Trust Bank has launched fractional trading for US stocks and exchange-traded funds, allowing customers in Singapore to invest with smaller amounts of capital. The feature lets users buy portions of shares, with investments starting from US$10. Through a partnership with Saxo Singapore, customers can access more than 7,000 US-listed stocks and ETFs directly within the Trust App. The service was initially offered to customers on a waitlist in November 2025. Since then, around 10,000 customers have opened trading accounts. Trust Bank said about 45 percent of customers who traded during this period made fractional trades. The bank is offering zero commission on trades until 30 June 2026, with no custody, platform, or settlement fees during this period. Customers who make a first trade of at least US$1,000 may also receive a free fractional stock worth up to US$500 under a promotion that runs until 31 March 2026. The trading feature is integrated within the Trust App, allowing customers to fund investments directly from their savings accounts without transferring money to an external brokerage platform. Trust said account opening typically takes less than one minute. Dwaipayan Sadhu Dwaipayan Sadhu, CEO of Trust Bank, said, “At Trust, we believe investing should be simple, transparent, and accessible to everyone. With TrustInvest, customers can now trade US stocks and ETFs right from the Trust App, backed by Saxo’s world-class platform. This is just the beginning of our journey to make wealth-building easier and more rewarding for all.” Mahesh Sethuraman Mahesh Sethuraman, Singapore CEO of Saxo, said, “Our purpose at Saxo is simple: get curious people invested in the world. Long-term participation in financial markets remains the surest path to securing one’s future, and we’ve helped make that possible in Singapore for over two decades. Together with Trust Bank, we’re proud to open the investing landscape even wider and deliver a positive impact at scale.” Trust Bank said it is the first banking app in Singapore to offer fractional trading of US stocks and ETFs.     Featured image: (From left) Ivan Chang, APAC Regional Manager, Institutional Business, Saxo; Dwaipayan Sadhu, CEO of Trust Bank; Mahesh Sethuraman, Singapore CEO of Saxo; Aditya Gupta, Chief Product Officer, Trust Bank   The post Trust Bank Launches Fractional Trading for US Stocks, ETFs From US$10 appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Osome, the Singapore-based business management platform, has appointed Eugenio Ferrante as CEO. Ferrante takes on the role after advising the company for the past 16 months, formalising a leadership transition that began when he joined in an advisory capacity. He succeeds founder Victor Lysenko, who stepped down in 2025 after growing the platform to more than 30,000 customers. Prior to joining Osome, Ferrante led Casa Mia Coliving to a successful exit and founded ColivHQ, a software platform for co-living and rental housing operators. He previously served as Chief of Staff at Acronis and held senior regional and operational roles at Parallels and Bain & Company. The appointment comes as Osome reported two record months for revenue from new customers, which rose 100 percent year on year in November 2025 and 85 percent in December. Annual recurring revenue increased 22 percent from a year earlier, while average revenue per user grew 25 percent. The company said the growth followed a rebuild of its commercial strategy over the past 16 months, with a sharper focus on predictable revenue and service delivery rather than rapid expansion. Eugenio Ferrante “We stopped trying to be everything to everyone. We asked ourselves: what do global founders coming to Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates actually need? The answer was simple—remove the administrative chaos so they can focus on building their businesses.” says Ferrante. Looking ahead, the company said it will make targeted investments while maintaining operational discipline. It will continue developing its platform to provide clearer financial visibility, more automated and predictable month-end processes, and decision support based on continuously updated insights. This marks a shift away from compliance-led accounting towards a more integrated operating platform.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by anonto1458 via Freepik The post Eugenio Ferrante Takes Over as CEO of Osome appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Aspire is adding Deel’s Employer of Record services to its platform as more founders turn to international hiring to scale their teams. The move reflects growing demand for simpler cross-border employment tools as startups expand beyond their home markets. Aspire data shows that 63 percent of businesses already hire internationally or plan to do so, often starting with small overseas teams of one to three employees before expanding across multiple markets. Through the integration, Aspire customers can access Deel’s Employer of Record infrastructure within the platform, allowing them to hire employees abroad while managing payroll and compliance alongside their financial operations. The offering aims to reduce the complexity of navigating local labour laws, tax requirements and regulatory obligations across jurisdictions. Aspire continues to provide business accounts, treasury, foreign exchange and cross-border payments, while Deel handles employment and compliance services. The integrated Employer of Record service is now available to Aspire customers. Andrea Baronchelli “We chose Deel for the strength of its infrastructure and its demonstrated ability to operate consistently across complex regulatory environments at global scale. This partnership reflects our shared commitment to giving founders the solid foundations they need to expand confidently into new markets.” said Andrea Baronchelli, CEO and Co-Founder of Aspire. Ryan Freeman “Too often, companies are forced to manage global hiring and financial operations as separate systems. By connecting our employment and compliance infrastructure with Aspire’s financial platform, founders gain a clearer understanding of how hiring decisions translate into financial impact. This partnership moves global teams toward a more transparent, controlled, and sustainable model for international growth.” said Ryan Freeman, Global Head of Partnerships at Deel.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by smartmalik6384 via Freepik The post Aspire Taps Deel to Support International Hiring for Startups appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

HSBC’s market value could climb beyond £300 billion as the bank builds on a strong rally in its shares, according to comments from a senior executive. The view was shared during a Bloomberg Television interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Michael Roberts Michael Roberts, who leads HSBC’s corporate and investment banking business, said the lender’s earnings outlook supports a higher valuation despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty. HSBC recently crossed the £200 billion mark for the first time and is now valued at about £210 billion. The share price gains have cemented HSBC’s position as Europe’s largest bank by market capitalisation, ahead of rivals including Banco Santander, UBS Group and BNP Paribas. The comments come as HSBC moves beyond a year of restructuring under Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery. The overhaul involved job cuts, business consolidation and selected exits as the bank sought to simplify operations and lower costs. Roberts said that phase is largely complete, with the focus shifting to growth. Technology is expected to play a key role in that next phase. Roberts said artificial intelligence should help improve productivity rather than drive mass layoffs, while reducing administrative work and allowing bankers to spend more time with clients. He also pointed to the growing role of digital assets and tokenisation in trading activity. HSBC has been testing advanced technologies, including quantum computing, within its trading business. The bank disclosed last year that early trials showed potential to improve the pricing of financial assets, highlighting how emerging tools could reshape markets over time.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by ilygraphic via Freepik The post HSBC May Reach £300 Billion Valuation After Major Restructuring appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore bank branches and off-premise automated teller machines have fallen by an average of about 2 percent a year over the past decade. Banks have been rationalising their physical networks as customers increasingly shift to online banking and cashless payments. The figures were disclosed by Gan Kim Yong, who is also Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), in a written parliamentary reply. He said the three local banks currently operate more than 150 retail branches and over 1,600 off-premise ATMs across Singapore, with more than 1,200 of these located within Housing & Development Board towns. Gan said MAS monitors ATM and branch coverage and engages banks to ensure customers continue to have reasonable access to banking services. When siting ATMs and branches, banks consider factors including footfall, transaction volume, population density and proximity to public transport, typically prioritising locations central to daily activities such as heartland malls and food centres. Banks also review the Urban Redevelopment Authority master plan and government tenders to identify suitable locations in new and existing housing estates. As part of efforts to offset the reduction in physical locations, banks have expanded the use of multi-function ATMs and partnered retail outlets including 7-Eleven, Giant and Sheng Siong to allow customers to withdraw cash when making purchases. MAS said it will continue working with banks to maintain access to cash services while encouraging greater use of digital banking channels.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by user33154880 via Freepik The post Singapore Bank Branches, ATMs Fall Around 2% a Year as Digital Use Rises appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Private banking arm Bank of Singapore has appointed Collins Chin as its Group Chief Financial Officer with immediate effect, according to a report by The Edge. Collins Chin Chin will join the bank’s Global Management Committee and report to Chief Executive Officer Jason Moo. He moves into the role from parent group OCBC, where he held senior finance and investor relations responsibilities. Chin joined OCBC in 2009 as Head of Group Financial and Management Reporting and was appointed Head of Investor Relations in 2013, working closely with the investment community and supporting the group’s capital market activities and corporate transactions. Prior to joining OCBC, Chin was Head of Investor Relations at Singapore Exchange. Bank of Singapore said his background in financial management and investor engagement will support the bank’s strategic priorities and reflects the OCBC group’s focus on developing senior leadership internally.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by HobieArt via Freepik The post Bank of Singapore Taps Collins Chin for Group CFO Role appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Payments software provider ACI Worldwide has appointed JP Krishnamoorthy as Chief Innovation and Technology Officer. JP Krishnamoorthy Krishnamoorthy joined the company in December 2025 and has assumed leadership of ACI’s Global Technology and Innovation organisation. In the role, he will be responsible for advancing ACI’s technology strategy to support faster product delivery and more scalable payments services for banking, biller and merchant customers that process trillions of dollars in transactions each year. Tom Warsop Tom Warsop, CEO of ACI Worldwide, said, “We are in a critical modernisation phase, and we need a technology leader who understands how to drive innovation and build smarter capabilities into our platforms while maintaining the 24/7 reliability our customers require. JP has that rare combination of experience in payments systems at scale, successful product innovation and leadership, and AI implementation. He’s exactly the right leader to accelerate our technology evolution. He is a recognised force in today’s rapidly-changing software industry, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the ACI team.” Before joining ACI, Krishnamoorthy served as Executive Vice President of Engineering, AI, Cloud Operations and Cybersecurity at Coupa Software. In that role, he led platform modernisation initiatives and helped develop Community.ai, which uses machine learning to extract operational intelligence from customer transaction data at scale. He previously held senior roles at Oracle and Portal Software. The appointment follows the planned departure of Abe Kuruvilla, who has served as Chief Technology Officer since 2023. During his tenure, ACI brought products including ACI Connetic and Speedpay One to general availability, implemented Fed ISO 20022 and SWIFT Hybrid Address regulatory requirements, and strengthened its technology leadership team.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by smth.design via Freepik The post ACI Worldwide Appoints JP Krishnamoorthy as Tech and Innovation Chief appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore’s Sea Ltd has increased its investment in MariBank with a S$75 million capital injection, lifting the digital bank’s paid-up capital to about US$639 million. The funding was disclosed in regulatory filings and first reported by DealStreetAsia. The top-up comes after another shareholder injection in May 2025, when Sea added about US$78 million to MariBank’s capital base as the lender continued to expand its operations. Singapore’s digital banks are required to raise capital progressively as they grow under the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s licensing framework. The latest funding comes as digital lenders across the region place greater emphasis on improving profitability and strengthening customer engagement, following an initial phase of rapid deposit growth. MariBank has broadened its business beyond core savings and payments, moving into areas such as small and medium-sized enterprise lending and gold-linked investment products. These offerings are intended to deepen usage across its customer base and support more sustainable economics. Financial disclosures show that MariBank’s revenue increased sharply in 2024, even as costs remained elevated. Total income rose to S$24.4 million from S$10.1 million a year earlier, supported by higher interest-related income as lending activity expanded. Operating expenses climbed to S$71.4 million from S$62 million as the bank continued to build out its operations. After setting aside S$4.4 million for expected credit losses, MariBank recorded a loss after tax of S$51.3 million for the year, compared with S$52.2 million in 2023. The bank reported a total comprehensive loss of S$51 million for 2024, little changed from the previous year. Speaking at DealStreetAsia’s Asia PE-VC Summit 2025 in Singapore, MariBank’s Chief Financial Officer said the bank measures performance by how frequently customers use its services rather than by transaction volumes alone, as it works towards long-term sustainability. MariBank launched in March 2023 and has since introduced features such as fee-free remittances, savings accounts with daily interest crediting, and investment products that allow instant withdrawals.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by thanyakij-12 via Freepik The post Sea Injects Another S$75 Million Into MariBank Amid Revenue Growth appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Fujitsu Limited and SC Ventures have announced the launch of Qubitra Technologies. It is a joint venture aimed at advancing quantum computing applications and building a global quantum ecosystem. Previously incubated as Project Quanta in September 2025, Qubitra will operate from the UK. The company will focus on high-performance applications and a marketplace platform for quantum software and hardware providers. Vishal Shete, CEO of Qubitra, said: Vishal Shete “Our mission at Qubitra is to turn quantum innovation into business impact by combining high-performance applications with a collaborative ecosystem that advances the industry.” Alex Manson, CEO of SC Ventures, added: Alex Manson “Qubitra, with access to Fujitsu’s quantum software and hardware, will leverage quantum technology across a number of use cases to rewire the DNA in banking and beyond.” Qubitra plans to develop proprietary applications in areas such as fraud detection, derivatives pricing, and financial markets trading, using quantum and quantum-inspired algorithms alongside machine learning methods. Initial implementations with financial institutions, hedge funds, and family offices are underway, with the first go-live expected in early 2026. The venture is also creating a marketplace platform that connects quantum software and hardware providers with end users. The platform will integrate multiple technologies, including Fujitsu’s quantum hardware, Digital Annealer, and proprietary applications, supporting experimentation and deployment across the quantum stack. It will include both Qubitra’s and third-party offerings, with a usage-based model to encourage participation. A pilot group of users is expected in 2026, with a full launch to follow. The founding leadership team combines expertise in finance, frontier technologies, and fintech venture-building. Vishal Shete leads as CEO, Daniel Wynne serves as COO, bringing experience in banking and capital markets, and Kugendran Naidoo is CSO, specialising in quantum algorithms and machine learning. This neutral summary outlines Qubitra’s focus on delivering practical quantum applications and building a collaborative ecosystem for the quantum community.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by Amax Photo via Freepik This article first appeared on Fintech News Hong Kong The post Fujitsu and SC Ventures Launch Qubitra to Advance Quantum Computing appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Leadership changes are under way at GXS Bank, with Geraldine Wong and Vishal Shah scheduled to leave at the end of February 2026, according to an internal email seen by Fintech News Singapore. Geraldine Wong Geraldine, Chief Data Officer at GXS Bank and one of the digital bank’s early employees, has spent the past five years leading the bank’s data and artificial intelligence strategy. Her work included building data partnerships across the group and developing AI capabilities used internally and by customers. During her tenure, GXS took part in Project Mindforge, an industry taskforce led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore that examines the responsible use of generative AI. Vishal Shah Vishal, who served as Group Head of Business Banking, led the rollout of business banking services in Singapore and Malaysia and oversaw the acquisition and integration of GXS Capital. The internal email said the loan book at GXS Capital doubled over the past eight months under his leadership. From 2 March 2026, Caroline Chong, Head of Data at GX Bank in Malaysia, will oversee the data team at GXS Bank on an interim basis. GXS Group CEO Pei-Si Lai will work more closely with the business banking team while the group finalises a replacement for the Group Head of Business Banking role. Insurance and finance emerge as key focus for Grab and GXS The departures come as GXS and Grab continue to align their financial services operations more closely. Jenn Ong, Group Head of Retail, will oversee the consumer business for GrabFin and GXS Group, while the MSME business will be led by a future Group Head of Business Banking once appointed. Julianne Heng will lead payments strategy for the combined financial services ecosystem. Risk, legal and marketing functions are also being aligned across the group. Credit risk, collections and fraud risk for the banks will be led by Grab executives Rupa Mukherjee and Farrah Harriet Ratnaike, reporting to Vincent Mok, Group Chief Risk Officer. Legal matters for GXS Bank and GX Bank will be handled by Grab country legal heads Joan Xue and Cindy Sim, subject to regulatory approvals. Pamela Chia will lead marketing across the unified financial services operations. The internal email said GXS and Grab will also deepen collaboration in areas such as insurance and finance to support regional scale. In the coming months, customer experience, data, engineering, people and product teams across GXS Group and Grab are expected to work more closely together, with further details to be shared later. The post C-Level Departures at GXS Bank as Geraldine Wong and Vishal Shah Exit appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer, watched multinational corporations move billions across borders with relative ease, while SMEs were left navigating a maze of fragmented ledgers, opaque fees, and the ever-present risk of having accounts frozen without warning. That imbalance, Deng argues, was reinforced by the industry’s growing reliance on de-risking. This was a compliance-driven retreat that pushed smaller businesses to the fringes of the formal financial system, as they were deemed not very profitable yet high in risk exposure. And for many SMEs, a single flagged transaction could mean days without access to working capital, payroll disruptions, or even bankruptcy. Deng believes the root of the problem was never SMEs, but the outdated tools used to assess them. Now processing over US$12 billion in transactions each month for more than 800,000 enterprises globally, XTransfer is building an alternative financial infrastructure catered to cross-border trade at scale. From Fragmented Ledgers to a Common Language Traditional cross-border payments still operate like a relay race between private ledgers. Funds move between sending banks, correspondent banks and finally to the receiving bank, with each step requiring reconciliation between ledgers that were never designed to work seamlessly together. As Deng explains, Bill Deng “The ledgers have to ‘talk’ to one another, so the interoperability is not smooth. The other thing is that each player has a different database about AML. AML is all about data, which they can’t share directly.” Deng views stablecoins as a structural solution to this fragmentation. By moving trade onto a “common ledger” (blockchain), the industry can bypass the chain of private ledgers entirely, eliminating many of the reconciliation and settlement delays that plague traditional banking. At the same time, new infrastructure players are addressing the compliance bottleneck. Startups such as Notabene are developing ways for stablecoin issuers and receivers to securely exchange KYC information, allowing compliance data to travel alongside value. Deng is optimistic about stablecoins, sharing, “In the next three years, when every stablecoin company will be regulated, they will become the only way to convert to fiat currency. They will also apply all AML-related work in a new way. This will bring in a lot of new corridors, new bridges, and a lot of benefits to the customers.” X-NET, The AI-Powered Bridge While blockchain may define the future, the immediate pain point for SMEs remains compliance friction today. Deng traces the origins of XTransfer back to 2017, when banks increasingly withdrew services from SMEs because the cost of manual AML checks outweighed the commercial upside. “It was an existential crisis for some of them (SMEs). So we decided that there needs to be a platform that makes money movement easier.” That platform became X-NET. Designed as a scheme-like layer between banks and businesses, X-NET sits between senders and receivers to perform two core functions: simplifying money movement and automating compliance. The secret to its speed? AI-supported automation. Source: X-Net Whitepaper, XTransfer “We digitalised and automated everything about AML from the beginning with the power of AI. As most of the information is unstructured, the large language model was masterful in converting the data into structured ones, which was very helpful.” By automating onboarding, transaction monitoring, and risk analysis, XTransfer has reduced compliance costs to less than 5% of what traditional banks typically spend. Just as importantly, the automation dramatically improves speed and consistency. @fintechnewsnetwork They’ve landed over 100 banking partners. Xtransfer now processes over 12 billion USD every month for SMEs around the world. #fintech #b2bpqyments #crossborderpayments #SME #banking ♬ original sound – Fintech News Network – Fintech News Network What once took weeks, such as account openings, can now happen in hours. With a quick speed to market, XTransfer’s efficiency allows an exporter in Shanghai to be onboarded in 24 hours, providing them with a local bank account in countries like Singapore quickly. Making Cross-Border Feel Local The ambition behind X-NET is simple but far-reaching: to make a cross-border transaction feel like a domestic one. In the past, a Chinese exporter selling to Singapore would wait days for a USD wire transfer. Today, they can offer their buyer a way to pay in Singapore Dollars (SGD), which XTransfer receives and clears in minutes. This strategy is expanding rapidly. Deng recently announced major partnerships with KBank, Maybank, and is looking into the top 30 countries to build their local bank partnerships in. “These bank partners in local markets will be able to help us collect money locally and convert it into Chinese yuan or USD. We’ll be able to sweep all the funds into our treasury hub, and if our clients need us to send it (funds) to Vietnam or China, we can do it in minutes.” In 2025 alone, Deng shared that the company secured over 100 new bank partnerships. The Race for Validity in an AI Era As the industry moves into 2026, the conversation around SME cross-border payments is shifting. What XTransfer is ultimately competing on is credibility. The ability to prove that a transaction represents real trade, real goods, and real economic activity. By using AI to verify the genuineness of trade, from analysing website data and logistics trails to scanning digital footprints, the platform is helping SMEs build something they have historically lacked: a financial identity banks can trust. The bigger implication is structural. As platforms like X-NET succeed, the traditional hierarchy of global finance begins to flatten. A small exporter in a developing market no longer has to be treated as inherently higher risk simply because of size or geography. They can be assessed, priced, and trusted based on data. That is one shift underway, which is best understood in Deng’s own words. To hear Bill Deng explain how his experience in cross-border payments shaped XTransfer’s approach to stablecoins, AI-driven compliance and more with our Chief Editor Vincent Fong, watch the full conversation in the YouTube video below: Featured image by Fintech News Singapore The post Bill Deng Built XTransfer Because the System Was Failing SMEs appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Merchants in Southeast Asia will soon gain wider access to overseas payment routes, including in the European Union and the US, following a tie-up between Primer and HitPay. HitPay serves as merchant of record for businesses in Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia, handling payment processing, compliance and settlement for companies selling to customers in the US and Europe. Under the partnership, HitPay will use Primer’s unified infrastructure to connect with local acquirers in key international markets, extending multi-currency card acceptance beyond the region while maintaining high-performing, locally optimised payment flows. Aditya Haripurkar Aditya Haripurkar, Co-founder and CEO of HitPay said, “Our merchants have evolved from serving primarily local customers to selling globally – from Southeast Asian exporters reaching the US, to travel and hospitality businesses attracting European customers. Accelerated access to new markets and local-level payment performance will be transformative for our fast-growing merchants. The integration was fast, with minimal engineering – but the impact has been immediate, especially in fast-growing segments like travel.” Gabriel Le Roux Gabriel Le Roux, Co-founder and CEO of Primer said, “Enabling merchants to scale internationally is still one of the hardest problems in payments. By partnering with HitPay, we’re opening new markets for their merchants and laying the foundation for long-term global expansion. This partnership shows how open, unified payments infrastructure can drive real growth for fintechs and the millions of businesses they power.” HitPay will integrate into Primer through the Primer for Partners programme, which was launched last month. The programme allows payment and alternative payment providers to connect directly to the Primer platform. As a result, Primer merchants will gain access to more than 700 local payer options across Southeast Asia without additional integrations.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by digitizesc via Freepik The post Primer, HitPay Expand Cross-Border Payments for Southeast Asia Merchants appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Digital banking in Asia was supposed to change the world. Five years later, did it live up to the hype? In this in-depth retrospective, Vincent Fong (Chief Editor, Fintech News Network) sits down with David Becker (Managing Director, Head of APAC Sales, Mambu) to unpack the last five years of the digital banking boom. They discuss why the predicted “death of traditional banks” never happened, how incumbents managed to adapt so quickly, and why the real revolution is happening in rural financial inclusion rather than just glossy apps. From the technical challenges of cloud-native infrastructure to the “boring but important” reality of AI in banking, this conversation covers the state of play in 2026 and what the next generation of banks will look like. Key Topics Covered: The 5-Year Report Card: Why the market is more balanced between new players and incumbents than anyone expected. Speed is Survival: Why launching in 3 to 4 months is the new standard for success. The AI Reality Check: Moving beyond the hype to discuss governance, credit scoring, and data analysis. Financial Inclusion: How digital credit is creating real-world jobs and lifting communities out of poverty in Indonesia and the Philippines. Future Trends: The rise of Islamic Banking and ESG in the digital space. The post Why Cross Border Payments Fail SMEs And How XTransfer Fixes It appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore-based fintech firm Atome has expanded its syndicated debt facility to US$345 million to support its regional growth, Reuters reported. The latest facility represents an increase from the US$200 million that the company secured in 2024. HSBC continues to act as structuring bank and has been appointed mandated lead arranger and bookrunner, while DBS has joined in the same role. Returning lenders include Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation’s Singapore branch, Baiduri Bank and Cathay United Bank, while Fubon Bank and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank are participating as new lenders. Atome said the funds will be used to expand its instalment payments business, broader consumer lending portfolio and the Pay Later Anywhere card across Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. Andy Tan, Atome’s Chief Commercial Officer, said the expanded facility would improve the company’s capacity to support the growth of its loan book. The company is part of Advance Intelligence Group, which counts SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Warburg Pincus among its investors, and has been building out consumer credit products in the region.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by starmultikharisma via Freepik The post Atome Increases Size of Debt Facility to US$345 Million appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Citigroup is moving forward with about 1,000 job cuts this week, according to people familiar with the matter and a report from Bloomberg. The reductions extend CEO Jane Fraser’s multi-year drive to simplify the bank and push down expenses as it works to improve returns. The latest cuts fit within a target Citi has discussed since 2023 to eliminate 20,000 roles by the end of 2026. The bank had about 229,000 full-time employees at the end of 2024, underscoring the scale of the effort still ahead. Fraser, who took over as CEO in 2021, has been reshaping the lender by narrowing its footprint and reorganising its operations, part of an effort to close a long-standing performance gap with larger US banking rivals. Citi has also been addressing weaknesses in areas such as risk controls and data governance as it pushes through its broader transformation plan. The group is scheduled to report quarterly results this week, and the bank typically finalises compensation decisions around the same period. Leadership changes have continued alongside the overhaul. Fraser was elected chair of Citi’s board in October, and the bank has since named Gonzalo Luchetti as Chief Financial Officer, replacing Mark Mason.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by mkmult via Freepik The post Citi Moves Ahead With 1,000 Job Cuts as Fraser’s Overhaul Continues appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

FIS has completed the acquisition of Global Payments’ issuer solutions business, formerly known as TSYS, at an enterprise value of US$13.5 billion. The company has also finalised the sale of its remaining 45 percent stake in Worldpay to Global Payments. The issuer solutions unit was purchased at a net price of about US$12 billion, including US$1.5 billion of net present value of tax assets, and will now operate under the FIS Total Issuing Solutions brand. Stephanie Ferris “We are pleased to have closed this strategic acquisition ahead of schedule, enabling us to start 2026 in a strong position to deliver greater value to our financial institution and corporate clients. We’re looking forward to capitalizing on the unique opportunities this acquisition brings to our Banking and Payments business and building momentum through the year.” said Stephanie Ferris, Chief Executive Officer and President of FIS. The portfolio operates in more than 75 countries and handles over 40 billion transactions annually. FIS said it works with more than 150 financial institutions and corporates, describing the unit as the world’s largest issuing business. The acquisition strengthens FIS’ offering in credit processing, fraud, loyalty and related services and expands its banking segment market opportunity, which it estimates at US$28 billion. The company added that the larger consumer and commercial card data set will support new analytics and artificial intelligence tools. The sale of its Worldpay stake replaces a non-cash-generating minority holding with a growing stream of high-margin recurring revenue and cash flows, while helping to manage the capital impact of deeper involvement in digital assets. The company expects the transaction to generate an additional US$500 million in incremental adjusted free cash flow in 2026, rising to US$700 million by 2028, supported by revenue and cost synergies.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Shkor via Freepik The post FIS Completes Issuing Unit Acquisition, Sells Remaining Worldpay Stake appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Standard Chartered is exploring plans to establish a cryptocurrency prime brokerage as part of a broader push into digital markets, according to a report from Bloomberg. The proposed business would be developed within the bank’s wholly owned innovation and investment arm, SC Ventures, rather than its core corporate and investment bank. People familiar with the discussions said the plans are still at an early stage and there is no confirmed launch timeline. Locating the business under SC Ventures could help the lender manage the capital impact of deeper involvement in digital assets. A spokesperson for SC Ventures declined to comment. Under Basel standards finalised in 2022, banks face a 1,250 percent risk weight for certain exposures to permissionless cryptoassets such as bitcoin and ether, a far heavier charge than for many other high risk asset classes. Some speculative unlisted equity exposures, for example, carry a 400 percent risk weight. Standard Chartered has been one of the more active global banks in the sector. It has backed ventures such as Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets and has been expanding crypto services for institutional clients. SC Ventures has also disclosed that it is developing a digital asset joint venture known as Project37C, which it has described as a light financing and markets platform spanning areas such as custody, tokenisation and market access. The move comes as global lenders deepen their engagement with digital assets in response to growing institutional demand. JPMorgan Chase has been reported to be considering offering crypto trading to professional clients, while Morgan Stanley has filed plans to introduce exchange traded funds linked to bitcoin and solana. Spot crypto ETFs in the United States have accumulated about US$140 billion in assets since their approval two years ago, drawing more traditional investors into the market and driving demand for services such as financing, custody and securities lending. That demand has fuelled dealmaking in crypto prime brokerage.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Standard Chartered The post StanChart Explores Crypto Prime Brokerage Under SC Ventures appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Episode Six has been appointed by Monee to support the regional rollout of the ShopeePay Unlimited Card across Southeast Asia, with the card currently live in Thailand. The card allows users to make online and in-store payments using balances from their ShopeePay wallets and SPayLater accounts. Monee plans to extend the launch to additional markets in the region. The partnership will use Episode Six’s cloud-based card issuing and ledger infrastructure to help connect to global payment networks and deploy the product across multiple countries with different regulatory requirements, while supporting compliance across markets. The infrastructure is deployed across several cloud instances in Asia. The card rollout is part of Monee’s efforts to expand access to digital financial services in Southeast Asia by embedding payment features into its platforms. It is intended to offer users a more seamless way to pay at both online and offline merchants across the region. Monee was previously known as SeaMoney. It is part of Sea’s core businesses, which also include its digital entertainment arm Garena and its e-commerce platform Shopee. John Mitchell “Monee’s embedded finance strategy spans multiple countries with distinct regulatory frameworks and operational needs, precisely the kind of challenge our technology is built to solve. As the world’s local processor, we’re proud to help them bring card solutions to millions of people across the region.” said John Mitchell, CEO and Co-Founder of Episode Six.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by ilygraphic via Freepik   The post Episode Six Powers Rollout of ShopeePay Unlimited Card in Southeast Asia appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Five years ago, digital banking was one of the most talked-about developments, especially within the financial sector across Asia. New licences were being issued across Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, and beyond. Regulators spoke about innovation and inclusion. Founders spoke about disruption. Investors spoke about scale. To sum up as a whole, the picture looks far more nuanced. Some digital banks have found their footing and are scaling steadily. Others are facing struggles, with some unlucky ones having pivoted and even quietly faded from the spotlight. Looking at this current state of what’s happening around these digital banks, it was to no surprise that the talk of the town, five years ago, was whether or not traditional banks would become casualties in this relatively “new” era. Fast forward to today, and the predicted victims, surprisingly, are still very much in the game. In many cases, they have adapted faster than expected. That reality is something David Becker, Managing Director for Asia Pacific at Mambu, has had a front-row seat to. As a core banking technology provider working with both new digital banks and incumbents across the region, David has watched the digital banking story unfold from behind the scenes. In hindsight, one thing in particular stood out to him. David Becker “I expected the new players would disrupt the old,” David said. “But actually it’s been more balanced across the region.” That balance, and what it reveals about the future of banking in Asia, is at the heart of where the industry finds itself today. The Incumbents Were Never as Immobile as They Seemed In the early days of Asia’s digital banking push, the narrative was well, far simple. The hypothesis was the new, cloud-native digital banks would move faster, operate cheaper, and win over customers that traditional banks could not reach. Incumbents, on the other hand would be burdened by legacy systems and organisational inertia, and would struggle to keep up. That story turned out to be an incomplete speculation. What surprised David most was not just how quickly digital banks launched, but how rapidly traditional banks responded to it. Across the region, incumbents began modernising their technology stacks, forming partnerships, investing in fintechs, and to some extent, even launching digital subsidiaries of their own. Instead of a clean disruption story, what emerged was a more competitive and collaborative ecosystem. Banks that once would have seen each other purely as rivals began working together, recognising that the market opportunity was large enough to support multiple approaches. This could all be due to how the unbanked and underbanked populations across Southeast Asia which still remain at vast, particularly in countries like Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. For many banks, the realisation was that collaboration could accelerate access to those markets far more effectively than going at it alone. Five years ago, we would think that partnerships between large banks and fintech platforms would have seemed unlikely. Today, they are becoming more of a routine. The First Wave Chased the Wrong Customers If incumbents adapted faster than expected, digital banks themselves also learned some hard lessons. In the early stages, many digital banks across Asia focused on the same customer profile. They would aim for the urban, tech-savvy, higher-income users who were already relatively well served by existing financial institutions. The logic was understandable. These customers were easier to acquire digitally, more comfortable with mobile-first experiences, and more likely to try something new. The problem however, was that this segment quickly became crowded. “When most digital banks first set up, they were going after the urban, savvy, higher-income bracket,” David observed. “But now the growth has been driven by new deliveries of credit.” Real traction, it turned out, came not from flashy user interfaces or lifestyle perks, but from solving more fundamental financial needs. Things that have always been an issue that was often overlooked. Credit access, microfinancing, buy now pay later services, e-wallets, and SME funding began to drive both usage and revenue. In many cases, growth came from customers who had previously been underserved or excluded entirely. In plain English, mid-to-lower income segments, gig workers, rural populations, and small businesses quickly became the real engines of expansion. Inclusion, that was once framed as a social goal, now have started to make commercial sense. Infrastructure Matters More Than Branding As competition intensified, the gap between digital banks that scaled and those that struggled became more apparent. According to David Becker, the difference often had little to do with marketing or brand awareness. Instead, it came down to infrastructure. “The investment you need to make is not just in the front end,” he said. “It’s in the back end. It’s crucial that it can sustain and scale with growth.” Many banks underestimated the complexity of building a digital bank that could handle rapid growth, evolving regulatory requirements, and new product launches. Some to an extend, even treated digital banking as an incremental extension of their existing business, rather than a fundamentally new operation. The more successful players, well, they approached it differently. They built new applications, new infrastructure, and new operating models from the ground up. Cloud-native systems, modular architectures, and API-driven platforms gave them the flexibility to adapt quickly as market conditions changed. There is however, an important distinction here that David often emphasises. Cloud-native according to him, is not the same as cloud-hosted. The former is designed specifically for cloud environments, allowing banks to deploy microservices, scale dynamically, and launch new products faster. The latter is often little more than a lift-and-shift of legacy systems, with many of the same constraints still intact. As customer expectations rose and competition intensified, the distinction has became increasingly important. Speed Became a Strategic Weapon In Asia’s fast-moving financial markets, speed to market is no longer a nice-to-have. Financial institutions must know that now, it is a strategic necessity. “What is good today could be very different three months from now,” David noted. Regulatory changes, competitive launches, shifts in consumer behaviour, and macroeconomic pressures can quickly alter the landscape. Digital banks that took years to go live often found themselves launching into a market that no longer looked the way it did when they started building. The ability to launch in months rather than years became a decisive advantage as it allowed banks to test products, respond to regulatory guidance, and adjust credit strategies before conditions shifted again. That need for speed also reshaped expectations around customer onboarding. Digital banks have helped reset what consumers considered acceptable. “[When] you order food and expect it to be delivered within an hour. [So], when you open a bank account, I want the same,” David pointed out. As transport, food, and other daily services became on-demand, the friction built into traditional banking began to feel increasingly out of place. When Inclusion Becomes Tangible Perhaps the most compelling part of David’s perspective comes when the conversation turns to real-world impact. In countries like Indonesia and the Philippines, digital banking has begun to reach customers far beyond urban centres. Access to credit in rural areas, often delivered through mobile-first platforms, has enabled tangible improvements in daily life. “All of a sudden, they [Mambu’s clients] are providing credit to rural areas of Indonesia and the Philippines,” Becker said. This has all led to the improvement of its users’ wellbeing and access. Sometimes, the impact is deceptively simple. “It could be something as simple as buying a motorbike,” he added. “But it makes a huge difference.” That motorbike can mean access to work, the ability to transport goods, or the freedom to travel between communities. @fintechnewsnetwork Are Digital Banks Really Solving Anything? #fintech #digitalbanking #Mambu #FinancialInclusion #AI ♬ original sound – Fintech News Network – Fintech News Network Microfinance initiatives, including those led by NGOs, have also begun using digital banking infrastructure to reach populations previously locked out of formal financial systems. Beyond individuals, fintech has also contributed to job creation and new economic activity. Platforms supporting ride-hailing, delivery services, and gig work have relied heavily on digital financial services to function at scale. These are not abstract benefits but rather are visible, measurable changes in how economies operate. The Next Generation of Digital Banks Looking ahead, David believes that the next phase of digital banking in Asia will be shaped less by novelty and more by depth. “I think it’s going to be more and more about inclusion … where you can scale, where you can look to grow and build on access to services that were not available before,” Becker highlighted. Product diversity will matter. Islamic banking, for example, continues to grow in importance across markets like Indonesia and Malaysia, while ESG-linked financial products are seeing rising demand. Digital platforms make it easier to offer these specialised services at scale, something that was far more difficult in the past. Regulators, too, are playing a crucial role. Across Asia, regulatory frameworks have largely supported innovation while maintaining oversight. New licences continue to be issued in markets like Thailand and the Philippines, often backed by consortiums that combine banking, technology, and telecommunications expertise. Competition will only intensify as every player wants to be at the centre of the region’s digital financial future. But the rules of the game are clearer now than they were five years ago. Digital banking is no longer about proving that it can exist. It is about proving that it can endure, scale responsibly, and serve customers who were previously left out. In that sense, Asia’s digital banking experiment is no longer an experiment at all. It is becoming part of the financial mainstream. If you’d like to hear more from David Becker and see the conversation unfold in full, you can watch the complete interview in the video below. The post Five Years On, And Asia’s Digital Banking Experiment Is Finally Growing Up appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore recorded a 579 percent rise in AML and CFT fines issued by the central bank last year. The sharp increase reflects a shift in regulatory scrutiny after a major money laundering scandal exposed weaknesses in parts of the financial system. New data from regtech firm Fenergo shows that global penalties for breaches of anti-money laundering, know your customer, sanctions and customer due diligence rules fell 18 percent in 2025 to US$3.8 billion. This compares with US$4.6 billion in 2024 and US$6.6 billion in 2023. Despite the overall decline, enforcement activity varied widely by region. North American regulators reduced the total value of fines by 58 percent, while Europe, the Middle East and Africa saw penalties climb 767 percent. Asia-Pacific also recorded higher fines, up 44 percent, as long-running investigations concluded and authorities increased oversight in targeted sectors. In Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore focused more attention on private banking and cross-border wealth flows following the high-profile laundering case. Rory Doyle “In Singapore, enforcement action has intensified following a major money laundering scandal. In response, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has tightened its focus on private banking and cross-border wealth flows, with a clear aim of positioning the city-state as a global leader in source of wealth (SOW) and source of funds (SOF) enforcement.” said Rory Doyle, Head of Financial Crime Policy at Fenergo. The largest individual penalty in 2025 was a €835 million fine, equivalent to about US$985 million, issued by French authorities to a Swiss bank for anti-money laundering failures. That helped make France the second-largest global enforcer by fine value, behind the United States. The report also found that digital asset firms remained overrepresented among the largest penalties, accounting for nearly a quarter of the top ten fines. Fenergo said rapid growth in transaction volumes and stablecoin usage has continued to outpace compliance maturity in parts of the sector, prompting regulators to push firms to adopt controls closer to bank standards.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by aghavni001 via Freepik The post Singapore Records 579% Rise in AML and CFT Fines as Enforcement Intensifies appeared first on Fintech Singapore.