What The FinTech #137 - 16 Apr 2023
🚀 Welcome to What The Fintech - your weekly dose of electrifying insights, game-changing breakthroughs, and dazzling trends from the pulse-pounding world of fintech across Hong Kong, Singapore, China, and Asia! As your go-to source for top headlines and industry insights, we're here to keep you updated on the latest innovations revolutionizing the way we think about finance and technology in this dynamic region.
Prepare to embark on a thrilling adventure through the digital landscape as we explore the ground-breaking developments, visionary startups, and trailblazing trends that are shaping the future of finance in Asia and beyond. So buckle up, grab your favorite beverage, and get ready to ignite your curiosity with the latest and greatest from the fintech universe! Let's dive in! 🌊💡💸
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What The FinTech Episode 56 - OSL
🎙️🚀 Thrilled to share our latest episode of What The FinTech, featuring an insightful conversation with Dave Chapman, Co-founder of OSL, a trusted digital asset platform. Backed by BC Technology Group (stock code: 863 HK), OSL is the world’s only listed, SFC-licensed, and 'Big-four'-audited digital asset and fintech company.
OSL caters to institutional clients and professional investors by providing a comprehensive suite of services, including markets business (brokerage, exchange, custody), and SaaS solutions.
💡 In this episode, Dave discusses the unique offerings and vision of OSL:
🔹 OTC, RFQ/RFS, and electronic trading services, granting traders access to one of the world's deepest liquidity pools.
🔹 Secure, insured wallets ensuring the safekeeping of digital assets and timely transaction settlement.
🔹 OSL's commitment to being the trusted gateway to the digital asset economy.
Don't miss this fascinating discussion about the future of digital assets, the role of OSL in shaping the industry, and Dave Chapman's journey as a fintech entrepreneur. Listen now and be inspired by Dave's insights and experiences! 🎧
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Remember to subscribe, like, give a 5⭐ and share our podcast with fellow fintech and digital asset enthusiasts, and let us know your thoughts in the comments or on social media.
Stay tuned for more engaging conversations right here on "What The Fintech!" 🔥
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#Money2020Tour is making a stop in #Bangkok this month!
Are you aware that Thailand is celebrating #Songkran, which marks the beginning of the Thai New Year, today? Just as the water festival signifies new beginnings and reconnecting with friends and family, we're bringing an unforgettable splash of invigorating #networking, fresh content, and exciting announcements with the #Money2020Tour 💦 Come join us in Bangkok! bit.ly/3MHbebS
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What was the FinTech this week in: 📰
HONG KONG
Finance head promotes Hong Kong's place in web3 ecosystem
Hong Kong’s ZA Bank wants to be the go-to bank for crypto startups
XTransfer expands to Hong Kong, eases payments to mainland China
Finance head promotes Hong Kong's place in web3 ecosystem
Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan compared the status of the web3 sector to the post dotcom bubble period when many of the leading brands gained traction. While Hong Kong has been portrayed of late as becoming more crypto-friendly, Chan still talked about controlling risks, and regulation and mentioned multiple real-world use cases more typical of enterprise blockchain. The global competition for the development of Web3 is also deepening. The competition is about who can create the largest space for application and innovation under the premise of controllable risks. Turning to cryptocurrencies, Hong Kong is opening up to virtual currencies a little. In 2018 it introduced its first licensing regime for exchanges and service providers, which targeted institutional investors, with only two licenses issued so far. Last year it signaled it was more receptive to allowing retail investor access, and in February this year launched a consultation around a new licensing regime intended to start in June 2023. This will impose limits on financial exposure for retail users depending on their circumstances, such as their net worth. Hong Kong is also studying the regulation of stablecoins.
Hong Kong’s ZA Bank wants to be the go-to bank for crypto startups
As the collapses of Signature Bank and Silvergate sent crypto companies scrambling, a virtual bank from Hong Kong is extending a warm welcome to web3 startups. Hong Kong-based ZA Bank is now allowed to serve as the settlement bank for regulated web3 companies in the city. The online bank is set to facilitate crypto-fiat conversions in conjunction with two licensed exchanges in Hong Kong, HashKey and OSL, where customers can swap crypto into fiat currencies. In other words, the crypto-fiat conversion part is happening over the regulated exchanges rather than ZA Bank directly. ZA Bank will likely be settling transactions for more crypto exchanges as more companies apply to obtain digital assets permits from the Hong Kong authorities. In addition, ZA Bank, which was established by Chinese online insurer ZhongAn as one of Hong Kong’s first virtual banks, has started to offer basic banking services to local web3 startups, a category of businesses widely underserved by traditional financial institutions.
XTransfer expands to Hong Kong, eases payments to mainland China
XTransfer plans to launch localized services including cross-border payments and other related financial services for trade in Hong Kong in Q2 this year. When Hong Kong buyers pay mainland suppliers through XTransfer, it will be as easy as doing ―local HK payments. Moreover, XTransfer supports 24/7 instant payment to other XTransfer accounts and is expected to reduce remittance fees by 95% and exchange costs by 20%, significantly improving the efficiency of operating funds. XTransfer will also provide ―sunshine settlement and compliance reporting services for enterprises in both Hong Kong and mainland China, allowing for direct remittance of RMB to the seller‘s bank account in mainland China after reporting exchange settlement to the bank on behalf of the enterprise. With the resumption of normal travel between mainland China and Hong Kong this year, trade between the two places has become increasingly close. In the post-epidemic era, XTransfer‘s arrival in Hong Kong precisely coincides with a growing demand for facilitated cross-border financial services from trade enterprises in both Hong Kong and mainland China. This move aims to provide Hong Kong enterprises with more accurate and tailored services that respond to their needs and provide a safer way to make payments to mainland China.
SINGAPORE
Know your customer wins deals with Volopay and Coda payments in Singapore
Know your customer wins deals with Volopay and Coda payments in Singapore
Leading RegTech provider Know Your Customer is proud to announce its latest strategic client wins in Singapore: Volopay and Coda Payments. Know Your Customer‘s innovative compliance platform will streamline client onboarding and periodic review tasks for both clients, delivering a more seamless due diligence experience to their vast pool of SME and corporate clients. Volopay to help businesses better manage their finances to achieve their strategic growth. The product employs corporate cards and receivable and payable management software in order to streamline approvals and expense workflows, lending complete control and visibility over business expenses. Since then, it has expanded globally to Australia, Indonesia, and India, as well. To support payment providers in their dual objective of seamless onboarding and iron-clad compliance, Know Your Customer has developed a highly modular compliance platform that supports clients‘ need for cross-border verification and Know Your Business (KYB) automation. By providing live access to company registries in 127 countries worldwide and an end-to-end digital compliance platform, Know Your Customer empowers Fintech businesses to safely onboard clients across borders, unravel complex company structure charts and constantly stay in control of their regulatory obligations through automated periodic reviews.
CHINA
Meet SenseChat, China's latest answer to ChatGPT
Alibaba unveils ChatGPT alternative TongyiQianwen under cloud services after Baidu's high-profile Ernie Bot launch
Oort announces collaboration with Tencent Cloud
Metalpha raising US$100 million fund to woo Chinese Bitcoin buyers
Meet SenseChat, China's latest answer to ChatGPT
SenseTime Group Inc. showed off new artificial intelligence capabilities developed with the company‘s access to vast troves of data and deep computing power, the latest Chinese challenger to AI phenom ChatGPT. Now human programmers do about 80% of the work in AI development, but in the future, it will be reversed so that AI can handle 80% of the effort while humans take on 20% of the work to direct and polish. The AI model can also help double-check, translate, and revise code. Shanghai-based SenseTime, best known as a leader in computer vision, is joining a global race to develop generative AI since OpenAI‘s ChatGPT captured the popular imagination. Microsoft Corp. pledged a $10 billion investment toward the US startup, while rivals from Google to Baidu Inc. unveiled AI services that can similarly create original content from poetry to art just with simple user prompts.
Alibaba unveils ChatGPT alternative TongyiQianwen under cloud services after Baidu's high-profile Ernie Bot launch
Alibaba Cloud unveiled the service, called TongyiQianwen and has opened the chatbot to invite-only beta testing for corporate clients. The landing page for TongyiQianwen‘s website is sparse with no details about the functions of the service, which is described as a ―productivity assistant and idea generator that is ―dedicated to responding to human commands through the use of a large language model (LLM). The chatbot‘s terms of use link its development to Damo Academy, Alibaba‘s in-house scientific research group. The Hangzhou-based e-commerce giant confirmed in February that its research institute was working on an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot.
Oort announces collaboration with Tencent Cloud
Oort, an innovative data services platform, has announced a new collaboration with Tencent Cloud. Tencent Cloud will be integrated into the Oort network as a full-node provider, thereby supporting Oort's data services. Tencent Cloud's massive storage and computing capacity will allow Oort to provide additional data services, as well as enhanced privacy and security, to applications deployed on clouds. Tencent Cloud provides a full suite of industry and technical solutions that fit a wide variety of business scenarios -including audio and video, interactive live streaming, online education, gaming and more -ensuring that customers can move to cloud securely and efficiently. Tencent Cloud currently operates 70 availability zones across 26 regions, providing a strong infrastructure that enables businesses to expand across the globe. Tencent Cloud offers leading companies from a wide range of industries cost-effective digital transformation, extensive industry experience, customer-centric service, support for global enterprises, and Tencent's consumer-to-business (C2B) advantage.
Metalpha raising US$100 million fund to woo Chinese Bitcoin buyers
Metalpha Technology Holding is targeting a US$100 million fund to invest in Bitcoin and other crypto products from Grayscale Investments, offering Chinese investors with an appetite for crypto a regulated channel to get involved. The licensed digital asset wealth manager, formerly known as Dragon Victory International, has secured US$20 million for its new fund since March. The firm had been mulling relocation but decided to stay put after the city laid out plans to become a crypto trading hub. Its new fund was launched with NextGen Digital Venture, headed by Jason Huang, formerly of Alibaba Group Holding co-founder Joe Tsai‘s family office Blue Pool Capital. The key selling point for the fund is providing a legally compliant way for investors in Asia from traditional finance backgrounds to access the so-called Web3 space, or a decentralized version of the Internet built around blockchain technology.
ASIA
M'sian B2B fintech startup raises US$31.5mil in Series B1 funding to expand global footprint
Blockchain builder Ava Labs partners with Korea's SK Planet to expand Asia footprint
Goldman Sachs to start transaction banking operations in Japan
Linedata expands managed service offering for Apac buy-side firms
RBI releases guidelines to banks for acceptance of green deposits
Tiger Brokers releases AI chatbot investment assistant
Vietnam pledges to solve ‘pain points’ for tech startups and VCs
India's largest retailer accepts digital rupee CBDC
India's central bank cancels UPI rival project
ICICI Bank incorporates EMI facility for UPI payments
M'sian B2B fintech startup raises US$31.5mil in Series B1 funding to expand global footprint
Soft Space SdnBhd (Soft Space), a Malaysian B2B fintech company, announced today that its recently closed Series B1 funding has raised US$31. 5 million in investments. The funding round was led by Southern Capital Group (SCG) Pte. Ltd, with participation from returning investors, such as Japanese companies Transcosmosinc and JCB. The funds raised will be used to fuel Soft Space‘s continuous growth and expansion. Certified by major card schemes like EMVCo and PCI DSS, the company‘s fintech is secured and recognized globally. Soft Space aims to simplify financial infrastructures and enable frictionless payments for customers in a simple yet cost-effective manner. The company is known as one of the leading fintech players in the ASEAN region. Its technology is being adopted by over 70 financial institutions and partners in Japan, Europe, Oceania, and the Americas. Some of their more notable clients include Maybank, CIMB, Hong Leong Bank, and Bank of New Zealand. The company is currently focusing on expanding into omnichannel payments, including the adoption of artificial intelligence, QR code payments, e-wallet systems, and money lending schemes. Soft Space states that with this additional capital, it‘s well-positioned to continue its growth trajectory and achieve its goal of making payment acceptance accessible and affordable.
Blockchain builder Ava Labs partners with Korea's SK Planet to expand Asia footprint
Ava Labs, a company that launched the layer-1 blockchain Avalanche, has partnered with SK Planet, a data management and marketing platform unit of South Korean company SK Square. SK Planet will launch Avalanche Subnet UPTN to offer web3 infrastructure in SouthKorea. SK Planet is launching its Avalanche Subnet, UPTN, and will start deploying numerous SK applications and services on the Subnet, Nahas said, adding that potential additional Subnets are forthcoming. The Avalanche Subnet UPTN will let SK Planet customers and merchants use digital collectibles, web3 wallets, decentralized communities, and more. One such application is SK Planets‘ OK Cashbag, a membership reward program enabling customers to earn points via using the OK Cashbag app. Customers can use the points as cash across retail shops, from restaurants to hotels, movie theaters, retail financial apps and more. SK Planet claims it has tens of millions of OK Cashbag users, nearly half the South Korean population, and works with 90,000 merchant partners. Avalanche has more than 100 Subnets currently under development and in the test phase. Its Subnets allow individuals and enterprises to build customized, app-specific blockchains for their use cases.
Goldman Sachs to start transaction banking operations in Japan
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is set to start transaction banking services in Japan. The US bank will launch the operation in the world‘s third-largest economy through Goldman Sachs Bank USA‘s Tokyo branch. Japan is the first country in Asia where the firm offers the service. The platform provides global companies in Japan with treasury services including cash management and cross-border payments into more than 160 countries, to help them manage accounts speedily and efficiently. Goldman Sachs‘s banking arm gained a license in 2021 from Japan‘s Financial Services Agency for corporate cash management operations. The company has since been offering services including dollar settlements for Japanese companies overseas.
Linedata expands managed service offering for Apac buy-side firms
Linedata, a global provider of asset management and credit technology data and services, announced today the expansion of its services capabilities and offerings in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Linedata has extended its APAC offerings to include new industry segments namely private equity, private credit, specialized and structured credit, as well as allocators and aggregators. Leveraging its extensive experience in offering front, middle and back-office services to asset managers in the US and Europe for over a decade, Linedata brings expanded suite of digital transformation-led outsourcing solutions to its APAC clients -involving investment and portfolio analytics, advisory and custom software development, and infrastructure management services, including cybersecurity. With a globally integrated operations model, Linedata clients have access to an experienced pool of talent, standard processes and digital tools, and business continuity. Linedata‘s offerings can be implemented across a firm‘s proprietary platform or that of a third-party.
RBI releases guidelines to banks for acceptance of green deposits
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued a dedicated set of guidelines to the Indian banks and Non-Banking Financial Institutions (NBFCs) for accepting green deposits effective June 1, 2023. The move will likely boost the country‘s financing of renewable energy projects. The financial institutions will extend the facility of green deposits to nine sectors, including the renewable energy sector. The other eight sectors include-energy efficiency, green buildings, clean transportation, sustainable water and waste management, pollution prevention and control, sustainable management of living natural resources, terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity conservation, and land use. A green deposit refers to an interest-bearing deposit received by regulated entities (usually banks and non-banking financial institutions) for a fixed period. The proceeds are earmarked for being allocated towards green finance. The main objective of the framework was to encourage the banks and NBFCs to offer green deposits to customers, protect the interest of the depositors and aid the customers in achieving their sustainability agenda, address greenwashing concerns, and help augment the flow of credit to green activities.
Tiger Brokers releases AI chatbot investment assistant
Online broker Tiger Brokers has announced the development of its chatbot investment assistant: TigerGPT. TigerGPT, claimed to be the first program of its kind in the industry, uses the firm‘s content library and access to paid sources. The model‘s database includes market and stock insights, data from listed companies, and investor education materials –all of which help answer customer queries. Tiger Brokers OpenAI-powered program is ―undergoing daily-basis training and absorbing the latest market updates. It will also be adding more languages to the program, beyond its current English, Traditional Chinese, and Mandarin Chinese offerings.
Vietnam pledges to solve ‘pain points’ for tech startups and VCs
Easier regulations are on the horizon, Vietnam has told technology startups and investors, in contrast to the red tape that has grown amid the country‘s widening crackdown on corruption. Vietnam will revise Decree 38, which legally defines startups and venture capital and lets the government invest in startups. It would be ―more difficult to change other rules, such as those on cross-border transactions in Vietnam, which strictly controls money sent abroad, including for stock listings. The NIC has had multiple meetings with businesses, including in October, when it listened on how to improve Decree 38. Suggestions included raising the cap on investors in a venture capital fund, letting them invest in more industries, and allowing for more borrowing options. Vietnam has sought to offer reassurance amid market volatility, both inside and outside the country. Internationally, headwinds have ranged from bank panics to tech layoffs after tougher financing conditions pushed companies to cut costs. Decree 38 allows VCs to use gold or even land-use rights to finance their funds, though other capital constraints remain. With little clarity on stock options or convertible loans, for example, few startups choose to pursue initial public offerings in Vietnam. This limits investors‘ ability to exit or sell their investments, as does the difficulty of transferring cash overseas.
India's largest retailer accepts digital rupee CBDC
India‘s largest retailer Reliance Retail is accepting the Reserve Bank of India‘s Digital Rupee (e₹-R) Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Customers can pay with Digital Rupees at some Reliance Retail stores, TechCrunch reports. Shoppers will use a quick read (QR) code they scan with their phone to pay with digital rupees. They will first teste₹-R at Reliance‘s Freshpik gourmet grocery store. If Digital Rupees work at Freshpik, Reliance will accept them at all of its stores. Reliance partners with Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, and Innoviti Technologies to process e₹-R payments.
India's central bank cancels UPI rival project
The Reserve Bank of India has abandoned plans for a high-profile project intended to rival the country‘s dominant payment system, Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The project had attracted significant interest from a variety of major conglomerates, tech giants and financial institutions, including Amazon, Reliance, Facebook, Tata Group, Google, HDFC, and ICICI. The project‘s potential participants failed to propose ̳any innovative or infrastructural solutions. ‘ They emphasized the central bank‘s interest in exploring ideas that go beyond incremental improvements or substitutes for existing technologies.
ICICI Bank incorporates EMI facility for UPI payments
India-based ICICI Bank has introduced an EMI facility for UPI payments, which are made by customers scanning a given QR code while using PayLater. Following this integration, customers that are eligible for PayLater, ICICI Bank‘s BNPL service, are given the possibility to avail of the EMI facility in a fast and secure manner. The facility was designed to enhance the affordability of lakhs of the financial institution‘s clients. This enables them to instantly buy products, solutions, or tools by scanning the QR code required by the merchant and making payments in EMIs. The facility was also built to be availed across a suite of categories such as groceries, fashion apparel, electronics, hotel bookings, or travel bookings. Users can pay transactions that amount above INR 10,000 in easy installments that can vary from three, six, or nine months. The EMI facility for PayLater is set to be extended for online shopping and trading as well.
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