Some companies have acquired cryptocurrencies for their corporate treasuries despite the volatility. MicroStrategy, the public company that holds the most bitcoin on the balance sheet, remains bullish on bitcoin.
Some companies have acquired cryptocurrencies for their corporate treasuries despite the volatility. MicroStrategy, the public company that holds the most bitcoin on the balance sheet, remains bullish on bitcoin.
In the Asia Pacific region, skilled and experienced tech professionalsand regulatory compliance specialists will find themselves well-positioned in the banking and financial services market
Crypto markets have seen recent spikes and increased volatility as more mainstream companies and speculators continue to join the digital asset trading and investment bandwagon. The impressive rise of other cryptocurrencies beside Bitcoin has dented its market dominance.
The total capitalisation of digital assets surged three-fold in 2021, with strong evidence that the momentum is likely to continue into the new year. DeFi users are expected to continue their exponential growth over the next 12 months, with more institutional investors moving into the space, combined with greater clarity over regulators’ stance in the large economies such as China and the US. What challenges and uncertainties could lie ahead to derail the upbeat outlook?
The push for climate change considerations puts pressure on financial services companies to develop and use advanced technologies such as blockchain that promises improved governance.
As the trade finance industry collectively progresses to address challenges around digital fragmentation and isolation, adoption of standard solutions and well-established legal frameworks along with technology as an enabler will play critical roles in truly digitalising trade.
As demand for sustainable products rises, stakeholders including consumers, investors, and regulators are pushing manufacturers, suppliers and lenders to incorporate ESG metrics in evaluating the performance of their supply chains.
Tech giants, which make up some of the world’s largest companies, are muscling into traditional banking spaces. But whether they want to crush the traditional finance players or enable them, they are learning across the globe that disrupting well-regulated banking systems is easier said than done
Several key themes emerged amidst the many discussions by global leaders in payments, including QR code, blockchain, credit card schemes, fintech and data consolidation
While the growth of Alibaba and Alipay as well as Tencent and WeChat pay in China is well known, there have been questions about whether a similar model can succeed outside of China. Local players as well as those Chinese giants themselves are starting to show that a super-app may well succeed in other markets in Asia too.
Given that remittances are so lucrative in so many markets in Asia, and that new competitors are offering faster and cheaper services, banks will need to develop new models if they want to keep their customers.
Electronic channels and bank agnostic platforms are transforming traditional trade finance functions across Asia Pacific
Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, joined the Asian Banker’s Emmanuel Daniel and Gordian Gaeta in a debate on the development of the internet, innovation in China, and what the financial industry can learn from both
Implications of new regulations and emergence of digital-only players were hot button issues discussed this year at the Asian Banker Future of Finance ‘Global Transactions Re-invented’ track
Pundits who see fintechs as the epitome of digital revolution need to pause and consider a simple fact, they may well be transitory and more dramatic changes are yet to come
Investments and interest in distributed ledger technology have been rising rapidly as new use cases emerge to harness its potential. The technology is nonetheless still at an early stage with many hurdles to cross, possibly five to seven years away from mainstream adoption.
New proofs of concepts have emerged in blockchain as the industry tackles various impediments to its successful adoption. The technology initiatives would need to be complemented with stronger collaborative efforts and interoperability for future growth.
De-risking has proved to be more than the exiting of businesses for Asia Pacific’s trade finance industry. A strategic shift is underway which might just change the nature of trade finance for years to come.
It is not often that a technology comes along that forces a rethink of traditional business models. Blockchain, a technology that originated from an anti-establishment alternative to fiat currencies, is fast finding applications in a myriad of financial use cases
As trials move into actual implementations, global financial markets and monetary systems will be disrupted and transformed.
The mBridge pilot has tested the issuance of over $12 million in central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and payments of over $22 million on bridge. It has resolved long-standing pain points in traditional cross-border payment systems and is rooted in the roadmap for distributed ledger technology (DLT)-based infrastructure, as well as CBDC.
Disintermediation by digital wallets and decentralised finance platforms is shifting deposit business dynamics, requiring conventional banks to innovate and stay competitive
The financial services market size in the metaverse is predicted to drop from 22% to 6% by 2030—its fall from tech wonder to half-baked idea in financial services requires differentiation in its value proposition to secure success
Investors’ risk appetite and fondness for fintechs have cooled, leading to a 42% drop in global funding and 57% drop in APAC funding in the first half of this year
According to a TABInsights survey on technology investment, FI in APAC prioritise data management, advanced analytics and digital banking capabilities
The shift in global supply chains is accelerating demand for new financing programmes and solutions that aim to accelerate and improve trade digitalisation processes
Trade finance is gradually digitalising amid evolving e-commerce models, driven by technology and sustainability; the $2.5 trillion global trade finance gap affecting SMEs prompts innovation in blockchain, tokenisation, and sustainability, despite geopolitical complexities