Singapore banks are moving to cut the friction families face when ageing, cognitive decline or bereavement turns banking into paperwork. The Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) has published a senior banking playbook as the country becomes a “super-aged” society, with one in five citizens now aged 65 and above. Banking a Longevity Society sets out 20 initiatives covering scam protection, banking access, financial resilience, estate matters and community support for seniors. A key focus is legacy planning and bereavement support, where families often face unclear processes during difficult transitions. By the first quarter of 2027, banks will align procedures to give families clearer guidance on Lasting Power of Attorney, deputyship and account closures for deceased customers. DBS, OCBC and UOB will also harmonise processes for LPA, deputy accounts and deceased customers’ banking information enquiries to reduce confusion for families and caregivers. Banks will streamline existing processes to help bereaved families withdraw small balances and close a deceased customer’s account without a Grant of Probate or Letter of Administration. This applies where the total balance across accounts with the bank does not exceed S$5,000. Banks Add Safeguards for Vulnerable Seniors The playbook also sets out support for vulnerable and at-risk seniors. Banks are working with the Agency for Integrated Care to introduce common guidelines by end-2026 to help frontline staff identify possible signs of cognitive decline. The industry will pilot escalation protocols in 2027 through an industry-wide referral approach. Branch officers will be trained to recognise when customers may need more help and connect them to the right support. About 74,000 people in Singapore were living with dementia in 2023, with the number expected to rise to 152,000 by 2030. The playbook also includes a cash access measure, with DBS, OCBC and UOB, together with NETS, committing to ensure an ATM, branch or cashpoint within 500 metres of every HDB block by end-2027. Banks Frame Ageing as an Industry Issue Ong-Ang Ai Boon ABS Director Ong-Ang Ai Boon said, “Seniors today are generally healthier, more independent, and want to make their own decisions for longer. Their families want clarity, not onerous paperwork, when difficult transitions come. And the community wants to know that banks are trusted partners.” ABS described the effort as the first of its kind in Asia, adding that retail banks will continue to review the initiatives with government agencies and community organisations.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by rajacuann via Magnific The post Singapore Banks Plan Clearer Legacy, Bereavement Processes in Asia-First Effort appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Jumio has expanded its digital identity acceptance network to more than 60 countries through a new integration with gateway provider Trinsic. The expansion allows businesses to verify users using government-issued digital credentials, such as Singapore’s Singpass and European eIDs, without managing country-specific accreditations. The integration targets financial institutions and fintechs looking to streamline customer onboarding and meet local KYC requirements. As digital credentials increasingly coexist with physical documents, the partnership removes the need for cross-border companies to build separate verification systems. This applies across different jurisdictions. The updated platform enriches basic credential checks with biometric authentication and liveness detection. Jumio uses global data to assess risk signals during the onboarding process, consolidating the workflow into a single verification channel. The identity verification provider began accepting Brazil’s digital driver’s license in early 2025. It processed more than one million verifications, using QR code and biometric cross-checks against government databases. The company plans to apply a similar approach to emerging formats mandated by initiatives like the European eIDAS 2.0 framework. Philipp Pointner “Our job is to make sure our customers are always ahead of the curve with each new government mandate, wallet format, or fraud vector,” said Philipp Pointner, Chief of Digital Identity, Jumio. The integration also supports major wallet providers like Apple and Google, allowing users to verify their identities using credentials already stored on their mobile devices. Riley Hughes “By integrating Trinsic’s acceptance network, Jumio’s customers can now instantly verify customers through mobile driver’s licenses, eIDs, and reusable credentials,” said Riley Hughes, CEO and Co-founder, Trinsic. The unified platform aims to consolidate identity workflows for businesses operating internationally, reducing the technical burden of navigating fragmented digital credential standards.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by AbulKalamAzad0420 via Magnific The post Jumio Adds Digital ID Support Across 60+ Countries via Trinsic Integration appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore’s three local banks and NETS plan to expand ATM and cash access points as part of a wider industry effort to keep physical banking services available for seniors. The move is outlined in the Association of Banks in Singapore’s Banking a Longevity Society playbook, which sets out measures to make banking more accessible for older customers as Singapore becomes a super-aged society. DBS, OCBC, UOB and NETS have committed to ensuring 100% coverage by the end of 2027, with at least one ATM, branch or cashpoint within 500 metres of every HDB block. The distance is based on straight-line measurement. The commitment is aimed at keeping cash access available as a dependable option for seniors, especially those who are less comfortable with digital payments. As an interim step, the three banks and NETS will ensure that an ATM, branch or cashpoint is available within 500 metres of public transport hubs, National Environment Agency-managed hawker centres and major supermarkets by the end of 2026. The playbook said the coverage will be reviewed periodically to account for new and growing towns. Making ATMs Easier to Use Source: ABS Banks are also improving ATM accessibility for seniors and customers with disabilities. DBS has enhanced lighting at its branches and ATMs, while UOB and Standard Chartered provide enhanced ATMs with audio jacks that offer text-to-speech instructions. ATM keypads are also braille-enabled to support visually impaired customers. UOB and Standard Chartered also offer lower-height ATMs for wheelchair users. The cash access measures form part of the banking sector’s broader plan to help seniors manage their finances more independently while maintaining access to essential physical banking services.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by ABS via Banking a Longevity Society playbook The post Singapore Banks Set 2027 Target for Wider ATM Access Near HDB Blocks appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

PayNow could soon move beyond basic transfers as Singapore studies new features for consumers, merchants, businesses and government payments. The work is being led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) under the PayNow Gen2 study. The study will focus on four possible areas of upgrade across Singapore’s instant payments infrastructure. These include QR payment interoperability, online checkout improvements, larger-value payments to government agencies and expanded capabilities for business use. The areas were identified through consultations with 37 organisations and benchmarking against 11 jurisdictions. Making PayNow Work Across More Payment Use Cases 4 stakeholder-focused enhancements One proposed change would improve interoperability between PayNow and NETS QR. This would allow consumers to scan and pay at merchants regardless of which payment scheme the merchant uses. MAS and ABS aim to pilot this by the end of 2026. Another area will look at deep-linking within PayNow QR codes to make online checkout easier. This would reduce the number of steps needed to complete a payment and could help online merchants cut lost sales. MAS and ABS aim to have this ready within a year. The study will also examine larger-value PayNow transactions for government agencies through a sandboxed pilot with transaction limits and safeguards. Larger payments to government agencies are currently made through GIRO, which requires pre-registration and can take up to three business days to process. For businesses, longer-term capabilities may include request-to-pay, structured data fields for automated reconciliation, micropayments, expanded cross-border connectivity, offline payment capabilities and features to support agentic commerce. MAS and ABS will begin foundational work on these capabilities this year. The findings from the first phase of the study are set out in a report titled “PayNow Generation 2: Defining the Next Wave of Innovation for Singapore’s Instant Payments System.” The next phase will involve MAS and ABS working with industry participants on implementation steps and pilots for selected enhancements. An implementation roadmap is expected by the end of 2026.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by ramstudio via Magnific The post PayNow Could Move Beyond Transfers as Singapore Studies Gen2 Upgrades appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Airwallex has brought back former executive Pranav Sood as CFO as the company strengthens its finance leadership after its recent fundraise. Sood joins from Bain Capital’s growth equity fund, where he worked with technology companies across the UK and Europe. The appointment marks a return to Airwallex. Sood previously helped build the company’s EMEA operations and led its global marketing function. He brings investment experience and knowledge of the company’s commercial operations to the role. Sood will be based in London, which remains one of Airwallex’s key hubs for international expansion. Pranav Sood Pranav Sood, incoming Chief Financial Officer, said, “Airwallex is a once-in-a-generation company that is fundamentally rewriting the rails of global banking. Returning to Airwallex feels like coming home to a mission that is more critical than ever. My goal is to ensure our finance function acts as a catalyst for innovation and scale, providing the robust framework required as we solidify our position as a cornerstone of the global financial economy.” Jack Zhang Jack Zhang, Co-founder and CEO of Airwallex, said, “As Airwallex enters its next phase of growth, we need a CFO who is as much a commercial strategist as a financial steward. Pranav is a rare leader who balances rigorous financial discipline with a builder’s mindset. His experience at Bain Capital, combined with his intimate knowledge of our commercial drivers and the fintech vertical, make him the ideal CFO to guide our financial strategy through this next chapter.” Airwallex recently raised US$320 million in a Series H round, lifting its valuation to US$11 billion. The company has also committed US$1.1 billion to its EMEA expansion and plans to hire about 100 senior engineering roles in the UK and the Netherlands.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by mkmult via Magnific The post Airwallex Brings Back Pranav Sood as CFO After Series H Raise appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Airwallex has raised US$320 million in Series H funding. The investment increases the global payments firm’s valuation to US$11 billion and will fund its expansion into AI-driven financial software. Returning investor Addition led the funding round, with participation from Baillie Gifford, Hummingbird, QED Investors, T. Rowe Price, Hedosophia, Haun Ventures, Washington University in St. Louis, and Amex Ventures. Airwallex stated the fresh capital will accelerate product development across autonomous finance. The company plans to expand its infrastructure and regulatory presence in new markets. Jack Zhang “We believe this is the most consequential moment in the history of global finance, and we are building accordingly,” said Jack Zhang, co-founder and CEO, Airwallex. Alongside the funding, Airwallex is launching two new products targeting autonomous finance. The first is T:0, an AI-native platform designed to manage business finance functions including bookkeeping, forecasting, taxes, and compliance. The product is currently in private beta. The company is introducing Airi, a consumer wallet that will incorporate its existing one-click checkout capabilities at launch. Airwallex plans to expand Airi into a broader infrastructure supporting delegated payments, spend limits, and multi-currency balances. In March 2026, Airwallex reached US$1.3 billion in annualised revenue and US$287 billion in annualised transaction volume. This Series H round follows a previous valuation of US$8 billion in December 2025.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by rawpixel.com via Magnific The post Airwallex Raises US$320M Series H at US$11B Valuation for AI Expansion appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

DBS is providing a US$210 million senior financing facility to ETAFCo, the investment vehicle for an energy transition partnership managed by Clifford Capital. The transaction makes DBS the only commercial bank to support two partnerships within the Monetary Authority of Singapore‘s (MAS) FAST-P initiative. The financing marks the first loan extended to ETAFCo. The funds will support debt investments in energy transition infrastructure. This includes renewable energy, grid modernisation, and energy storage. It also covers other clean energy solutions designed to reduce reliance on coal-fired power generation. The Energy Transition Acceleration Finance (ETAF) partnership aims to mobilise concessional and private capital for clean energy projects across Asia. It supports emissions reduction by financing clean energy solutions to displace coal usage. A replacement strategy also supports the managed phase-out of coal facilities. Han Kwee Juan “We believe that sustainability is not a parallel agenda but a core driver of long-term value,” said Han Kwee Juan, Group Head of Institutional Banking, DBS. “When approached pragmatically, it strengthens economic competitiveness, improves lives and builds resilience for the future.” The FAST-P initiative brings together public, private, and philanthropic capital. The programme uses blended finance structures to address the infrastructure needs of Asia by mobilising capital for green investments. In its first phase, ETAFCo will focus on clean energy transition and grid infrastructure projects. By improving risk allocation, the vehicle aims to support bankable transition infrastructure and unlock new pools of capital for the region. DBS previously contributed US$75 million to the Green Investments Partnership, another blended finance vehicle under FAST-P managed by Pentagreen Capital. The bank acts as the lead coordinator for the senior tranche of that programme.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by LensMastersCollection via Magnific The post DBS Backs Asia Energy Transition With US$210M Financing for ETAFCo appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

NTT Data is deploying AI coding platform Cursor across its global software engineering operations. The technology services company aims to speed up the modernisation of legacy enterprise systems by embedding AI directly into its development environments. The partnership integrates Cursor’s multi-model AI agents into the engineering layer NTT Data uses to design, build, and refactor code. The deployment includes enterprise-grade governance controls such as organisation-wide privacy modes, centralised administration, and policy enforcement to manage how AI is applied during software development. Abhijit Dubey “Through our partnership with Cursor, we will use AI in the core of our engineering and delivery model, enabling us to modernise faster, improve consistency at scale and deliver greater value to clients,” said Abhijit Dubey, Chief Executive Officer and Chief AI Officer, NTT Data. NTT Data plans to use the technology internally to accelerate its delivery times before expanding the capabilities to joint clients. The integration is intended to help enterprises adopt AI securely while maintaining alignment with internal policies. Jordan Topoleski “NTT Data is putting AI at the core of how engineers modernise complex systems,” said Jordan Topoleski, Chief Operating Officer, Cursor. The company is rolling out Cursor Enterprise to priority engineering teams first, with plans for a global expansion. NTT Data plans to launch a Cursor Centre of Excellence to standardise the platform’s use across its industry practices.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Borin via Magnific The post NTT Data Deploys Cursor AI Platform to Speed Up Legacy System Modernisation appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

JPMorgan has promoted Kelvin Goh and Alfons Halim to jointly lead its investment banking operations across Southeast Asia. The leadership changes take effect immediately, according to an announcement reported by The Business Times. Both executives will continue to operate from their current base in Singapore while managing their expanded regional responsibilities. Goh currently serves as the head of the financial institutions group for the Asia Pacific region. Halim holds the position of head of Asia Pacific real estate for the corporate division. The new appointments allow both executives to retain their existing roles while guiding the strategic direction of the regional advisory business. Siting this crucial Southeast Asia leadership team locally reinforces the status of Singapore as a primary hub for major corporate finance transactions. Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore based on an image by HobieArt via Magnific. The post JPMorgan Appoints Regional Co-Heads for Southeast Asia Investment Banking appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Thredd has brought Visa Cloud Connect live in Asia Pacific to strengthen its cloud-based issuing infrastructure. The setup is centralised in Singapore, Thredd’s regional cloud hub for Asia Pacific. It is designed to help clients launch card programmes faster, shorten release cycles and improve platform reliability. Visa Cloud Connect gives organisations access to VisaNet, Visa’s global payments network, through cloud-based infrastructure. For Thredd, the rollout is part of a wider move away from traditional data centre hardware toward cloud-native infrastructure with direct network connectivity. The company expects the shift to reduce reliance on third-party intermediaries and give it more control over platform performance, monitoring and resilience. Damien Gough Damien Gough, Head of APAC at Thredd, said, “Visa Cloud Connect represents an important step in the evolution of our infrastructure strategy across Asia Pacific. The industry is moving beyond traditional processing environments toward cloud-native, real-time financial orchestration, where speed, resilience, scalability and adaptability increasingly determine competitive advantage. By implementing direct cloud connectivity into VisaNet through our Singapore regional hub, we are strengthening the operational foundation that supports faster programme deployment, improved platform visibility and greater flexibility as clients expand across markets, rails and emerging payment models.” Gough also pointed to changes in AI, agentic commerce and multi-rail payments as areas that require more flexible infrastructure. The rollout supports Thredd’s hosted model in Asia Pacific. This allows fintechs, digital banks and other digital-first businesses to use Thredd-managed infrastructure without building and maintaining their own direct environment. The move also gives Thredd more flexibility to support local deployments where client or market requirements call for them. Visa Cloud Connect could make it easier to set up dedicated local instances in major markets, including for larger institutions with data residency or sovereignty requirements. Thredd expects the cloud-native model to strengthen its network connectivity in Asia Pacific and support faster, more reliable issuing across the region.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by HobieArt via Magnific The post Thredd Rolls Out Visa Cloud Connect Across Asia Pacific appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Xweave, a Singapore-based non-custodial payments infrastructure platform, announced that it is deploying Solana to bring stablecoin-powered settlement to institutional treasury operations across the Asia Pacific. The Xweave stablecoin settlement solution will integrate Solana’s settlement infrastructure directly into its payments platform. This would allow corporate treasurers, banks, and financial institutions to move capital across borders. Notably, Xweave is a participant in BLOOM*, an initiative by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Announced at Point Zero Forum in Zurich, the move aims to address real-time treasury liquidity across borders, with Xweave and Solana working together. Milind Sanghavi,  the Co-Founder and  CEO of Xweave, shared, Milind Sanghavi “Solana gives us the settlement layer, sub-second finality, programmable execution, and near-zero cost, while Xweave provides the compliant orchestration that treasury teams and their banks actually require.” By integrating Solana as a core settlement layer, the platform is said to now offer intraday liquidity sweeps, FX settlement, supply chain and trade finance disbursement, and rate optimisation. Xweave is said to operate as a non-custodial payments infrastructure layer. Therefore, it does not hold or transmit client funds, and requires no payment institution licence to do so. Anna Zhang, the APAC Growth Lead for Solana Foundation, added, Anna Zhang “Solana’s enterprise-ready infrastructure makes programmable settlement practical for corporate treasury teams operating across Asia Pacific and globally. We’re thrilled to see teams like Xweave choose Solana.” The Xweave stablecoin settlement capability is live in Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines, with expansion underway into the UAE, Japan and Hong Kong. The platform supports settlement in USD, SGD, PHP, IDR, and AED-denominated settlement flows, with more currency pairs and corridors in development. Featured image edited by Fintech News Singapore based on an image by Pixelid on Magnific The post Xweave Taps Solana to Bring Stablecoin Settlement to APAC Treasury Teams appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

UOB is creating a board-level technology committee to oversee its digital strategy, technology risk and operational resilience. The Board Technology Committee will take effect on 1 July 2026. It will support the board in guiding the bank’s technology and digital strategy, while overseeing technology risk management, operational resilience and governance. The move is part of a wider set of UOB board changes taking effect in July. Wong Kan Seng will be redesignated as a Non-Executive and Non-Independent Director from 27 July 2026. He will also assume the role of Non-Independent Chairman from the same date. Steven Phan Swee Kim will be appointed Lead Independent Director from 27 July 2026. UOB also announced changes to its board committees from 1 July 2026. Ong Chong Tee will join the Nominating Committee, while Michael Lien Jown Leam will step down from the committee. Wee Ee Cheong will also step down from the Board Risk Management Committee and Executive Committee from 1 July 2026. Following the changes, Ong Chong Tee will chair the Audit Committee, while Wong Kan Seng will chair the Executive Committee. Chia Tai Tee will chair the Board Risk Management Committee. Steven Phan Swee Kim will chair both the Nominating Committee and the new Board Technology Committee, while Tracey Woon Kim Hong will chair the Remuneration and Human Capital Committee.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by UOB  The post UOB Adds Board-Level Technology Committee From July appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Singapore’s FAST-P energy transition fund has raised US$250 million at first close to support infrastructure projects across Asia. The Energy Transition Acceleration Finance partnership, or ETAF, is a blended finance fund under Singapore’s Financing Asia’s Transition Partnership initiative. It is backed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Clifford Capital and the Private Infrastructure Development Group. The first close is for ETAF’s displacement strategy, which will fund grid modernisation and other infrastructure projects that can help reduce reliance on fossil fuel-based power generation. ETAF also has a replacement strategy focused on replacing coal-fired power generation with lower-emissions power sources. Blended Finance for Transition Projects The fund uses blended finance and risk-sharing structures to bring capital into transition infrastructure projects that may be at an earlier stage or carry higher risks. These projects often struggle to secure financing at the scale, tenor or risk appetite needed. MAS and the Private Infrastructure Development Group are the catalytic capital providers for the first close. Temasek is also expected to contribute catalytic capital through its Concessional Capital for Climate Action, subject to definitive agreements. DBS Bank is participating as a senior lender, while GuarantCo, part of the Private Infrastructure Development Group, has provided a guarantee for the fund’s mezzanine financing structure. Clifford Capital Asset Management will manage ETAF. Gillian Tan “ETAF’s successful first close demonstrates FAST-P’s growing momentum and traction. Through innovative blended finance models and guarantee mechanisms, FAST-P is bringing a broader coalition of partners together to meet Asia’s transition financing needs,” said Gillian Tan, Assistant Managing Director for Development and International at MAS The Singapore government has pledged up to US$500 million in concessional capital under FAST-P, with the aim of catalysing up to US$5 billion in investments to support Asia’s green transition.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by LensMastersCollection via Magnific The post Singapore’s FAST-P Energy Transition Fund Raises US$250 Million for Asia Project appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

The insurance industry stands at an inflection point as uninsured losses and liability claims continue to rise. Through 2030, these risks are expected to surge further, with cybersecurity poised to become the top business insurance risk, surpassing natural disasters, mortality, and healthcare, according to a new report by Japanese information technology firm NTT Data. This shifts indicate that emerging, technology-driven threats are expanding faster than traditional underwriting and risk management models can adapt. In 2023, the protection gap for cybersecurity stood at US$171 billion. That figure is projected to grow more than fourfold, reaching US$743.75 billion by 2030, positioning cybersecurity as the largest source of uninsured risk. A protection gap refers to the difference between the amount of financial risk individuals or businesses face from potential losses and the amount of that risk actually covered by existing insurance policies. Rising cyber threats This widening cybersecurity protection gap is driven by rapidly evolving threat sophistication, particularly those leveraging artificial intelligence (AI). These sophisticated attacks are outpacing organizations’ ability to update defenses and insurers’ ability to adapt products. A global 2025 Boston Consulting Group (BCG) survey of 500 senior leaders highlights the scale of exposure. 53% of executives ranked AI cyber risks among their top three organizational risks, with about 60% of leaders believing they have already encountered an AI-enabled attack. Across industries, AI-enabled scams and breaches are producing multimillion-dollar losses, operational disruptions, and regulatory fines. In January 2024, a finance worker at a multinational firm was tricked into paying out HK$200 million (US$26 million) to fraudsters using deepfake technology to pose as the company’s CFO in a video conference call. In the US, AI-enabled scams accounted for 22,364 complaints to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) in 2025, costing Americans nearly US$893 million. Schemes included investment, romance, and employment scams, as well as emails impersonating a company’s CEO or other officials that contain phishing links or directions to wire funds. According to IBM’s 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report, the average breach cost in the healthcare industry amounted to US$7.42 million in 2025, making it the most expensive industry for breaches for the 14th consecutive year. The cost of a data breach by industry, Source: Cost of a Data Breach 2025 Report, IBM The issue of surging cybersecurity threats is further exacerbated by the talent shortage. Despite an annual investment of nearly US$200 billion annually in cybersecurity products and services, businesses are struggling to keep pace with escalating cyber threats, with only 72% of cybersecurity roles being filled, according to a 2024 report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and the Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF), That year, the global cybersecurity workforce stood at 7.1 million professionals, leaving a shortfall of 2.8 million. Approximately 64% of this workforce shortage was disproportionately concentrated in four industries: financial services, materials and industrials, consumer goods, and tech, a concentration that’s unsurprising given that these sectors were the targets of approximately 70% of all global cyber attacks. Shortage of cybersecurity workforce per industry, Source: 2024 Cybersecurity Workforce Report, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and the Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF), Oct 2024 Other major risks While cybersecurity dominates, other major risk types are also expected to increase, albeit to a lesser extent. Natural disasters, which boasted the biggest projection gap in 2023 at US$273.8 billion, are expected to see that gap widen, increasing by 46% to reach US$399 billion by 2030. The figure will make it the second-biggest risk after cybersecurity. After natural disasters comes healthcare, with a protection gap anticipated to grow 47% from US$206.8 billion in 2023 to US$304.5 billion in 2030. This would rank healthcare third. Mortality is set to witness the most moderate growth, with the protection gap expected to rise 29% from US$229.6 billion in 2023 to US$296.8 billion in 2030. Projected protection gap 2030, Source: Insurtech Global Outlook 2026, NTT Data, Jun 2026 Growing protection gaps are creating demand for innovation. As traditional insurers struggle to profitably cover certain risks, opportunities are emerging for newer market players, driving an increase in initial public offerings (IPOs) within the insurance and insurtech industries. Insurtech and insurance IPOs, Source: Insurtech Global Outlook 2026, NTT Data, Jun 2026 It’s also driving demand for new technologies including AI and agents, which are poised to deliver cost savings in automation and process optimization of up to 35% for insurers. Although 82% of insurance leaders view AI as a top business imperative, adoption remains subdued, with only 22% of insurers having scaled AI to the production phase, even as 66% of the insurance workforce has adopted AI tools.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by freepik via Magnific The post Cybersecurity to Overtake Natural Disasters as Top Business Insurance Risk appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Meta is ready to invest US$900 million in CRED as Kunal Shah prepares to become WhatsApp’s global head, bringing one of India’s most recognisable consumer fintech founders into one of Meta’s most important products. Reuters reported that the deal gives Meta a 20% stake in the Bengaluru-based startup and values CRED at US$4.5 billion. Shah, who founded CRED in 2018, will succeed Will Cathcart, who is moving into another role inside Meta after seven years running the messaging service. CRED, however, has said Meta will not get access to its customer data through the investment, a point likely to receive close attention as the deal unfolds. The size of the cheque is notable, although the WhatsApp connection gives the transaction its larger weight. WhatsApp is India’s largest market, with more than 500 million users, and the app remains Meta’s strongest route into the country’s digital economy. Meta has spent years trying to turn that reach into a serious payments business, with limited success in India’s UPI market. WhatsApp Pay spent its earlier years under user onboarding limits, including approval to expand to 40 million users in 2021, before NPCI removed the cap at the end of 2024. During that period, PhonePe and Google Pay built a dominant position in UPI, with their combined share still close to 80% in May 2026. By the time WhatsApp Pay had more room to grow, many users already had payment apps they trusted for daily transactions.  The challenge was no longer just access to a large user base, but convincing people to change a habit that already worked. Customers may speak to sellers, confirm orders and receive updates on WhatsApp, while the actual payment often happens elsewhere. The deal brings Meta closer to the consumer finance layer behind that behaviour, making it more relevant than a passive fintech stake. CRED Could Bring the Fintech Context WhatsApp Has Been Missing CRED is not another PhonePe or Google Pay, and Meta probably does not need it to be. The company began as a members-only platform for consumers with strong credit profiles, using rewards to make credit card bill payments feel more engaging. Later expansion brought the platform into broader financial products, including lending and wealth services. CRED says it serves 17 million members each month. It also processes more than 40% of India’s credit card bill payments and manages about US$2.5 billion in lending assets for partner financial institutions. Meta already has distribution in India through WhatsApp, although the reach has not been enough to create a strong payments habit. A payment feature inside a chat app only works when users see enough value to change their routine, especially when the main UPI apps already work well and are widely accepted. CRED operates closer to trust-based financial activity than a one-off transfer. Users return for credit card payments, rewards and other financial products that require repeated engagement. Shah built the company around that behaviour, which makes his move to WhatsApp just as important as the investment itself. Meta has spent years trying to make payments feel natural inside messaging. His experience suggests a different starting point, where WhatsApp’s payments push may need to feel more closely tied to consumer finance and everyday financial habits, rather than another button inside an already crowded UPI market. WhatsApp Has A Not-So-Good Past Regarding Data CRED’s statement that Meta will not get access to customer data matters because financial behaviour is sensitive, especially beside a company whose wider business depends heavily on advertising and consumer technology. The Bengaluru-based company deals with credit-linked activity and financial products, while WhatsApp sits inside daily communication and business messaging. As Meta tries to make payments and commerce more important within WhatsApp, people will naturally ask how separate those worlds can remain even without customer data changing hands. Meta’s history with WhatsApp makes the question harder to dismiss. When Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014, the public message was that WhatsApp would remain independent and its approach to user data would not change in any major way. Less than two years later, WhatsApp updated its terms and began sharing users’ phone numbers and other account information with Facebook. Facebook said the change would support friend suggestions, ads and business messaging. Users and regulators still had reason to question the shift because it appeared to move away from earlier assurances. Both WhatsApp founders later left Facebook, with privacy and monetisation tensions widely reported as part of the story. CRED’s data promise may be true under the current investment terms. But Meta still has to convince the market that the wall will remain firm if WhatsApp becomes more serious about payments and financial services in India. Featured image edited by Fintech News Singapore based on an image by xvector via Magnific. The post Meta’s US$900M CRED Bet in India Comes With an Old WhatsApp Data Question appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

StashAway’s latest filings point to tighter cost control at the digital wealth platform, with revenue growth outpacing expenses in 2024, according to DealStreetAsia. Revenue for the year ended 31 December 2024 rose 44.1% to US$10.45 million from US$7.25 million in 2023, driven entirely by asset management fees. Net loss narrowed to US$8.43 million from US$10.91 million, while operating costs rose just 2.1% to US$19.38 million. Expenses Stay Largely Flat CEO and co-founder Michele Ferrario attributed the revenue growth to clients investing more through StashAway, supported by its broader investment suite. Personnel remained the largest cost item at US$12.49 million, including US$3.22 million in share-based compensation. Marketing expenses rose to US$1.14 million, while technology and research and development costs fell to US$1.64 million. According to Ferrario, StashAway’s Singapore business reached EBITDA profitability in 2024, with a 39% EBITDA before marketing margin. Cash and cash equivalents fell to US$8.03 million at end-2024 from US$14.07 million a year earlier. Total assets declined to US$17 million from US$22.3 million, mainly due to the lower cash balance. Accumulated losses rose to US$82.1 million from US$73.7 million. The group also reported US$50.4 million in unused tax losses, though these were not booked as deferred tax assets. StashAway has US$1 billion in assets under management and has raised US$74 million to date.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by StashAway The post StashAway 2024 Revenue Up 44% as Asset Management Fee Income Grows appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Broadridge has appointed Mark Nichols as Co-President of Digital Assets to help lead its tokenisation strategy. Nichols will oversee strategy, product development and execution across Broadridge’s digital assets business alongside German Soto Sanchez, who also serves as Co-President of Digital Assets. He joins from Ernst & Young US LLP, where he was a partner and co-led EY’s digital asset consulting business. He also led its market infrastructure consulting practice. Nichols previously led product across futures commission merchant services, collateral and funding within Deutsche Bank’s fixed income business. The appointment adds market infrastructure and tokenisation experience to Broadridge’s digital assets team. The company is working on solutions for tokenised securities, including trading and on-chain governance. Mark Nichols “Broadridge is uniquely positioned to help shape how digital assets are integrated into the financial system at scale given the important role it plays in supporting trading and governance. I’m excited to help deliver innovative solutions that will better enable clients to scale and adapt to the future of on-chain finance and tokenisation.” said Mark Nichols, Co-President, Digital Assets at Broadridge.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by user15303534 via Magnific The post Broadridge Names Mark Nichols Co-President of Digital Assets appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

DBS Bank is the employer Singapore graduates most want to work for in 2026, according to gradsingapore’s annual ranking. The bank topped the Singapore’s 100 Leading Graduate Employers 2026 list, ahead of the Ministry of Education, Microsoft, Marina Bay Sands and Micron Technology. gradsingapore is a specialised online careers portal and publication for students and graduates. It is owned and operated by GTI Media Singapore, part of the GTI Media group. Finance-related employers featured strongly in the wider top 100. J.P. Morgan ranked seventh, Mastercard ninth and Bank of Singapore 16th. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and OCBC also placed in the top 30. Other names on the list included Bank of America, AIA Singapore, Citi Singapore, Barclays Bank, Manulife Singapore, UBS, BNP Paribas, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Visa Worldwide, Allianz, Citadel, Grab, UOB and Marsh McLennan. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) ranked 56th. Digital platform and technology companies with fintech links, including Shopee, Tencent Singapore and Razer, also appeared in the top 100. DBS also topped LinkedIn’s 2026 Top Companies list for Singapore, which ranks companies based on how they support long-term career growth. The recognition comes as DBS plans to hire more than 500 young local talent this year across its Management Associate, Internship and Traineeship programmes. The results show that DBS continues to stand out among young jobseekers. They also point to strong graduate interest in banks, payment firms and digital platforms in Singapore.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by DBS   The post DBS Ranked No. 1 Employer Pick Among Singapore Graduates appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

Backbase has acquired Kasisto, a New York-based developer of agentic AI software for banks, folding the company’s platform, team and financial-services intelligence into its AI-native Banking OS. Backbase did not disclose the financial terms of the acquisition, which it announced on 23 June 2026. The combined agentic banking suite is available to existing and future customers immediately. Kasisto is known for KAIgentic, an agentic AI platform aimed at banks and credit unions, alongside KaiGPT, a proprietary large language model tuned for banking. Its software has been used by lenders including J.P. Morgan, Standard Chartered, TD and Westpac. Lance Berks has led the company as chief executive since October 2024. The deal extends a strategy Backbase set out in April, when it launched its AI-native Banking OS, a platform that sits above a bank’s core systems to coordinate work across customers, employees and AI agents. Backbase frames the Kasisto acquisition as a way to embed banking-specific agents directly into that operating system. How the combined platform is meant to work Both companies argue that most banks have so far deployed AI agents in isolated pockets that can answer queries but cannot complete the underlying task. Backbase says the combination is built to close that gap, handling a request from the initial customer intent through to a governed resolution across channels such as chat, messaging and voice. Governance seems central to the companies’ case. Backbase says Kasisto’s agents operate within banking-specific compliance controls, applying eligibility checks, policy enforcement and audit logging before an action executes. The company describes the combined product as the only AI-native solution built for the full complexity of agentic banking in regulated financial services, a claim that is difficult to verify independently. For banks in Singapore and across Asia Pacific, where regulators have pressed institutions to adopt AI with clear accountability and audit trails, the emphasis on governance is likely to matter most. The acquisition also deepens Backbase’s presence in the United States, its largest growth market, by adding Kasisto’s North American customer base and engineering team. Jouk Pleiter “This acquisition sharpens our position as the strategic partner for banks serious about AI transformation,” said Jouk Pleiter, chief executive and founder of Backbase. “Kasisto brings proven agentic AI and deep financial services intelligence.” Lance Berks “Agentic AI will reshape banking over the next decade,” said Berks. “Together, Backbase and Kasisto represent the convergence of the AI-native banking OS and purpose-built agentic AI and financial services intelligence.” Backbase, founded in 2003 by Jouk Pleiter and headquartered in Amsterdam, reported more than US$350 million in revenue in 2025 and says more than 120 banks run on its platform across retail, commercial, private banking and wealth management.     Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Sodiq99art via Magnific The post Backbase Acquires Kasisto, Deepening its Push into Agentic Banking appeared first on Fintech Singapore.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is barely underway, and crypto scammers have already built the infrastructure to steal from fans in relation to World Cup crypto scams. Blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs has identified four cryptocurrency addresses tied to three live scam operations targeting football supporters. These include two fake-ticketing sites as well as one fixed-match betting pitch, all of which are reported to Chainabuse. Ari Redbord, Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs, explained that criminals have a tendency to exploit major events and cultural moments, and don’t wait for kickoffs. He added, Ari Redbord “Scammers build and position their infrastructure weeks in advance, then scale it the moment public attention peaks. The advantage now is that every one of these payments is recorded on-chain, so compliance teams and law enforcement can screen against these addresses and routing patterns today, before the losses mount.” History offers cautionary precedents. Research from Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 shows that the Olympics has also not been immune to cyberattacks. The Tokyo Summer Olympics of 2020/2021 were targeted by phishing and social engineering campaigns aimed at athletes and ticket holders. Two years earlier, the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics suffered a far more dramatic blow: a cyberattack struck during the opening ceremony, knocking out internet networks and crippling both LAN and WiFi communications. More than 300 systems were compromised, and it took some 12 hours to fully restore operations. Fake Ticket Sites Are the Clearest Threat So Far Ticket fraud carries the clearest on-chain evidence identified so far. TRM Labs linked two fake ticketing operations to live addresses. Both mimic official or resale portals, advertise high-demand match availability, and direct buyers to pay in crypto. One Polygon address, also deployed on Ethereum, received approximately US$1,562, nearly all of it on a single day in April 2026. A second operation, tied to a Bitcoin address, kept its phishing page live but had not yet received victim payments at the time of TRM’s analysis. Both operations show the indications of active fraud infrastructure; convincing storefronts built to convert fan urgency into irreversible crypto transfers. The scam sites take advantage of a genuine tension in the ticketing market. Official resale portals still carried around 180,000+ unsold group-stage seats just two days before the tournament. Yet fans seeking to buy through unofficial channels remain exposed to fraudulent sellers who exploit scarcity and urgency. US law enforcement had already raised concerns before the tournament kicked off. The FBI warned in May that threat actors were spoofing FIFA’s website through typosquatting, which is creating lookalike domains built on minor misspellings of official URLs, to harvest personally identifiable information, including names, addresses, phone numbers, and banking details. The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department separately warned residents that cybercriminals were building fake FIFA websites and social media advertisements designed to replicate legitimate ticketing pages. Its alert urged fans to be cautious of sellers requesting payment through methods like cryptocurrency and peer-to-peer payment apps, as transactions made through these channels could be difficult to reverse. Free Streaming Sites Are Just One Part, More Scams May Come With World Cup 2026 tickets, travel, and accommodation costs pressuring avid football fans, fake streaming platforms have emerged as another scam route. These sites claim to offer free or low-cost access to matches, pushing viewers to sign up and pay for access that sometimes lasts a lifetime. Certain cases use cryptocurrency payment methods, as they provide scammers with a quicker settlement path while reducing the victim’s ability to reverse the transaction. Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 has identified other potential ways cybercriminals could use during the FIFA World Cup 2026, showcased in the table below. Source: Unit 42 of Palo Alto Networks FIFA’s Blockchain Ticketing Creates Friction for Scammers Interestingly, while scammers are resorting to crypto rails to run their fraud operations, FIFA is deploying blockchain infrastructure to clean up the sport’s ticketing segments. FIFA is deploying Avalanche and Modex for a new ticketing model to curb bots, ticket fraud, and scalping challenges, according to Coindesk. Source: FIFA The system, called the FIFA blockchain, runs on an Avalanche Layer-1 blockchain. It features Right-to-Buy (RTB) and Right-to-Ticket (RTT). Right-to-Buy refers to an official allocation by FIFA for FIFA Collect users, which grants exclusive permission to purchase FIFA tickets for events like the FIFA World Cup 2026. It sets out how many tickets a user can buy, including for which match or event. This essentially gives users access to purchase tickets during a dedicated window. After the window closes, the Right-to-Buy expires. Meanwhile, Right-to-Ticket gives FIFA Collect users the right to claim an official FIFA World Cup 2026 ticket for a specific match and category, recorded in a collectible. Right-to-Tickets can be traded on the FIFA Collect Marketplace, subject to a 15% resale fee. Trading restrictions apply to Mexican residents. With these approaches, FIFA is possibly wiring to reclaim control over fan data and secondary ticket markets. This initiative is tied to FIFA’s broader ambitions to sharpen how users interact with its platforms and ship digital products that appeal to its fan base, which is said to consist of over five billion people. Reports indicate that over 100,000 RTBs have been issued. Secondary-market Right-to-Ticket volume has passed $15 million, and combined Right-to-Buy and Right-to-Ticket volume has exceeded $25 million. The one thing to remember here is that scammers and the sport are placing opposite wagers, and only one of them should keep your winnings. Featured image edited by Fintech News Singapore based on an image by DAIN LIM on Magnific The post FIFA Fights Fraud With Blockchain, While Scammers Use Crypto to Steal appeared first on Fintech Singapore.