June 14, 2026 @ 5:26 am By Michael Wong  |  

Southeast Asian capital market regulators are seeking closer cooperation with their counterparts in Central Asia, a move that could open new channels for cross-border investment and sustainable finance as emerging economies look to diversify sources of capital. The ASEAN Capital Markets Forum (ACMF), chaired this… Read More

June 14, 2026 @ 12:48 am By Michael Wong  |  

Malaysia’s central bank is urging financial institutions to incorporate nature-related risks and opportunities into their lending and investment decisions, warning that biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation could increasingly threaten financial stability while creating new opportunities for sustainable finance. Speaking at the launch of a Bank… Read More

June 13, 2026 @ 3:18 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Global investment firm KKR, together with the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), chipmaker NVIDIA, and U.S. utility Vistra, has launched a new artificial intelligence infrastructure platform with more than $10 billion in committed capital. The venture, called Helix Digital Infrastructure, aims to finance and develop the power,… Read More

June 9, 2026 @ 11:04 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Southeast Asia is set to receive a major boost in energy infrastructure investment after the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) approved a $1.5 billion commitment to an Indo-Pacific investment platform. The platform will focus primarily on South and Southeast Asia as part of a… Read More

June 9, 2026 @ 6:21 am By Michael Wong  |  

A recent study conducted by IDC found that companies in Asia Pacific are investing in artificial intelligence (AI) more aggressively than their global peers. The study, commissioned by managed network services provider Expereo, however, saw that many are doing so with little evaluation of returns… Read More

June 9, 2026 @ 5:32 am By Michael Wong  |  

Singapore-based growth equity firm Panthera Growth Partners has invested $30 million in Innefu Labs, an Indian artificial intelligence (AI) company focused on national and cyber security, as the company scales its sovereign AI platforms and prepares for an initial public offering. The capital injection, completed… Read More

June 9, 2026 @ 3:07 am By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong’s central bank and securities regulator said they will proceed with proposed amendments to clearing rules for over-the-counter derivative transactions, after a joint consultation received broad market support. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued consultation conclusions… Read More

June 8, 2026 @ 7:28 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Singapore-headquartered DayOne Data Centers said it has announced the final closing of its Series C equity financing with total gross proceeds of $4.5 billion, as the global digital infrastructure platform moves to accelerate expansion across Asia Pacific and Europe. The Series C round was led… Read More

June 8, 2026 @ 2:15 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Toronto-based Scotiabank has agreed to acquire Maple Financial Holdings, the parent company of US commercial lender MapleMark Bank, for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition comes as Scotiabank aims to strengthen its global banking and markets business and expand its deposit capabilities in the US, according… Read More

June 8, 2026 @ 9:33 am By Michael Wong  |  

The next battleground in global payments may be the small, frequent transfers that move across borders every day: from gig-worker payouts to marketplace vendor payments and remittances. Bank of America plans to launch a cross-border real-time payments solution next quarter, allowing corporate, commercial and financial… Read More

June 8, 2026 @ 1:50 am By Michael Wong  |  

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said it had convened a Tokenised Bond Expert Group comprising representatives from industry associations, financial institutions, legal advisory firms, and financial infrastructure and technology providers to drive further adoption and scalability of tokenised bonds in the city. The group… Read More

June 7, 2026 @ 3:58 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Bangladesh-based AB Bank PLC has launched the pilot phase of a new digital lending platform that uses artificial intelligence to automate loan approvals and disbursements, underscoring the growing adoption of AI-powered financial services across emerging markets. The bank said its new service, called “AB e-Loan,”… Read More

June 7, 2026 @ 12:51 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Bybit has launched a platform that allows eligible retail investors to subscribe to tokenized initial public offerings (IPOs) at the offering price, starting with SpaceX, as cryptocurrency exchanges seek to expand into traditional capital markets. The crypto exchange said on Sunday that its new Bybit… Read More

June 6, 2026 @ 1:16 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Asia-Pacific led global high-net-worth individual wealth growth for the second straight year in 2025, as strong stock market performance and semiconductor demand helped drive gains across the region, according to Capgemini’s World Wealth Report 2026. HNWI wealth in Asia-Pacific rose 10.5%, the fastest among major… Read More

June 2, 2026 @ 5:40 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong’s monetary authority said it will develop a Digital Asset Platform later this year to support the issuance and settlement of digital bonds and, in the future, other digital assets. The move comes as the city looks to deepen its role as a “super… Read More

June 1, 2026 @ 7:07 am By Michael Wong  |  

Ascend Bank, the virtual bank backed by Charoen Pokphand Group, is expected to debut in July, CP Group senior vice-chairman Suphachai Chearavanont said. The planned launch comes after rival Clicx Bank announced earlier this week it plans to launch its mobile app on June 19,… Read More

June 1, 2026 @ 2:36 am By Michael Wong  |  

Southeast Asia’s AI infrastructure market is still young, uneven, and heavily concentrated in Singapore. The sector has drawn about $1.2 billion in disclosed equity funding across Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand from 2015 to 2026, according to a report by private market data platform Tracxn…. Read More

May 31, 2026 @ 7:21 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Insurtech startup Corgi has doubled its valuation to $2.6 billion just three weeks after reaching unicorn status, underscoring investor demand for AI-driven commercial insurance infrastructure. The San Francisco-based company said it raised $106 million in a Series B1 round led by TCV, with participation from… Read More

May 31, 2026 @ 11:55 am By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong’s monetary authority said regulated stablecoins in the city are expected to be launched in the next few months, as it moves digital finance initiatives from experimentation to real-value transactions. Howard Lee, deputy chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said Hong Kong’s… Read More

May 31, 2026 @ 3:05 am By Michael Wong  |  

Singapore’s central bank said it has issued a circular guiding financial institutions to establish a client’s source of wealth in a risk-proportionate way, as part of efforts to make account opening in the wealth management industry more efficient while maintaining sound regulatory standards. The Monetary… Read More