Tech in Asia’s Post

Asia-Pacific (APAC) is one of the world’s fastest growing online trading markets.1 As it continues to grow, Asia’s trading software market is expected to hit a staggering $19.68 billion by 2031, expanding at a CAGR 7.84% between 2024 – 2031.2 In this context, iFX EXPO Asia 2024 presents itself as a launching board for industry players looking to expand in the region. #tech #technology #financialtechnology #information #fintechs #fintechinfoworld #fintech #startup #FintechNews #FintechSolutions #PaymentTech

❓ : What was the problem that M-DAQ tried to solve from the very beginning? 🗣 : The idea first came to me over 20 years ago while I was working for a major international financial institution. Part of my compensation package included the bank’s US-listed stocks, and I often wondered what my net worth was at any given moment. This sparked the idea of developing a solution that allows investors to view US stock prices in Singapore dollars in real time. In 2009, I was faced with a career crossroad and decided to take the leap of faith to put my idea into fruition. ❓ : How did the team define the pain point of the customers and grab the momentum of rapid growth? 🗣 : The concept of pivoting plays a crucial role in our growth journey. Initially focused on creating a stock market solution, our trajectory changed in 2015 when we seized a collaboration opportunity with Alibaba and Ant Group, transitioning into the realm of e-commerce. Back then, buying from overseas sellers posed significant challenges, spanning payment complexities to logistical uncertainties. Drawing from our foundational solution, we adapted it for e-commerce, enabling global customers to view prices on marketplaces in their local currencies. Over the years, we have identified the pain points in cross-border transactions across various industries and expanded our ecosystem capabilities, fuelling our growth momentum. - Richard Koh (the Founder and Group CEO of M-DAQ Global) 💁♂️ Read the full story of this startup founder who started his own business, creating solutions to address market challenges!

Given the fragmentation that characterizes many parts of Asia-Pacific’s fintech sector, consolidation could improve the competitive environment, reducing the need to heavily subsidize customers and allowing firms to invest more in research and development as well as improving the customer experience. Yet across the region, from the most affluent economies to those that are still developing, big-ticket M&A transactions remain few and far between. In the past five years, there have only been a handful, such as the 2020 merger of Gojek and Tokopedia, the National Bank of Australia’s acquisition of the Aussie neobank 86 400 in 2021 and Square’s purchase of Afterpay in 2021. While certain macroeconomic factors like high interest rates have affected consolidation across industries, Asia’s fintech sector has some structural issues that inhibit M&A. Of these, the most notable is the tendency for Asian tech giants to organically build out fintech capabilities and try to create all-in-one super apps that allow them to cross-sell users everything from online banking to food delivery, entertainment and ride hailing services. These companies exist in China, Korea, Southeast Asia and India. In theory, the scale these companies have built would make it easy for them to buy up prime assets that strengthen their respective digital finance offerings. However, they are already so big that efforts to grow bigger still could attract regulatory ire. In fact, several have fallen afoul of regulators for alleged monopolistic practices like Alipay and Tenpay in China. In India, payments juggernauts PhonePe and Google Pay are under pressure because of their dominance of the UPI retail payments rail, while WhatsApp Pay has only been allowed to offer payment services to a fraction of its 500 million users in the subcontinent. In the months ahead, we do expect fintech M&A activity in Asia to pick up modestly, though stubbornly high interest rates will likely limit investor appetite for mega deals. The Fed is expected to cut rates (by not by much) in September, according to a survey of 100 economists by Reuters. One segment that could be ripe for M&A is crypto, now that the winter is finally over. To that end in February, Kakao’s and Line Group’s respective blockchain networks Klaytn and Finschia said that they would merge, creating a comprehensive Web3 ecosystem. A new foundation will be set up in Abu Dhabi to execute the merger. While there has been rising skepticism about Web3’s potential of late, M&A deals like this one can help firms in the segment increase their competitiveness and clarify their value propositions. Web3 is also nascent compared to fintech segments like payments or digital banking, and thus less apt to raise antitrust concerns. #m&a #mergersandacquisitions #venturecapital #investing #fintech #india #china https://hubs.li/Q02tFC4j0

Wow https://lnkd.in/e3nNhp_k This conversation about FinTech and E-Commerce absolutely changed my mind on how I view finanacial technologies and the science behind it. When it comes to financial technology we need to be open minded on the networking and humanization aspect not just the effeciency (speed). With the amount of automated technologies being used on a lot of online acquisitions it tends to take away the relationship and building aspect. What stood out to me in this conversation was when Om Kundu said “ultimately in order for us to be truely animated in what makes us human is not the next thing we want to buy but what the motivation is in buying that. ” Often times purchasing things online result in the data looking into what did you do or search up in the past as opposed to looking ahead. Although the drive is to push for more networking and humanization Om pointed out that speed is also important. However, it is not the only thing we should be looking for. SaveAway® with INSPIRAVE is absolutely on the path of changing the game of financial technologies as we know it! I look forward to the future and what I can help improve and assist in, when it comes fintech.

Exclusive in my latest Forbes column with a big market update from dLocal as Pedro Arnt is appointed CEO and Sebastián Kanovich who has grown the company from its earliest stages takes on his new role. https://lnkd.in/eNZnFAUH Great conversations with Pedro Arnt, Sergio Fogel and Sebastián Kanovich as they take me through how dlocal is embarking on the next phase of its strategy and scales up for even bigger growth. #fxcintelligence #payments #fintech #markets #ecommerce #emergingmarkets

New Post: Singapore-based fintech Xalts acquires digital trade platform Contour Network - https://lnkd.in/gNzFMcEQ - In a role reversal, Xalts, a Singapore fintech startup founded 18 months ago, has acquired Contour Network, a digital trade platform set up by eight major banks including HSBC, Standard Chartered and BNP. Terms of the deal were undisclosed, but the acquisition price was in the high single millions and composed of cash and stock. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. - #news #business #world -------------------------------------------------- Download: Stupid Simple CMS - https://lnkd.in/g4y9XFgR -------------------------------------------------- or download at SourceForge - https://lnkd.in/gNqB7dnp

Japan has finally ditched floppy disks (last month) in favor of more modern digital solutions. Considering the last new floppy disk was made in 2011 (!) I sincerely hope it doesn't take 15 years for paper checks to follow in their footsteps. There's a line in this article that I like: "Widespread use should not be equated with efficiency, and doing things the way they’ve always been done should not be equated with sustainable business growth." Part of the role of founders and innovators is to push for efficiency and changing the way things have 'always' been done. And as we are teetering (if not arguably over) the edge of the digital revolution, now is the time to really challenge clients and customers to think about the future of business. We are moving towards a future where digital payments are not just an option but a necessity. The benefits are immense – from enhanced security to improved efficiency and cost savings. However, to make this transition smoothly. we must address issues like digital literacy, infrastructure, and trust in new technologies. There is more to truly achieving innovation than technology. Building excitement and momentum is one thing; growing acceptance is another, and necessary to achieve sustainable change. #ProductDevelopment #DigitalPayments #StartUps

Undervalued high-potential fintech investment plays Most of us can see the flaws and cracks in the traditional finance system and the need for modernization. That is why fintech platforms scale so quickly — they allow users to carry out any bank operations and invest online directly with no need to pay large fees. Investors like to support fintech companies because a good platform has great technology and provides benefits to leaving the security of a major bank. Here are three fintech companies that I consider eligible for a bright future and worth investment: 1. Block (former Square) has evolved from a simple mobile payment processing solution into a comprehensive financial ecosystem. It has expanded its product offerings significantly beyond its origins as a mobile card payment processor. The company now processes payments at an annualized rate exceeding $200 billion and has established its banking subsidiary, Square Financial Services, as well as a thriving small business lending platform. Block's evolution from a single-service mobile payment provider into a diversified fintech company has positioned itself as a significant player. 2. Mercado Libre is a leading e-commerce platform in Latin America with a massive e-commerce operation and over $30 billion in annualized merchandise sales volume. The company continues to grow at an impressive rate and has also developed a logistics platform, Mercado Envios, and a lending business, Mercado Credito, which has gained significant traction in recent years (146% year-over-year growth in the most recent quarter). 3. Sea — a diversified technology company based in Southeast Asia, that may have a potential upside as perceived by analysts. Sea Ltd operates in multiple industries, including e-commerce, fintech, and mobile gaming. Analysts have a one-year price target range of $41.00 to $92.00 for Sea Ltd's stock, indicating a potential upside of around 10% from its current trading price. The company's core business segments include Shopee (e-commerce), Garena (mobile gaming), and Seamoney (financial services). What companies would you consider investing in? 💡 This information should not be considered as an individual investment recommendation. #FinTechInvestments #FinTechStartups #HighPotentialFinTechCompanies

As this year's Singapore FinTech Festival kicks off today, what topics and trends are you looking forward to being discussed? We came up with our list of 8 trends to watch for 2024 on Insignia Business Review: https://lnkd.in/g4DvAtVS 1️⃣ Southeast Asia’s growing role in global cross-border payments 2️⃣ Rise of The “Financially-Savvy” Generation 3️⃣ Conversion of the “Traditional” Generation 4️⃣ Investing in finance talent and tools 5️⃣ Race to the Holy Grail of Lending (for both Businesses and Consumers) 6️⃣ Generative AI meets Fintech 7️⃣ Back to Basics on Profitability 8️⃣ Race to Embed Fintech in Consumer Experiences Which ones are you looking at? Which aren't in this list but should be included? Let us know in the comments👇 Trends pieced together from conversations with fintech leaders throughout this year, Flip COO Gita Prihanto, Aspire CMO Joel Leong, AwanTunai CEO Dino Setiawan, Finhay CEO Huy (Shayne) Nghiem, Tonik CEO Greg Krasnov and SD Lead Jui Takle, and Pinhome CEO Dayu Dara Permata If you're at SFF today, catch Yinglan Tan later at 4:20 pm at the Founders Peak Stage with Asian Development Bank (ADB)'s Arvind Sankaran, Arbor Ventures's Melissa Guzy, Tradelite Solutions's Moaffak Ahmed and Matthias Kröner as they pitch trends, moderated by Elevandi's Pat Patel #fintech #sff2023 #asean #finance