Asia

June 6, 2017 @ 7:00 am By JD Alois  |  

At LendIt USA, it used to be a tradition that former Lending Club CEO delivered the opening keynote address on day one of the event. That all changed after 2016 when Laplanche was forced to resign from the company he founded. After several months in… Read More

June 6, 2017 @ 3:58 am By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Last week, it was reported that the 3 largest bitcoin exchanges in China finally ended a four-month freeze on withdrawals. BTC China, OKCoin, and Huobi all began prohibiting withdrawals from their exchanges almost four months ago amidst growing scrutiny from the Chinese government. In February,… Read More

June 5, 2017 @ 12:15 pm By JD Alois  |  

      LATTICE80 and Nordic Finance Innovation (NFI) have announced a new partnership to “bridge Asia and the Nordic’s Fintech ecosystems.” LATTICE80 is the creation of Marvelstone Group, a private investment firm.  The two entities signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to seal the… Read More

June 3, 2017 @ 5:00 pm By Xu Gao  |  

Chinese Tech Giant Baidu to Quit Crowdfunding Market Search engine giant Baidu Inc. is to quit crowdfunding market and pay more attention on artificial intelligence”]. Users will not see the “Baidu Crowdfunding” channel when they log in their Baidu Finance account, but will still be… Read More

June 2, 2017 @ 8:41 am By JD Alois  |  

Jakarta based Amartha (PT Amartha Micro Fintek) a peer to peer lending platform launched in 2010, is now officially registered with the Directorate of Institutional and Product IKNB (Financial Industry Non Bank) Financial Services Authority ( FSA). Amartha said the approval by the financial regulators… Read More

June 1, 2017 @ 9:32 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Hong Kong-based PrivateMarket.io and Symbiont announced an agreement to build an alternative investment marketplace for closed-end funds using Symbiont’s SmartSecurities software. At this writing, terms were not disclosed. “Symbiont’s SmartSecuritiesTM back-end is production-ready and we look forward to working with Loïc and his team to commercialize… Read More

May 31, 2017 @ 9:29 am By JD Alois  |  

Ravi Menon, current Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has been re-appointed to the MAS board of directors. His term on the Board has now been extended to June 1, 2019. Menon began his career at MAS in 1987. He holds a Master in… Read More

May 31, 2017 @ 1:24 am By JD Alois  |  

Last year, the Infocomm Media Development Authority, or IMDA, was formed in Singapore. Today, IMDA has become an factor in driving the digital innovation vision established by the Singapore government. Speaking last week at the Infocomm Media Business Exchange Opening Ceremony, Dr. Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 7:26 am By Erin Hobey  |  

China Minsheng Investment Group, one of the China’s largest private investment groups and helmed by Dong Wenbiao, has led a RMB1.8 billion ($262 million) pre-IPO investment round in Chinese P2P lender Tuandaiwang, according to multiple news sources. Beijing Yisheng Innovation Technology and Beihai Hongtai Investment also invested in this… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 5:37 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Indian online P2P lending platform Faircent.com announced a new semi-secure student loan product in collaboration with Bangalore-based micro-lending startups.  Lenders ay also opt for a partly-secured alternative-investment opportunity that delivers a higher return. Under the partnership, college students may fund purchase of items such as laptops, books and… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 10:03 am By JD Alois  |  

In a speech delivered to the Symposium on Asian Banking and Finance, co-hosted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the US Federal Reserve Bank of California, Ravi Menon, Managing Director of MAS, spoke about Asian banking and addressed the potential of Fintech to help the… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 8:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Woomentum, a community for female entrepreneurs, has expanded into Vietnam with the first edition of CrowdfundHer Live which took place in late April. The crowdfunding event in Ho Chi Minh City was said to capture about 200 participants while establishing itself as being one of… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 8:40 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Bank Negara Malaysia has approved four firms to operate within its regulatory sandbox, aiming to grow Malaysian fintech in line with global trends, according to multiple news sources. The Financial Technology Enabler Group (FTEG) was established by Bank Negara Malaysia in June 2016 to support innovations that… Read More

May 27, 2017 @ 2:16 pm By Xu Gao  |  

Bank of China and China Construction Bank to Offer Student Loans to University Students Since China Banking Regulatory Commission released regulations on P2P online lending market last month, the student loan market has stagnated. On May 17, Bank of China and China Construction Bank announced… Read More

May 27, 2017 @ 10:05 am By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Malaysia Fintech firm Soft Space, which offers mobile payment solutions, announced it has secured US $5 million in funding from Japanese e-commerce company Transcosmos Inc. Mobile POS and E-Commerce Soft Space offers mobile point-of-sale services for small and large merchants in Malaysia and other parts of Southeast Asia…. Read More

May 26, 2017 @ 6:03 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Capital Match announced that it has facilitated over S$40 million in cumulative origination since the start of its operations in 2015. The company claims itself as the largest pure marketplace platform in Singapore and greater Southeast Asia offering invoice financing and secured lending products. Accredited… Read More

May 25, 2017 @ 7:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

Silver Bullion reports it has now facilitated S$30 million in peer to peer loans secured by precious metals like gold and silver. The Singapore-based platform expects to pay out S$1 million in interest as the loans mature. Lenders are receiving an average return of 3.83%… Read More

May 25, 2017 @ 9:37 am By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Coins, a Philippines-based blockchain mobile payments platform that services Southeast Asia, announced it had secured US $5 million in funding from Naspers, according to an article on Techcrunch. Naspers, which is based in South Africa, is one of the world’s largest investors in tech. The… Read More

May 23, 2017 @ 9:34 am By JD Alois  |  

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) have signed a “Memorandum of Cooperation” agreeing to establish and develop the ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN). AFIN will strive to increase the adoption of Fintech innovation and… Read More

May 22, 2017 @ 7:46 am By JD Alois  |  

LATTICE80, Singapore-based Fintech hub owned and operated by private investment firm Marvelstone Group, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) to offer a Fintech experience program for year 1 and 2 students. NYP students that qualify can may up to be… Read More