Asia

April 22, 2021 @ 10:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Huobi Asset Management (Hong Kong) Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Huobi Technology Holdings Limited, has introduced virtual asset-related funds for professional investors. The new product offering includes three digital asset funds and a private equity fund for blockchain mining-related businesses, according to a release shared… Read More

April 21, 2021 @ 11:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

Ingatica, an Insurtech that offers a digital self-service and automation solutions for insurers, has closed on a USD $7 million pre-series A funding. The investment was led by Lingfeng Capital, with participation from SOSV Investment Funds, Australia-based Artesian, HK-Based AFG Partners Fund, as well as… Read More

April 21, 2021 @ 11:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

Digital bank Revolut is expanding into India, according to multiple reports. India, with a population of over 1.3 billion, assets of public sector banks are around Rs. 107.83 lakh crore or USD $ 1.52 trillion as of 2020, according to a recent report. In India,… Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 11:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Board of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the international financial center located in Abu Dhabi, has reportedly approved the formation of the ADGM Authority. ADGM Authority is expected to be led by Mark Nicholas Cutis, who will be serving as the organization’s Chief Executive…. Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 10:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Indian neobank Razorpay notes that it’s been a challenging time for people across the globe. COVID-19 has disrupted lives in many different ways, the company adds in a recent blog post. Razorpay points out that with over a year since the first lockdown, Indian businesses… Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 10:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

China is reportedly expanding its virtual yuan experiments to more local cities, however, there’s no exact timetable for its official launch, central bank Vice Governor Li Bo stated during an annual meeting on Sunday (April 18, 2021) of both Chinese and foreign policymakers, senior executives… Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 9:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Pakistan is reportedly planning to carry out studies in order to potentially launch a State-backed virtual currency so that it can enhance its existing banking system, enable greater financial inclusion, and also ensure that illicit activtiies such as money laundering are not being carried out… Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 8:58 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Financial regulators in South Korea are reportedly discussing the launch of an updated regulatory framework for overseas remittances made by investors. These traders are allegedly trying to make huge profits by capitalizing on Bitcoin price gaps found on different cryptocurrency exchanges based in Korea and… Read More

April 19, 2021 @ 6:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Decentralized finance (DeFi) requires a more reliable credit scoring system, however, we need to be cautious, according to Ontology (ONT) Founder, Li Jun. Jun explains that credit scores have been “a cornerstone of risk evaluation in the global banking systems for decades.” He adds that… Read More

April 18, 2021 @ 10:17 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s Ant Group is looking into potential ways for billionaire Jack Ma to make an exit as Beijing continues to increase its pressure and scrutiny of Fintech businesses in the country, according to a report from Reuters which cited sources familiar with the matter. According… Read More

April 18, 2021 @ 6:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

MENA region startups secured $170 million in capital during March 2021, which is reportedly a 6% increase month-over-month, across 43 different deals, according to local sources. This notably takes the total funds raised during Q1 2021 to $396 million across 125 different deals, which is… Read More

April 18, 2021 @ 5:51 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

A senior Bank of Japan (BoJ) official has stated that China’s digital renminbi will not be able to pose a threat to the US dollar’s dominant position as the global reserve currency. As reported by Bloomberg, Kazushige Kamiyama, who heads the BoJ’s payment systems division… Read More

April 18, 2021 @ 12:58 pm By Xu Gao  |  

The People’s Bank of China and Six Other Departments Launch Fintech Projects for Rural Vitalization In order to better implement the strategy of rural vitalization, the People’s Bank of China and six other department (namely Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Industry and… Read More

April 17, 2021 @ 3:43 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Malaysian Insurtech platform Fatberry has reportedly secured RM 2.5 million (appr. $600,000) through a pre-series A funding round. As noted by its management: “FatBerry is Malaysia’s most comprehensive online insurance portal. We allow you to compare and search for the best coverage plans quickly and… Read More

April 17, 2021 @ 12:03 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Swiss wealth management group Julius Baer has introduced its Digital Advisory Suite (DiAS) in Asian markets. The DIAS soluton aims to simplify the regulatory compliance process for relationship managers, allowing them to provide compliant advice to their customers. The suite serves as a “fully-integrated” solution…. Read More

April 16, 2021 @ 8:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Ujjivan SFB has teamed up with NIRA in India to offer personal loans. As reported by the Economic Times, Ujjivan SFB noted that the partnership with NIRA is a key part of their business approach of using API Banking solutions as part of strategic Fintech… Read More

April 16, 2021 @ 2:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

RedBlock and NFT Bazaar have announced a strategic partnership in an “embrace” of the fast-evolving NFT industry. As noted in a blog post by RedBlock: “We are very pleased to announce that RedBlock and NFT Bazaar have officially entered into a strategic partnership, leveraging our… Read More

April 15, 2021 @ 10:58 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

B2B healthcare service provider Biddano is planning to streamline offline pharma distribution networks by bridging key supply chain gaps between distributors and chemists. The company leverages the latest technology to develop its platform and is currently looking to expand its network to 25 cities across… Read More

April 15, 2021 @ 10:27 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Banking technology firm Zeta is reportedly getting closer to achieving Unicorn status (valued at $1 billion or more) as it continues to work with varous investors in order to close a new funding round, according to TechCrunch which cited sources familiar with the matter. SoftBank… Read More

April 15, 2021 @ 10:17 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Saudi Arabia-based Cloud-enabled Point-Of-Sale (POS) startup Prexle has reportedly finalized its seed funding round which is valued at 2.5 million Saudi riyals (appr. $670,000). Company CEO and Co-founder, Abdullah Alajlan stated that they’re happy to close their latest investment round. He added that the funds… Read More