Yemen’s Tadhamon Bank upgrades to latest version of Azentio’s iMAL core banking platform
The bank has been running on iMAL since 2010.
Singapore
ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Untangled Finance, Kennek and more
A handy round-up of the recent funding endeavours of fintech companies across the globe.
Coinbase receives payment licence from Monetary Authority of Singapore
The news follows a year after the crypto heavyweight received its In Principle Approval (IPA) from MAS.
Project Mariana successfully completes cross-border settlement of wholesale CBDCs
The project was completed between BIS, Banque de France, MAS and the Swiss National Bank.
AlphaSense lands $150m Series E funding at $2.5bn valuation
The latest fundraise comes months after AlphaSense secured $100m in Series D funding led by Alphabet’s CapitalG.
Standard Chartered strikes corporate multibank connectivity through Starfish Digital partnership
The bank’s new service seeks to benefit its corporate clients’ inter-bank connectivity and cash management processes.
Funding Societies secures $27m debt funding to support SMEs across Southeast Asia
Funding Societies will channel the funding into its financing solutions to support SMEs in its five operating regions.
Singapore’s Grab pulls the plug on investment services citing non-viability
Customers will have to withdraw their money by 13 October, after which the accounts will be permanently closed.
CardsPal founder and CEO Saim Yeong Harng steps down three months after Utu acquisition
Utu acquired the Singapore-based lifestyle app in June following its $33 million Series B.
Standard Chartered Ventures launches new BaaS fintech Audax
Audax has been designed to help banks and financial institutions accelerate their digital transformation.
India’s Samunnati signs for Finbots.AI’s CreditX AI credit modelling solution
The deal marks another step in Finbots.AI’s push to scale across APAC.
MAS appoints Chia Der Jiun as managing director with Ravi Menon set to retire
Chai succeeds Ravi Menon as managing director, who only renewed his term in May.
Sanjay Singh appointed as new CEO of Azentio Software
Singh has spent much of his career at US tech firm Akamai Technologies.
Standard Chartered global head leaves to found fintech start-up
Manohar Chadalavada is leaving the bank to be the co-founder of a fintech start-up currently in stealth.
MAS firms up regulatory framework for stablecoins
Issuers in Singapore will have to fulfil requirements to be recognised and labelled as “MAS-regulated stablecoins”.
Payroll fintech OneBlinc secures $100m credit facility with Clear Haven
The fintech landed $20 million in a Series A funding round in June 2022.
Singapore’s MVGX launches carbon SaaS subsidiary, appoints ex-BSI exec to take the lead
Frank Zhang, “a fintech, ISO standard certification and sustainability veteran”, will lead the new subsidiary.
DBS completes acquisition of Citi’s consumer banking business in Taiwan
DBS has also absorbed close to 3,000 employees from Citi Consumer Taiwan.
Singapore’s Endowus raises $35m as it eyes regional expansion
The round saw participation from existing investors including UBS Next, EDBI and Prosus Ventures.
MAS pledges up to $112m towards tech and innovation in financial sector
The funding comes as part of a renewal of the Financial Sector Technology and Innovation Scheme (FSTI 3.0).
DBS Bank to sell majority stake in AXS to Tower Capital Asia
The bank has struck an agreement this week to sell a 77.8% stake in AXS to the private equity firm.
DBS launches e-CNY merchant collection solution in Mainland China
With the solution, corporate clients of DBS China will be able to collect payments from their customers in e-CNY.
BIS names Maha El Dimachki as new head of Singapore innovation hub
El Dimachki will join BIS from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.
B2B fintech Aspire reports profitability
Aspire says its results have set “a new industry standard of sustainable growth”.
Thunes closes Series C funding round, secures more than $60m in total
Bessemer Venture Partners and 01Fintech joined UK hedge fund Marshall Wace in providing the cash.
Crypto fintech Oobit names Phillip Lord as president
Lord will be tasked with forging partnerships, business development and executing marketing strategies.
Digital banking group Tyme lands $77.8m in pre-Series C funding
Existing investor Tencent also increased its stake to become Tyme’s third-largest stakeholder.
Singapore’s Whampoa Group selects Bahrain as HQ for new digital bank
Launching end of 2023, the new digital bank aims to support the adoption of digital assets worldwide.
Standard Chartered partners Worldpay from FIS to expand payment collections offering
With the partnership, the bank aims to expand the footprint of its solution across Asia and other markets.
Demystify Podcast: Demystifying BaaS with Kelvin Tan, Standard Chartered Bank
What is needed within a large bank to ensure a BaaS proposition can be conceived, deployed and nurtured?
WhatsApp partners Stripe to enable in-app business payments in Singapore
With the new feature, Singapore customers and businesses can now buy and sell directly in WhatsApp chats.
IFGS 2023: Collaboration key for Singapore’s burgeoning fintech sector
Sopnendu Mohanty, chief fintech officer at MAS, discussed the country’s strategies and successes at IFGS 2023.
Thunes bags $30m from Marshall Wace as part of Series C funding
The funding was disclosed in a recent filing with Singapore’s Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.
Singapore’s Kredivo Holdings secures $270m in Series D funding
Japanese banking giant Mizuho Bank led the funding round, contributing $125 million.
US regtech Droit lands $23m Series B funding
The round was led by Pivot Investment Partners and UBS via its venture arm UBS Next.
Clarency taps Form3 for access to Swift network
With the partnership, Clarency’s global customers will be able to send and receive payments on the Swift network.
Stripe unveils Tap to Pay for Android devices
Tap to Pay allows businesses to accept contactless payments using an NFC-enabled Android device.
Singapore and India link up PayNow and UPI for real-time cross-border payments
The MAS and RBI will use a scalable cloud-based infrastructure to manage future increases in remittance volumes.
Singapore’s Aspire lands $100m in Series C funding
With the new funding, Aspire plans to build out its product offering and expand its regional presence.
Baiduri Bank taps Finbots.ai to modernise credit risk management
The partnership makes Baiduri the first bank in Brunei to migrate to an AI-led credit risk management solution.
