Asia

December 31, 2020 @ 6:58 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The digital commerce sector in Saudi Arabia has undergone a major (digital) transformation and there have been noticeable changes in consumer behavior, particularly when it comes to using online platforms in a post COVID world. Ibrahim Mohammad Al-Saad, Founder of Ajda, has stated that the… Read More

December 30, 2020 @ 10:25 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

VeChain, a major blockchain platform focused on developing supply chain management solutions among other use cases, has released its latest financial executive report in order to promote “fairness, transparency, and openness.” As mentioned in the report, published on December 29, 2020: “During this quarter, the… Read More

December 30, 2020 @ 8:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Firms secured more capital via stock market listings in 2020 than in any other year, except for 2007, as a recovery in equities valuations managed to attract various firms and blank-cheque acquisition vehicles were increasingly used to carry out listings in US markets. The hot… Read More

December 30, 2020 @ 11:56 am By JD Alois  |  

The government of Singapore has published a document covering the risk of terrorism financing (TF) and financial services. The report was compiled by a consortium of agencies including the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Ministry of Finance. To quote the… Read More

December 30, 2020 @ 8:41 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Tokyo-based GMO Internet Inc., an Internet conglomerate, has reportedly been granted approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) to form a limited purpose trust company, GMO-Z.com Trust Company, Inc. Through this initiative, the company will issue the very first regulated Japanese Yen-pegged… Read More

December 30, 2020 @ 1:19 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Qudian Inc. (NYSE: QD), an established technology platform that aims to improve the online consumer finance experience for Chinese consumers, recently released its unaudited financial results for the quarter ending on September 30, 2020. Qudian’s management noted that the total number of registered users “as… Read More

December 29, 2020 @ 4:42 pm By JD Alois  |  

NetEase (NASDAQ: NTES), a large Chinese tech firm that has a significant presence in gaming, has decided to close down its personal finance app Youqian, according to a report. NetEase attempted to enter various Fintech verticals during the boom days of peer to peer lending alongside many… Read More

December 29, 2020 @ 8:39 am By JD Alois  |  

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has announced the launch of iAM Smart (internet Access by Mobile in a Smart way), a digital identity service that enables users to leverage the biometrics in their smartphone to act as proof of identity for all types of… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 11:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Coronavirus outbreak has accelerated the adoption of digital payments and other Fintech services in India. Technology has been the foundation for the growth and development of Fintech platforms in the country, according to Raj N Phani, the Founder at Indian Fintech firm Zaggle. Phani… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 8:23 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Demand for Fintech services and loans have surged in India this year, according to local news outlet Live Mint. The credit flows of Fintechs and Big-tech firms have increased significantly during the past few years in highly developed countries. Commercial banks have emerged as leaders… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 8:20 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Chinese regulatory authorities have ordered billionaire Jack Ma’s Fintech firm Ant Group Co. to return to offering payments services, instead of attempting to expand its operations into consumer loans or wealth management. China’s reserve bank officials recently held discussions with Ant Group’s management and instructed… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 10:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Islamabad-based Fintech firm SadaPay recently revealed that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the nation’s central bank, has granted the company approval to “officially begin pilot operations.” The SadaPay team noted that until now, they’d been testing their app and debit card internally with close… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 10:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s reserve bank has issued the nation’s second license for collecting personal credit ratings to an initiative between a state-managed enterprise and two Internet companies. The move suggests that the Chinese government may want to get involved in deciding how technology interacts with finance (while… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 9:53 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Indonesia-based Fintech firm Finantier has revealed that it has acquired an undisclosed amount of capital from US-based startup accelerator Y Combinator. Finantier will be joining Y Combinator’s Winter 2021 funding cycle, which is scheduled to begin in January 2021. Finantier is planning to expand its… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 7:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this month, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced the first four digital banks approved by the regulator. The first digital banks out of the gate are the culmination of a multi-year process where MAS. In June 2019, MAS announced it would approve up… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 4:39 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dalal Buhejji, the Director of Business Development, Financial Services at the Bahrain Economic Development Board, has noted that there are currently around 400 financial institutions based in Bahrain. Buhejji pointed out that these companies are offered a “stable, predictable and proven” regulatory and business environment… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 4:09 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Although Dubai’s economy is projected to contract by 6.2% this year, with the travel and hospitality industries hit really hard due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the country saw a significant increase in bank financing for its communications, storage, and transport sectors. There was also solid… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 1:35 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) focus and support for contactless payments and the entry of WhatsApp into the nation’s Fintech sector is expected to lead to an increase in digital transactions. Although most business sectors have struggled to maintain operations due to the COVID-19… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 11:00 am By Xu Gao  |  

WeBank Reduces Upper Limit of Microloan to ¥200,000 WeBank, the Tencent-backed digital bank, announced that it would reduce the upper limit of its microloan product (Weilidai) from ¥300,000 to ¥200,000 from December 26th. According to WeBank, the reduction was a response to the “Commercial Bank… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 10:03 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s banking and insurance regulator released draft guidelines on Friday (December 25, 2020) regarding the sales of wealth management products by local commercial banks’ wealth management divisions. Chinese authorities will reportedly allow these wealth management subsidiaries to serve as sales agents for such products for… Read More