Asia

January 8, 2024 @ 8:18 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Global Fintech Airwallex has reportedly announced the appointment of Nadav Tamam in order to spearhead its enterprise business focused on Israel and the Middle East region. As reported by news outlets focused on Israel, Tamam has prior experience working at firms like Google as well… Read More

January 7, 2024 @ 6:22 pm By Michael Wong  |  

A recent survey conducted by high-impact research firm Capstone-Intel Corp. has revealed a significant trend in the Philippines: 90% of Filipinos now regularly use financial technology (fintech) applications for their daily transactions. This growing reliance on digital finance underscores the urgency for improvements in security… Read More

January 6, 2024 @ 4:56 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Komunal, a Jakarta-based Fintech startup, has successfully raised $5.5 million in its extended Series A funding. The round was backed by a range of investors, including the prominent Sumitomo Corporation, and received support from existing backers like AlphaTrio Sustainable Technology Fund, Skystar Capital, Sovereign’s Capital, Ozora,… Read More

January 4, 2024 @ 11:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dubai Duty Free, which claims to be one of the largest travel retail operators, announced its partnership with Alipay+ in order “to power a seamless travel and checkout experience for international visitors.” Consumers from South Korea, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Mongolia, Italy as well as… Read More

January 4, 2024 @ 11:05 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Netbank, an embedded finance platform in Southeast Asia, is pleased to announce a transformative partnership with Sprout Solutions, the HR and payroll software provider in the Philippines. This collaboration marks a significant leap forward in “redefining the employee benefits landscape through the introduction of an… Read More

January 2, 2024 @ 7:09 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

As we enter 2024, Madhusudan Ekambaram, Co-founder and CEO at KreditBee, has shared insights on the Fintech-sector at large as well as his outlook for 2024. Madhusudan Ekambaram, Co-founder and CEO at KreditBee said that we “have seen a robust demand for credit in the… Read More

January 2, 2024 @ 2:22 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Jaya Vaidhyanathan, CEO, BCT Digital, recently shared key insights with CI that are focused around the banking sector and unsecured loans offered in India (along with the Reserve Bank of India’s recent policy decisions). Jaya from BCT Digital notes that as we enter 2024, the… Read More

January 1, 2024 @ 9:34 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Hakbah – the KSA-based fintech savings platform – announces a new partnership with Tarabut – MENA’s open banking platform, and an investor in the region’s digital transformation. The partnership has several benefits for Hakbah as it “simplifies and expedites various tasks.” It will enable streamlined… Read More

January 1, 2024 @ 8:53 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) seeks public consultation on draft amendments to the “Key Principles of Governance in Financial Institutions under the control and supervision of the Saudi Central Bank.” In this context, SAMA invites stakeholders to “provide suggestions and observations on the draft by… Read More

January 1, 2024 @ 6:24 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Lightyear announced a strategic investment from two South Korean venture capital funds, Sunbo Angel Partners and Lighthouse Combined Investment. Both funds, with ties to South Korea’s automotive industry and other manufacturing corporate alliances, “have recognized Lightyear’s potential to create the next era of highly efficient… Read More

December 31, 2023 @ 6:31 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has imposed a civil penalty of $3.9 million on Credit Suisse AG, for its alleged failure “to prevent or detect misconduct by its relationship managers (RMs) in the Singapore branch.” The RMs had allegedly provided clients “with inaccurate or… Read More

December 30, 2023 @ 11:55 am By Michael Wong  |  

Monex Group, a Japanese financial conglomerate known for its online brokerage, crypto exchange, and asset management services, has announced its acquisition of a majority stake in Canada’s 3iQ Digital Holdings and its subsidiaries for $39.8 million. In a statement, Monex revealed its ambition to bolster… Read More

December 29, 2023 @ 4:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Akash Sinha, CEO & Co-Founder, Cashfree Payments, has shared key insights with CI that are focused around UPI, digital payments and the overall Fintech space. Akash Sinha from Cashfree Payments notes that even with global economic uncertainty, the fintech sector in India has “continued to… Read More

December 28, 2023 @ 6:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

After the launch of World ID 2.0 and the open sourcing of the Worldcoin iris recognition pipeline in mid December, World ID verifications are now “available in Singapore via the Orb, the project’s custom hardware device.” A full list of verification locations is available on… Read More

December 27, 2023 @ 10:09 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) claims that it has had a “busy” and “productive” 2023, marked by the achievement of several significant milestones and the launch of new initiatives. This included the opening of new offices “in New York and London, strategically positioning… Read More

December 27, 2023 @ 7:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) has announced revisions to its Anti-Money Laundering and Sanctions Rules and Guidance (the AML Rulebook). The FSRA has made revisions that “clarify the requirements that previously appeared in the AML Rulebook, reflecting the federal regulatory framework the UAE has… Read More

December 27, 2023 @ 7:14 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Corporate payments startup EnKash has achieved a significant milestone by securing regulatory approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator under the brand name “Olympus”. This approval marks a pivotal moment for EnKash, reinforcing its commitment to compliance and… Read More

December 27, 2023 @ 9:51 am By JD Alois  |  

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has kicked off a public consultation on the issuance of stablecoins. Stablecoins are digital assets that are referenced to other assets. Typically affiliated with fiat currency, stablecoins may also be paired with other assets such as gold. Today, most… Read More

December 26, 2023 @ 11:42 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mox Bank Limited announced that customers can now earn Asia Miles instantly upon placing a Time Deposit “without waiting until maturity.” Mox claims that it is the first and “only” bank in Hong Kong to “offer such a reward, allowing customers to use Asia Miles… Read More

December 26, 2023 @ 10:04 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) announced that Kuwait Clearing Company (KCC) has now joined the Real Time Gross Settlement System (KASSIP), “effective Sunday 24/12/2023 upon completion of automated linking and passing the technical tests.” The system would thereby “execute final settlements for financial transactions… Read More