more and more economies resumed normal operations following closures caused by the pandemic..  The majority of the world was starting to envision a post-pandemic future, although many Asian countries did not lift their international travel restrictions until mid-2022. Cybercriminals were already taking advantage of the expanding opportunities, as seen in the latest LexisNexis Risk Solutions Cybercrime Report.  Fraudulent attacks experienced a surge early in the year, specifically targeting…

The Asia Pacific (APAC) region is rapidly emerging as a stronghold for digital payments, underpinned by customer preferences for a multitude of customised payment journeys, including those for e-commerce purchases, at the point of sale (POS), and business-related transactions. The most recently released Global Payments Report 2023 from Worldpay by FIS emphasises that any company keen on maintaining a competitive edge must thoroughly comprehend the payment methodologies favoured by their consumers. It also underlines that payment experiences differ significantly across different regions, thereby eliminating the possibility of a one-size-fits-all solution, and making each market uniquely interesting. Digital Wallet Adoption in…

In Southeast Asia, the availability of digital financial service alternatives has had a transformative impact on financial inclusion. These initiatives have empowered individuals and micro-businesses, creating opportunities for job creation, education, improved healthcare, and enhanced livelihoods.  The positive outcomes of these initiatives are highlighted in the Financial Inclusion in Post-COVID Southeast Asia: Accelerating Impact Beyond Access report, which was developed by the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) in collaboration with the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and Helicap. Here we explore some of the key findings of the report, emphasising the role of digital financial service providers in…

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) holds vast potential to address persistent barriers in building out sustainable supply chains. It can significantly boost transparency, mitigate cash inefficiencies, and amplify the utilisation of data to improve processes and sustainability efforts, according to a recent study. Leveraging underlying DLT, financial institutions that back supply chain participants can automate payments and other business processes quickly and efficiently, increasing overall productivity. Sustainability and Supply Chain Payments Sustainable supply chains and financial flows are instrumental in driving progress. By incorporating environmentally and socially positive transactions within supply chains, value chain participants including multinational corporations, banks, and regulators…

In response to the evolving demands of customers and the need to address the limitations of traditional retail banking, there has been a significant rise in the number of digital-first banks operating in the Asia Pacific (APAC) territories. With over 40 launched across the region so far, these banks aim to leverage digital technologies and meet customers’ growing preferences for personalised banking experiences. The Quinlan & Associates report APAC Digital Bank Landscape explores the challenges faced by digital banks in the region, and the strategies they can adopt to achieve profitability. While the digital banking landscape in APAC is flourishing,…

NomuPay, a unified payments platform, has successfully raised US$53.6 million to enhance its local payment acceptance and payout disbursement services for businesses operating in Southeast Asia, Turkey, and Europe. The funding round was jointly led by Finch Capital and Outpost Ventures, an investment platform of Neuberger Berman, along with contributions from individual investors. NomuPay was established by Finch Capital, which acquired various assets of Wirecard in 2021, including local licenses in Turkey and the Asia Pacific region, as well as separate businesses like Cardinity, which covers the European market. NomuPay’s Unified Payments (uP) Platform offers payment acceptance and payout disbursements…

Digitalisation has made the world smaller and far more interconnected, and the traditional barriers of time, distance, and geography are eroding, paving the way for a truly globalised society.   This transformation is especially evident in the realm of commerce, where modern businesses are no longer confined to their local markets but instead operate in an expansive, borderless digital economy.  Consequently, seamless cross-border payments have shifted from being a mere convenience to an outright necessity. They enable companies to tap into a more diverse customer base, forge international partnerships, access global supply chains, and expand their operations beyond their home…

In a post-pandemic economy that has become truly reliant on digital technology to connect individuals and business partners globally without borders, digital payments that are fast, reliable and safe are critical. And the ramifications when some of these payments failed to go through or to reach suppliers in time, can be far-reaching and damaging for the business. As cross-border payments become increasingly necessary to organisations operating within the global economy, it is little surprise that business owners and workers come to expect fast, efficient payments – and for repeating transactions, the cheaper the better. To assess just how effectively cross-border…