Asia

September 17, 2021 @ 10:39 am By JD Alois  |  

AI startup Upstage has raised $27 million in a Series A funding round led by SoftBank Ventures Asia and Company K Partners. Other investors include TBT Partners, Premier Partners, Stonebridge Ventures, and Primer Sazze Fund. Korea-based Upstage is a firm that develops technologies designed to… Read More

September 16, 2021 @ 6:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and Singapore Police Force (SPF) recently revealed that malicious actors overseas had been able to divert and use SMS one-time passwords (OTPs) to carry out fraudulent credit card transfers impacting 75 banking clients based… Read More

September 16, 2021 @ 2:46 pm By JD Alois  |  

Change, a European crypto investment platform, says it has opened an office in Singapore in the first step towards global expansion. Singapore is a noted Fintech hub that is supported by a regulatory regime that seeks to enable Fintech innovation. This past summer, Change reported… Read More

September 15, 2021 @ 9:48 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

FinScore, the Philippines-based alternative credit scoring provider, has partnered with Welcome Bank (Rural Bank), a Philippine subsidiary of Korea’s Welcome Financial Group, to improve the latter’s fraud prevention methods. Welcome Financial Group currently operates the fourth-largest savings bank in assets and 12 other subsidiaries in… Read More

September 15, 2021 @ 9:00 am By Omar Faridi  |  

HaloDAO is collaborating with YGG for “local” stablecoin support “for simpler cash out,” according to an update shared with Crowdfund Insider. HaloDAO, a stablecoin marketplace protocol, is working cooperatively with Yield Guild Games (YGG) to “enable YGG community members to support simpler cash outs in… Read More

September 15, 2021 @ 8:07 am By JD Alois  |  

As has been widely reported, China Evergrande Group (HKEX:3333), China’s second-largest property developer, is flashing default signals on its corporate debt.  In a corporate statement Evergrande said that the company expects a “significant continuing decline in contract sales in September, thereby resulting in the continuous… Read More

September 14, 2021 @ 10:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) in Pakistan has added contactless biometric verification services for the nation’s banking and payments sector, making the Asian nation one of the first in the world to introduce the tech on a State-wide level. As first reported by… Read More

September 14, 2021 @ 11:51 am By Omar Faridi  |  

DBS (SGX:D05) has introduced real-time online tracking of cross-border collections for companies in India through a partnership with SWIFT Global Payments Innovation (gpi). DBS is reportedly first bank in India and the Asia-Pacific region to provide this service to customers, which should benefit around 4,000… Read More

September 14, 2021 @ 10:40 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Coronavirus crisis has led to an international surge in digital commerce sales and online or all-digital businesses, as nationwide lockdowns have forced customers to engage with e-commerce platforms. As consumers continue to use digital commerce platforms and make cashless payments with virtual cards and… Read More

September 14, 2021 @ 7:37 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Hedera Hashgraph, the “most used,” sustainable, enterprise-grade public network for the decentralized economy, reveals that the Indian Institutes of Technology Madras (IITM) has become the latest member of its Governing Council. The technology-focused University has joined a rotating Council of “up to” 39 international  organizations… Read More

September 14, 2021 @ 7:34 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Switzerland-based vestr, a platform that fully digitizes the life-cycle management of actively managed investment products, has reportedly expanded its business operations to Singapore, after teaming up with Julius Baer via F10’s Fintech incubator program. As noted by its management: “Julius Baer is the international reference… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 10:40 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), the global division of the National Payment Corporation of India, has teamed up with Liquid Group Pte. Ltd., a cross border payments provider, in order to support UPI QR-enabled payments acceptance in 10 different markets across North Asia and Southeast… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 9:39 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The National Institutional Facilitation Technologies (in Pakistan) and its business and tech partner TPS Worldwide, have introduced “NIFT ePay,” which is the nation’s all-inclusive payment gateway supporting business solutions beyond payments. As mentioned in a release, NIFT ePay supports digital commerce payments by aggregating different… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 9:31 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The total number of point-of-sale (POS) and digital commerce transactions in Bahrain increased by 65% in August 2021 YoY, reaching an aggregate value of almost $744 million during the month, after topping $3.62 billion during H1 2021, the Central Bank of Bahrain has revealed. According… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 9:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

China has reportedly introduced the Wealth Management Connect (WMC) along with Hong Kong and Macau in order to conduct cross-border investments in various wealth management products distributed by banking institutions in the region. The Wealth Management Connect trading scheme will be handling 300 billion yuan… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 8:39 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

AXA Affin General Insurance and Malaysia’s Finology, a Fintech firm focused on supporting efficient lending and insurance for individual consumers and businesses, have teamed up to allow clients to buy or renew car and motorcycle insurance and settle road taxes via online platforms. As noted… Read More

September 13, 2021 @ 6:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

Making certain a person or business is actually who or what they claim to be is very important. In a world that has migrated to virtual offices and digital meetings, the task of validation is an even greater necessity. AsiaVerify is a Regtech firm based… Read More

September 12, 2021 @ 10:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

UAE-headquartered healthcare financing platform Klaim has acquired $1.6 million via a pre-Series A round. Klaim’s investment round has been led by Mad’a Investments, a private equity company based in Saudi Arabia. Other investors also made contributions to the round, including Arzan Venture Capital and Wealth… Read More

September 12, 2021 @ 9:31 pm By Xu Gao  |  

Beijing Will Vigorously Support the Development of Two Types of Credit Rating Agencies On September 6th, Huo Xuewen, Director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Financial Work gave a speech at the 2021 China Credit Forum. Huo introduced that Beijing would give priority to the development… Read More

September 12, 2021 @ 7:24 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Singapore-based digital asset exchange SDAX has obtained its Recognized Market Operator (RMO) license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to operate a digital asset exchange, the company said this week. SDAX believes the use of blockchain in capital markets will create new opportunities for… Read More