Asia

June 19, 2025 @ 8:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Partners Group, one of the largest firms in the global private markets industry, expanded its presence in the Middle East with the opening of a regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi. Steffen Meister, Executive Chairman of the Board, Partners Group, comments: “Abu Dhabi is increasingly becoming… Read More

June 15, 2025 @ 7:12 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Vietnam has passed a sweeping law to regulate digital assets and boost the country’s technology sector, formally legalizing crypto assets and laying the groundwork for strategic investments in artificial intelligence and semiconductors. The Law on Digital Technology Industry, approved by the National Assembly on Saturday,… Read More

June 14, 2025 @ 12:41 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Fraud in Asia-Pacific’s fastest-growing digital sectors is rising sharply, driven by sophisticated tactics involving deepfakes and synthetic identity documents, according to a new report from global verification provider Sumsub. Healthtech recorded the highest year-on-year increase in fraud cases across the region with a 723% surge… Read More

June 14, 2025 @ 12:40 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In today’s financial landscape, Citigroup’s insights shed light on two critical areas shaping global markets: the transformation of asset servicing and the economic dynamics of Asia’s export-driven economies. These reports offer a look into the forces driving post-trade operations and the potential risks facing Asia’s… Read More

June 13, 2025 @ 5:11 am By Omar Faridi  |  

PhonePe Limited announced an IP purchase of conversational engagement platform Gupshup’s proprietary ‘GSPay’ technology stack for enabling UPI-based payments for feature phones. GSPay is a mobile application built “on top of NPCI’s UPI payment solution for feature phones (UPI 123PAY).” PhonePe plans to customize and… Read More

June 11, 2025 @ 11:21 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Thunes, the so-called “Smart Superhighway” to move money around the world, announces a strategic alliance with Capitron Bank, a financial institution in Mongolia. In joining Thunes’ Direct Global Network, Capitron Bank’s business and retail customers will be able to “send funds instantly across borders to… Read More

June 11, 2025 @ 10:26 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

South Korea’s private markets are navigating a complex landscape, marked by cautious optimism and persistent headwinds. As outlined in PitchBook’s Q1 2025 South Korea Market Snapshot, the nation’s startup ecosystem is in a holding pattern, with venture capital (VC) activity subdued and private equity (PE)… Read More

June 11, 2025 @ 5:17 am By Michael Wong  |  

GoTo Group, Indonesia’s largest digital ecosystem, has completed the migration of its digital finance arm GoTo Financial’s infrastructure to Alibaba Cloud’s local data centers in Jakarta. The move marks a critical milestone in a strategic partnership formed in 2024 and is one of the most… Read More

June 10, 2025 @ 10:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Financial Services Authority (FSRA) of ADGM announced the implementation of amendments to its regulatory framework for digital assets, with immediate effect. The implementation of these amendments follows “extensive industry engagement and feedback received on Consultation Paper No. 11 of 2024.” As stated in the… Read More

June 10, 2025 @ 9:46 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Backbase, the global enabler of AI-powered banking technology, announces that Bank Muamalat has officially launched ATLAS by Bank Muamalat (ATLAS), Malaysia’s first Islamic digital-only bank centered on faith and lifestyle alignment. This milestone represents a transformative “leap in Bank Muamalat’s journey to redefine Islamic banking,… Read More

June 8, 2025 @ 4:55 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong will implement its new Stablecoins Ordinance on August 1, formalizing the city’s regulatory framework for stablecoin-related activities and introducing a licensing regime aimed at strengthening oversight of the fast-growing digital asset sector. The ordinance, which was officially gazetted on May 30, is a… Read More

June 8, 2025 @ 4:52 pm By Michael Wong  |  

South Korea’s NAVER Corp. is launching a new venture investment arm in Silicon Valley, a move that underscores its ambition to expand its global presence and accelerate innovation by backing early-stage startups in North America. The initiative, NAVER Ventures, will focus on identifying and supporting… Read More

June 8, 2025 @ 3:55 pm By Michael Wong  |  

The Philippines and India are accelerating efforts to strengthen collaboration in financial technology and broader development cooperation, as both nations seek to harness digital innovation to drive economic growth. Finance Secretary Ralph Recto recently held talks with Indian Ambassador Harsh Jain to identify new avenues… Read More

June 8, 2025 @ 4:52 am By Michael Wong  |  

UBTECH Education, in partnership with the Centre for Information Technology in Education (CITE) under the University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Education, has formally launched the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) Artificial Intelligence Education Development Initiative. The program is set to transform AI education… Read More

June 7, 2025 @ 5:28 pm By Michael Wong  |  

TBC Bank Group PLC has issued a $200 million bond to accelerate the growth of TBC Uzbekistan, its rapidly expanding digital banking arm, as the group deepens its footprint in Central Asia’s largest economy. The synthetic three-year bond, denominated in Uzbek sum and settled in… Read More

June 7, 2025 @ 5:25 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Artificial intelligence is playing a growing role in the way consumers shop across Asia Pacific, with more than a third now relying on AI tools to assist with purchase decisions, according to Adyen’s 2025 Annual Retail Report. Based on a survey of 41,000 consumers in… Read More

June 6, 2025 @ 4:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Ctrl Alt, a tokenization infrastructure platform, has officially secured its license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) to operate as a Virtual Assets Service Provider (VASP). Notably, Ctrl Alt claims it is the first VASP authorized to conduct issuer-related services. This milestone marks a… Read More

June 4, 2025 @ 5:13 am By Michael Wong  |  

Aspire, a Singapore-based finance platform for businesses, has integrated with global payment infrastructure provider Stripe to enhance its payment capabilities, allowing users across Asia to accept a wider range of payment methods and improve cash flow management. The integration enables Aspire users to receive payments… Read More

June 4, 2025 @ 4:33 am By Omar Faridi  |  

MY E.G. Services Berhad, Malaysia’s e-government and digital services provider, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Singapore Trade Data Exchange Services Pte. Ltd. (SGTraDex), Singapore’s digital infrastructure for trade data exchange. The partnership seeks to enable both parties to facilitate digital cross-border trade between… Read More

June 3, 2025 @ 8:24 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Ant International announced its collaboration with HSBC on the bank’s new Tokenised Deposit Service in Hong Kong. The service will support treasury management “with real-time, always-on HKD and USD payments between corporate wallets held by a corporate client at HSBC Hong Kong.” The Tokenised Deposit… Read More