Asia

January 3, 2017 @ 7:46 am By Jessica Pham  |  

The World Bank established the Financial Sector Development Project to support Myanmar’s SMEs — the latest sign of progress in the country’s economy.  The five-year project includes $100 million in credit, which will be used to allow SMEs increased access to financial services.  The project will… Read More

January 3, 2017 @ 7:30 am By Jessica Pham  |  

Over 25 startups in the online lending space have rapidly emerged over the past two years, according to TechCircle analysis.  Despite signs that global fintech investment was slowing in 2016, VCCircle‘s analysis for 2017 suggests that such investment may pick up again. Arti Singh and… Read More

December 29, 2016 @ 9:58 pm By Jessica Pham  |  

Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan opened a digital branch called iWealth in Taipei earlier this month.  iWealth is another component of the London-based bank’s foray into fintech in the Asia-Pacific region.  SC Bank will invest $1.5 billion in Taiwan over the next three years, focusing on… Read More

December 29, 2016 @ 8:40 pm By Jessica Pham  |  

When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in November that the country would no longer use its R500 and R1000 (approximately $7.50 and $15.00) currencies — which make up 86 percent of all cash in circulation in India — observers questioned the wisdom of the… Read More

December 29, 2016 @ 8:37 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Indian mobile wallet platform MobiKwik announced that it had signed the millionth merchant on its payment network, registering 1,000 percent growth since the demonetization of high value currency notes. The company recently partnered with Amul and NASVI to facilitate acceptability and adoption of digital mode of payments. “We are committed… Read More

December 28, 2016 @ 9:04 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) recently announced it has teamed up with the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI) to launch the Fintech Career Accelerator Scheme (FCAS) to meet the growing needs of the fintech industry in Hong Kong. According to both of… Read More

December 28, 2016 @ 6:30 am By Jessica Pham  |  

China’s Global Times has reported that the country established a foundation focused on financial and technology mergers and acquisitions throughout Asia.  Asia Fintech Fund of Funds (FOF) is based in Beijing and has 10 billion yuan (approximately $1.44 billion) in funding. Asia Fintech is the second… Read More

December 27, 2016 @ 11:34 am By JD Alois  |  

CreditEase has been recognized as the  “Best Non-Bank Private Wealth Product” by The Asian Banker, a Singapore-based provider of strategic intelligence on the financial services industry. The “Best Non-Bank Private Wealth Product” award was created to recognize the institution with the ability to meet the… Read More

December 27, 2016 @ 7:21 am By Xu Gao  |  

Suning.com Receives Authorization from CBRC to Set Up a New Private Bank On the 21st December, Suning.com, one of China’s leading e-commerce platforms, announced it had received authorization from the CBRC (China Banking Regulatory Commission) to set up a new private bank, named Suning Bank…. Read More

December 26, 2016 @ 11:09 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Credit China FinTech Holdings Limited, an integrated fintech service provider in China, announced on Friday it would establish its Southeast Asia headquarters in Singapore by the end of the first quarter of 2017 to speed up the expansion of its business overseas. According to Credit… Read More

December 23, 2016 @ 1:14 pm By Jessica Pham  |  

Weapons present in the South China Sea.  The U.S. backs out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. South Korea’s president facing impeachment.  Duterte wins the Philippines presidential election. These are just a few of the explosive economic and political events that have continued to unfold in the… Read More

December 23, 2016 @ 7:31 am By Jessica Pham  |  

Tima says that it is Vietnam’s first P2P lending platform, and it has recently secured Series A funding from a Singaporean investor.  The amount is unclear but is a reported “US dollar seven-figure” amount.  The Singapore fund is also unnamed. An unnamed co-founder of Tima… Read More

December 22, 2016 @ 7:23 am By Jessica Pham  |  

During the first half of 2016, regulators feared that Fintech would become all too powerful.  Then, in November, they concluded that the Fintech sector was not threatening.  At the cusp of 2017, it also appears that other observers have concluded that the FIintech boom is… Read More

December 21, 2016 @ 1:42 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Earlier this month, tech giant Microsoft announced it formed a partnership with AMIS and the Industry Technology Research Institute of Taiwan to create Asia’s consortium blockchain network on Azure. The company also revealed it is collaborating with banks such as Fubon Financial, Cathay Financial Holdings, MegaBank, KGI, Taishin,… Read More

December 21, 2016 @ 4:56 am By Xu Gao  |  

PPmoney Secures a ¥375 Million B Round Funding & Announces Strategy of Group Operation. On December 12th, online wealth management platform PPmoney secured ¥375 million in B round funding. Investors included Ants Capital, Yang Jianxin (actual controller of KJT.com) and Yuetai holding group. Meanwhile, PPmoney… Read More

December 20, 2016 @ 9:16 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Hong Kong is set to host the Next Money Fintech Final 2017 as part of the StartmeupHK Festival. The event, which is brought to the community by credit card giant Visa, will be held on January 18-19th 2017 at the PMQ and is expected to host… Read More

December 20, 2016 @ 5:03 am By Erin Hobey  |  

“India has seen a spectacular growth in the alternative investment market. Numerous HNI Investors have been putting money into Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) for the past 3 years,” assessed Association of International Wealth Management of India CEO Aditya Gadge. ah! Ventures, aiming to be a major player… Read More

December 19, 2016 @ 10:08 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Yirendai (NYSE: YRD) announced on Monday it appointed Chaomei Chen as an independent director. Chen has reportedly been part of the Chinese marketplace lender’s Advisory Committee since January 2016 and been providing strategic advice and insight to the senior management team on a range of issues such… Read More

December 16, 2016 @ 11:28 am By JD Alois  |  

The trial against Ezubao, once a high-flying peer to peer lending platform, has commenced.  The Beijing People’s Protectorate has started proceedings against Ezubao and its parent company Yucheng Holdings and Yucheng Global.  This is according to a report in China News. Apparently, 10 individuals will… Read More

December 15, 2016 @ 9:54 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Yello Financial Group, a Korean fintech company backed by Formation Group, announced a corporate name change to DAYLI Financial Group (“DFG”). In less than two years since founding, the company launched over 30 fintech products and onboarded dozens of marquee clients including AXA, SK Securities,… Read More