Asia

September 30, 2026 @ 1:26 am By Michael Wong  |  

Singapore’s financial institutions should plan for their workforce alongside artificial intelligence adoption as AI changes jobs across the sector, Deputy Prime Minister and Monetary Authority of Singapore Chairman Gan Kim Yong said. Speaking at the Institute of Banking and Finance Distinction Evening on Sept. 24,… Read More

September 29, 2026 @ 8:06 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s top intelligence agency has recently issued yet another pointed reminder that cryptocurrency does not place users beyond legal scrutiny. In a public warning released on September 28, 2026, the Ministry of State Security argued that digital assets have been adopted by offenders seeking to… Read More

September 28, 2026 @ 11:30 am By JD Alois  |  

Tether is touting its countermeasures against the rogue regime of Iran in line with the ongoing sanctions being applied by the US. According to a post by Tether, nearly $550 million in Iran-linked USD₮ has been frozen since the beginning of the year. Around $344… Read More

September 28, 2026 @ 3:17 am By Michael Wong  |  

Global financial stability risks have increased as higher sovereign borrowing needs, an investment-intensive artificial intelligence cycle and geopolitical tensions push up the cost of capital, the Monetary Authority of Singapore said in its latest financial stability review. Long-term nominal and real sovereign yields have risen… Read More

September 28, 2026 @ 2:20 am By Michael Wong  |  

Private equity major Warburg Pincus is hard‑wiring artificial intelligence into every stage of its investment process, treating AI as a mandatory lens for both new deals and portfolio value creation. Senior managing director Vishal Mahadevia, speaking at DealStreetAsia’s Asia PE-VC Summit in Singapore, said the… Read More

September 28, 2026 @ 12:14 am By Michael Wong  |  

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has set a minimum capital requirement of ₱1 billion (about $16 million) for thrift, rural and cooperative banks that shift to business models similar to digital banks, as the central bank moves to strengthen safeguards around digital transformation in… Read More

September 27, 2026 @ 7:05 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Artificial intelligence is changing how private equity and venture capital firms assess investments and monitor portfolios, but human judgment, proprietary relationships, and data remain critical to investment decisions, investors said at the Asia PE-VC Summit in Singapore. AI is increasingly being used to speed up… Read More

September 27, 2026 @ 4:30 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Washington and Beijing have opened a formal conversation on advanced computing while stretching their latest commercial ceasefire, a pairing that looks modest on paper and more consequential in practice. After a three-day leadership visit in the US capital, the two governments said they would keep… Read More

September 27, 2026 @ 12:34 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Private equity firms operating in Asia are increasingly deploying artificial intelligence (AI) to boost portfolio company earnings and secure exits, executives said on Tuesday, as the region’s deal-exit environment splits sharply between favored and lagging sectors. Speaking at DealStreetAsia’s Asia PE-VC Summit in Singapore, senior… Read More

September 26, 2026 @ 3:42 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Asia-Pacific’s economic growth is expected to remain resilient as an artificial intelligence-driven technology export boom supports the region, although weak domestic demand in China, elevated energy prices, and tighter U.S. monetary policy pose risks, S&P Global Ratings said. S&P raised its baseline 2026 growth forecast… Read More

September 26, 2026 @ 12:39 pm By Michael Wong  |  

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and Bank Indonesia (BI) have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation on QR code-based cross-border payments between Hong Kong and Indonesia, as both sides seek to make transactions faster and more affordable. The MoU aims to establish… Read More

September 26, 2026 @ 3:27 am By Michael Wong  |  

Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) will require listed companies to provide more detailed disclosures on executive remuneration, dividend policies, and investor relations as it seeks to strengthen transparency and encourage a greater focus on long-term value creation. The changes will take effect on Jan. 1,… Read More

September 25, 2026 @ 11:14 pm By Michael Wong  |  

GCash has evolved from a loss-making digital wallet into a highly profitable financial technology platform, illustrating the scale Southeast Asian fintech companies can reach, according to Warburg Pincus executive Vishal Mahadevia. The Philippine digital wallet had about 15 million monthly active users when Warburg Pincus… Read More

September 25, 2026 @ 12:11 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Two financial groups in East Asia have completed a proof-of-concept exercise designed to show how stablecoins might one day support institutional payments between Japan and South Korea without routing money through the US dollar. SBI Digital Practice, a subsidiary of Japan’s SBI Holdings (TYO: 8473)… Read More

September 23, 2026 @ 7:24 am By Omar Faridi  |  

South Korea’s Hana Bank has completed a $100 million foreign-currency digital bond on Euroclear’s distributed ledger platform, compressing a process that usually stretches across several business days into a same-day settlement. The five-year note was placed on Friday through Euroclear’s Digital Financial Market Infrastructure, or… Read More

September 23, 2026 @ 12:48 am By Michael Wong  |  

Mynt Inc., the parent company of Philippine e-wallet GCash, has received approval from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) for an initial public offering that is set to become the largest in the exchange’s history, marking a major test for investor appetite for the country’s fintech… Read More

September 22, 2026 @ 10:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

South Korea’s consumer finance platforms have taken another step toward tokenized money. Kakao Pay and Kakao Bank have signed a memorandum of understanding with Fireblocks to study secure digital asset infrastructure in the country, with stablecoins at the center of the work. The non-binding pact,… Read More

September 22, 2026 @ 9:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

CloudTech Group has introduced RooRooEx, a digital-asset trading venue meant to give professional desks, high-net-worth clients, and individual investors in the Asia-Pacific region access to tools and pricing that have long been associated with large institutions. The Melbourne-based firm built the platform on technology from… Read More

September 22, 2026 @ 2:15 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Sweden have dismantled a cross-border money-laundering network that investigators say moved millions in criminal proceeds through cash and cryptocurrency, with digital trails pointing toward organized crime and paid assassinations. In a coordinated operation announced this week, UAE security… Read More

September 22, 2026 @ 4:53 am By Michael Wong  |  

The number of credit cards in circulation in Hong Kong rose 36.1% year-on-year to 31.03 million at the end of the second quarter, while the value of credit card transactions increased 6.8%, data from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) showed. Credit card transactions reached… Read More