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Category: Finance

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Finance news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • PayMaya Philippines, JCB team up to widen JCB cards acceptance in the Philippines

    PayMaya Philippines, JCB team up to widen JCB cards acceptance in the Philippines

    PayMaya, the Philippines’ pioneering financial services provider, and JCB International Co., Ltd. (JCBI), the international operations subsidiary of JCB Co., Ltd., have forged a new partnership for JCB Merchant Acquiring and Card Issuing business in the Philippines. The partnership deals with the acceptance of JCB cards at online merchants that use PayMaya Checkout as the payment gateway. PayMaya and JCBI also plan to issue co-branded cards in the future.

    PayMaya Business is focused on delivering solutions that power businesses of all types and sizes to accept all kinds of payments. The services PayMaya Business provides are PayMaya Checkout, a system that enables online shops to accept card payments, PayMaya Swipe, a mobile point-of-sale device that can simply be attached to any mobile device so merchants can accept card payments, and PayMaya Touch, a payment solution which allows businesses to accept swipe, dip, and contactless card payments.

    The partnership will benefit all JCB cardmembers in the Philippines and overseas. JCB is a pioneer in the Japanese payment card industry with over 70M cardmembers and 95M in total worldwide. JCB cardmembers will be able to use their JCB cards at online merchants that use PayMaya Checkout as their payment gateway.

    In 2017, JCB cardmembers will also be able to transact in big retail outlets in the Philippines but also in micro- and small-medium enterprises including local boutiques, food carts, and community stores which offer a unique shopping experience through PayMaya Swipe and Touch. These outlets prefer more affordable and easier payment acceptance solution like PayMaya Swipe, Checkout, and Touch.

    Kimihisa Imada, Deputy President of JCBI, said, “The Philippines is one of the most important markets for JCB’s global business expansion and we are pleased to welcome our new partner to the JCB network. I am certain that this partnership with PayMaya will bring more benefits and convenience to all JCB card members, especially in the e-commerce space. We are also looking forward to exploring further business opportunities such as ‘PayMaya-JCB Card’ issuance soon.”

    “At PayMaya, we strive to shape the future of commerce and drive local business growth through digital payment innovations. We are strengthening this commitment by collaborating with strategic partners such as JCBI, which help us enable merchants to accept payments from more consumers here and abroad. We are thrilled to see the progression of our alliance with JCBI as we continue our mission in redefining the payment landscape in the Philippines,” said Orlando Vea, President and CEO of Voyager Innovations and PayMaya Philippines.

    The JCB “Uniquely Yours” Experience

    JCB is a major global payment brand and a leading payment card issuer and acquirer in Japan. JCB launched its card business in Japan in 1961 and began expanding worldwide in 1981. Its acceptance network includes about 31 million merchants and over a million cash advance locations in 190 countries and territories. JCB cards are now issued in 21 countries and territories, with more than 95 million card members. As part of its international growth strategy, JCB has formed alliances with hundreds of leading banks and financial institutions globally to increase merchant coverage and cardmember base. As a comprehensive payment solution provider, JCB commits to provide responsive and high-quality service and products to all customers worldwide.

    The unique benefits of PayMaya Business

    PayMaya handles the requirements of merchants in enabling their online and card payment acceptance–no need to talk to banks, expert programmers, or payment aggregators separately.

    For online payment, PayMaya Checkout API is easy to integrate in websites or apps. The process involves three simple steps: integration to sandbox environment, testing, and production.

    PayMaya provides simple pricing and fast settlements. Merchants are not required to settle monthly fees or present bank statements. They will only pay for the transactions they make. The package comes with access to a dashboard of transaction reports for sales performance tracking.

    The Philippine Airline’s mobile website and its recently launched online boutique, and the online gadget store Kimstore are powered by PayMaya Checkout.

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  • Enjoy Attractive Discounts at Over 300 Stores in Asia When You Shop with UnionPay Cards

    Enjoy Attractive Discounts at Over 300 Stores in Asia When You Shop with UnionPay Cards

    This year-end, UnionPay International (UPI) has teamed up with over 300 stores in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Thailand, to offer UnionPay Cardholders attractive discounts for the festive season. These exclusive discounts are offered as part of U Plan – UnionPay’s latest cross-border marketing initiative – launched in July this year. 

    U Plan is the world’s first open cross-border marketing platform launched by UnionPay, specially for UnionPay Cardholders. By bringing together service providers in the finance, tourism and retail industries, U Plan provides a one-stop marketing platform for UnionPay and its partners to market products and services to Cardholders collectively across geographical borders.

    Through the use of mobile applications and location services, U Plan can enable a high-level of precision for UnionPay and partners to reach out to potential travelers prior to their travels, to promote special privileges and discounts that UnionPay Cardholders can enjoy at their travel destinations. In addition, UnionPay Cardholders can also enjoy the exclusive U Plan perks at participating merchants in their local markets.

    From now till February 28, 2017, UnionPay Cardholders in Singapore can look forward to enjoying up to 30% in savings at Bath & Body Works, Kate Spade New York, Michael Kors, Tumi and Victoria’s Secret outlets in Singapore with U Plan. This includes:

    > Up to 25% in savings at Kate Spade New York, Michael Kors and Tumi: With every S$200 spend, UnionPay Cardholders can enjoy S$50 off.

    >Up to 30% in savings at Bath & Body Works and Victoria’s Secret: With every S$100 spend, UnionPay Cardholders can enjoy S$30 off.

    Traveling UnionPay Cardholders can also look forward to enjoying exclusive privileges at popular merchants such as Sasa, Prince Jewellery & Watch, ISA and Lukfook Jewellery in Hong Kong, as well as at King Power Duty Free in Thailand. 

    To improve the accessibility of U Plan privileges to Cardholders, information and transaction platform – Dianping.com – has come on board as a UnionPay U Plan partner to offer quick access to the available discount coupons via its platform. With this, DianPing.com’s 600 million users will be able to access the coupons easily via the Hong Kong, Macau, Phuket and Singapore specific sections on Dianping.com’s website and mobile app, when searching for information related to their travel destinations.

    Since the launch of U Plan in July this year, over 100 million discount coupons have been downloaded from the mobile apps. Moving forward, UnionPay has plans to expand the programme to markets such as Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States, as well as include a wider range of partners and merchants on U Plan.

    UnionPay International focuses on supporting the growth of UnionPay’s global payments business. With an acceptance footprint covering 160 countries and regions globally, UnionPay serves the world’s largest cardholder base by providing quality, cost-effective and secure payment services to over 5.4 billion Cardholders worldwide.

    In Singapore, UnionPay enables efficient and cost-effective payment services that are tailored to the needs of local businesses and consumers. UnionPay cards are issued by Bank of China (BOC), DBS Bank (DBS), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and United Overseas Bank (UOB) in Singapore, and are accepted at over 80 percent of retail, lifestyle and food and beverage establishments locally, as well as at almost all automated teller machines (ATMs) across the island.

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  • V-Key Partners with Ant Financial To Secure Mobile Payments

    V-Key Partners with Ant Financial To Secure Mobile Payments

    V-Key, a global leader in digital security, and Ant Financial Services Group, the leading global tech company that provides online and mobile financial solutions, have entered into a collaboration. Under the partnership, V-Key will provide a virtual software solution called V-OS for Ant Financial to help secure transactions on AliExpress, one of Alibaba Group’s international retail ecommerce platforms. (Ant Financial is a related company of Alibaba Group). V-Key will also provide cryptographic services and trusted environments to help secure payments processed by Alipay on AliExpress, along with risk management for each transaction.

    V-OS, which is currently deployed by top banks, mobile payment providers, and governments globally, is the world’s first virtual secure element. With V-OS, card and cardholder data will be encrypted, providing for more secure user authentication. V-Key’s solutions allow businesses to roll out cloud-based payments, trusted digital identity and authentication necessary for mobile banking and other secured mobile applications. V-Key brings advanced user data protection to its partners, without the need to use any form of hardware secure elements, which can be less secure. Its mobile security solution works on both iOS and Android devices. 

    Speaking on the pressing need for V-Key’s fast-growth, as well as its mission to work with its partners to secure mobile transactions against fraudulent activities, Benjamin Mah, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of V-Key said: “With the rapid uptake in mobile payments, e-commerce threats are becoming smarter, bigger, more sophisticated. They pose a threat not just to end-users, but also to the reputation of our partners. To stay ahead, V-Key has invested considerable time and effort to build the world’s leading virtual mobile cybersecurity suite of solutions. With our all-in-one virtual element V-OS, we look to future proof mobile wallets against advanced threats by protecting end-user information. In doing so, we look to create a safer transaction environment for our fast-growing number of partners.” 

    V-Key’s solutions are certified by leading industry bodies including FIPS 140-2 (USA) and Info-communications Media Development Authority of Singapore. It has been rigorously stress tested by the likes of global analysts, e-commerce players, government agencies and regulatory bodies globally, including Ant Financial, Core Security Technologies, UL Transaction Security, MWR InfoSecurity, Quarkslab, Upyun, Vantage Point Security, Resolvo Systems among others.

    Jason Lu, Vice President of Fraud Risk Management at Ant Financial, said,”As more users opt for mobile payments, account safety assumes utmost importance. V-Key’s unique technology helps us deploy our risk engine to enhance mobile security. The partnership is part of our commitment to secure our services. In the process, we are enabling more and more businesses and partners to expand their global market reach.”

    V-Key was founded in 2011, and has services in Singapore – where it is headquartered – as well as key markets across Asia-Pacific and the US. Through its partners, including Ant Financial as well as some of the leading banking and financial institutions and government agencies, it has already amassed over 30 million end-users.

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  • Indonesian markets panic over Trump’s policies

    Indonesian markets panic over Trump’s policies

    Panic hit domestic financial markets on Friday as investors showed concern over the anticipated policies of US president-elect Donald Trump that may negatively affect Indonesia’s economy.

    The Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) — the benchmark of the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) — ended in the red on Friday after falling 4 percent to 5,231.97 points, its lowest level in the past two months.

    Almost all sectors ended in negative territory, as investors sold a net of Rp 2.46 trillion (US$184.27 million) worth of securities throughout the trading day.

    Net sales jumped more than eightfold from the previous day, when investors ditched less than Rp 300 billion worth of securities.

    The situation was just as bad in the foreign exchange (forex) market, with the rupiah sinking as low as Rp 13,865 per US dollar, the lowest point since June 24. Market intervention by Bank Indonesia (BI) propped up the currency, enabling it to end at Rp 13,383 to the greenback.

    Friday’s development sent the government, financial authorities and analysts rushing to calm panicked investors.

    They attributed the market rout to speculation that Trump might push up fiscal spending after taking office.

    Higher spending may translate into higher inflation and interest rates in the US, which is not good news for Indonesia and other emerging markets that rely heavily on foreign funds, as some of those funds would return to the US.

    “Up to this day, the developments of the rupiah, the JCI and securities are greatly affected by regional and global sentiment impacted by the US political situation,” Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said Friday.

    “It is natural to see that every decision made in the US, as the world’s largest economy, even in the form of a statement, can have a significant impact.”

    She said investors, including those holding government debt papers (SUN), did not have to be worried, as Indonesia had a low debt risk with a relatively long maturity profile and a relatively small state budget deficit.

    Moreover, with various fiscal measures to control the state budget deficit, spending and tax revenues, government debt papers had a very low risk profile.

    “There is no need to be trapped in groundless fear,” she stated.

    The IDX and the Financial Services Authority (OJK) also tried to calm investors, saying any impact of Trump’s policies would be temporary.

    BI senior deputy governor Mirza Adityaswara admitted the central bank had intervened in local forex and sovereign bond markets to stabilize the rupiah.

    Selling by forex traders, particularly in non-deliverable forward (NDF) derivative contracts, he went on, had triggered the market volatility.

    NDF contracts, unlike forex forwards, are settled in dollars determined by reference to a daily fixing, which in some jurisdictions is set by a survey of lenders.

    “The NDF market weakened and affected traders without considering Indonesia’s economic fundamentals. That’s why the rupiah was traded at Rp 13,400 [per US dollar] during opening, because the market followed what occurred in Mexico, Brazil and other places,” he said.

    Mirza emphasized that the country’s fundamentals remained strong, with economic growth of 5.02 percent in the third quarter, higher than in most of Indonesia’s Southeast Asian peers.

    Meanwhile, stock market analysts deemed investors’ reaction exaggerated and urged a more cautious manner. They said the market should actually have priced in the expectation of a December rate increase in the US, with further increases in 2017 and 2018.

    Separately, Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita said investors should wait until Trump formed his team. He expressed optimism that economic relations between the two countries would remain positive, despite Trump’s seemingly protectionist stance.

    “But we also need to keep our market strong. With a population of 250 million people, we have enough bargaining power,” he said.

    We’ll push local industries here, so that money circulation will happen much more domestically,” he added.

  • Eastern Indonesia’s economy propelled by commodities pickup

    Eastern Indonesia’s economy propelled by commodities pickup

    Provinces in the eastern part of Indonesia are seeing robust economic growth in the third quarter thanks to higher commodity prices, but without diversification away from commodities the regions may not sustain such rapid growth, economists say.

    While the nation’s overall economic growth was 5.02 percent in the July to September period yearon-year (yoy), provinces in eastern Indonesia saw higher growth, namely Maluku and Papua with 13.72 percent, Sulawesi with 6.67 percent and Bali and Nusa Tenggara, both with 5.04 percent, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

    President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said he wants to spread economic contributions from the eastern part of Indonesia to the whole archipelago and pledged to boost infrastructure development in the regions.

    However, economists said the government’s efforts to build infrastructure on the outskirts of the country had yet to bear fruit as they required more time before affecting the local economies. Instead, the rising prices of mining commodities have become the main reason for the spike in growth in eastern parts.

    “Improvements in commodity prices, such as gold in Papua, caused the jumping growth,” University of Indonesia (UI) economist Lana Soelistianingsih said on Monday following the data release.

    The BPS data also showed that the overall growth of the nation’s mining sector reversed its minus 0.72 percent yoy contraction in the second quarter to become a 0.13 percent gain in the third quarter, thanks to the higher production of some mining commodities like gold, BPS head Suhariyanto said.

    The eastern part of Indonesia still relies heavily on the mining sector so that most provinces, such as Papua, Maluku, Central Sulawesi and several areas in Kalimantan, see their economic growth spike when prices and production increase, said Center for Reform in Economics (CORE) research director Mohammad Faisal.

    “Other areas, like South Sulawesi, recorded growth because of their diversified economies,” he said. “Bali, on the other hand, is supported by its tourism sector so that when the overall economy slows down, it is still able to post growth.”

    With the projected stable increase in commodity prices going forward, economists expressed optimism that economic growth in the area can be improved, although concerns over its sustainability remain.

    “The growth will be sustainable if those provinces can transform and diversify their economies. If they’re still commodity dependent, the growth won’t sustain,” Faisal said.

    Apart from the mining sector’s reversal of fortune, the top three sectors that booked the highest growth in the third quarter include information and communications, financial services and transportation and warehousing, according to BPS data.

    In quarter-on-quarter, transportation and warehousing, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, as well as the construction sector, were at the top of the list.

    In West Nusa Tenggara and Maluku, the regions that posted the most growth in the third quarter, the marine industry is enjoying growth, especially in the shrimp and seaweed aquaculture industries, according to the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin). Bengkulu, Lampung and Java are also seeing growth in the same sector.

  • RHB expands e-Retail solution with MPOS

    RHB expands e-Retail solution with MPOS

    Malaysia’s RHB Bank has expanded its SME e-Retail Solution with the introduction of RHB Merchant Mobile Point of Sale (MPOS), which allows SME retailers to begin operating as quickly as seven days.

    SME e-Retail Solution offers Business Current Account for transactional needs, Reflex Online Cash Management system that enables low cost internet banking, cloud-based electronic point of sale (ePOS) system and remote access to back office analytics and CRM for better management for the proprietor.

    Other features include credit and debit card terminals to enable card transactions, customised SME insurance package specifically for retailers to protect their businesses, and business credit card to help SMEs with expenses and payment plans.

    Its latest offering Merchant MPOS is a wireless device that accepts all types of cards transactions, and is Chip & Pin enabled. Users can receive e-receipts via emails or notifications to their mobile phones.

    The MPOS is integrated to the merchant ePOS system to enable fast and convenient payment collection supporting bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

    Meanwhile RHB’s partnership with SAGE software Asia Pte Ltd will see the introduction of SAGE One cloud accounting software. This cloud solution will be synced to the ePOS terminal to enable automatic updates of transactions. SMEs will then have access to the real-time financial position of their businesses.

    “We are the first financial institution in Malaysia to offer a total connectivity solution for SMEs. The SME e-Retail Solution offers SME retailers a holistic solution for seamless connectivity. SMEs are able to achieve cost reduction and increase efficiency in their businesses,” said RHB Bank director of group business and transaction banking Datin Amy Ooi.

  • Singapore’s retail forex market becomes overcrowded on back of many new entrants

    Singapore’s retail forex market becomes overcrowded on back of many new entrants

    The forex and contracts for difference (CFDs) market in Singapore is becoming increasingly overcrowded as a result of the inflow of new market participants in the recent past, citing a report by investment researcher Investment Trends. One in seven Singaporean forex traders placed in 2016  a trade through brokers that have only recently appeared to participate in the market, but most of these clients also operate accounts with local brokers as a risk mitigation measure.

    Despite the large number of new forex brokers, the market continues to be led by UK forex brokerages PhillipCapital, IG Group and CMC Markets. PhillipCapital is a strong market leader, while in the recent years the gap between IG Group, CMC Markets and Oanda has been shrinking.  In addition, Interactive Brokers also saw its market share growing in the past year.

    “The largest brokers are successfully maintaining their strong position in the market, and they are growing,” said Irene Guiamatsia, research director at Investment Trends, as cited by the media. “This is in line with the flight to quality that has been witnessed globally in the aftermath of the Swiss Franc crisis,” she added.

    The share of traders who switched from one forex/CFD broker to another halved to 7% from a year earlier. Oanda was ranked as the best broker based on clients’ overall satisfaction. CMC Markets was first in several categories – customer service, value for money, mobile platform, and education materials, while Saxo Capital Markets, part of Saxo Bank, was the broker with the highest customer rating in terms of offered platform features.

    “Increasing customer loyalty is the outcome of a combination of factors, and certainly a testament of high client satisfaction levels across the industry,” Guiamatsia said.

    The statistics shows that, since the witching activity in Singapore was very low, competition was predominantly for new traders. However, the total number of investors in Singapore who placed at least one trade in forex or CFDs in the past 12 months shrank to an estimated 22,300 from 24,500 in 2015.The decline comes from the CFD segment, since the forex segment managed to hold its own. One reason for the decline is the intense market volatility. Nearly half of the previously active traders did not place any trade over the course of the year, suggesting the level of volatility was too great for their appetite.

    Investment Trends’ report is based on the responses of more than 13,000 Singaporean investors from a survey conducted in August 2016.

    Singapore is one of the leading forex markets on a global scale. The country’s total turnover from forex and OTC derivatives trading jumped 35% on a tri-annual basis to $517 billion in April 2015, making it the third largest market after the UK and the US, according to data from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

  • BI Revises Regulation on E-Money

    BI Revises Regulation on E-Money

    Bank Indonesia (BI) will make another revision to regulation on electronic money and introduce electronic wallet in the Bank Indonesia Regulation. The new regulation on the payment transaction processing is expected to be finalized in November 2016.

    Bank Indonesia deputy governor Ronald Waas said that one of the revision points is related to the expansion of electronic money basis. Currently, Ronald revealed, there are two types of electronic money, namely server-based and card-based electronic money. BI is considering adding gadget-based money as a new category.

    “Currently we have Samsung Pay and Apple Pay. They don’t use cards,” Ronald said in Jakarta on Wednesday, November 9, 2016.

    Ronald explained that there are two categories of e money, namely Know Your Customer (KYC) and non-Know Your Customer (nKYC).

    In the new regulation, BI has planned to require electronic money issuer with total active members of no less than 300,000 to register the electronic money.

    “[Electronic money issuer] with below 300,000 users doesn’t need to obtain a permit, but they need to report. In addition, they have to establish a legal entity,” Ronald said.

    In terms of minimum balance, Ronald clarified that there would be no revision regarding the matter. The minimum balance for non-registered electronic money is Rp 1 million (US$77), while that for registered one is Rp 10 million (US$770).

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  • OCBC Bank is first local bank to win top honours

    OCBC Bank is first local bank to win top honours

    OCBC Bank marked another milestone in its journey towards ever-greater performance and business excellence by earning the World Class Award – the highest award tier – at the 2016 Global Performance Excellence Awards (GPEA), under the “Large Service” organisation classification. The GPEA is administered by the Asia Pacific Quality Organisation (APQO), an autonomous, scientific and technical organisation that brings together professional quality organisations from countries in Asia and the Pacific, including Singapore. For 16 years now, it has given out the Global Performance Excellence Awards – which are the only internationally-recognised honours for performance and business excellence.

    To be even considered for an Award, stringent criteria must be met. An organisation must start by being a winner at its own country’s national quality awards. Then, within two years, it must be recommended as a candidate for the GPEA by that country’s national quality award organising committee. OCBC Bank qualified by first being conferred the prestigious Singapore Quality Award by SPRING Singapore in 2014, following rigorous assessment of OCBC Bank’s consumer financial services business, and then by being recommended by SPRING Singapore for the GPEA.

    The organisations are reviewed by an international team of experienced examiners who assign scores and summarise the results of their assessment. The results and recommendations are then submitted to an international ‘Jury of Judges’ who make the final decision on which Award category each organisation wins.

    Mr Dennis Tan, Executive Vice President and Head of OCBC Bank’s Consumer Financial Services Singapore, said: “This award is an honour for all of us at OCBC, and is testament to our commitment to high standards of service quality. This is a key milestone in our journey towards organisational excellence. Since we embarked on our Business Excellence journey in 2001, we have tightened and enhanced our processes to deliver customer-centric, useful, fast, friendly and simple service to customers. This has earned us local recognition, with our 2014 Singapore Quality Award win, but we have not stopped there. We have continued to pursue even greater heights of business excellence – and this has culminated in our earning the Global Performance Excellence Award. While the team is very encouraged by this, achieving recognition is never a means in itself. We continue to consistently and relentlessly deliver quality products and services to meet our customers’ needs. Chasing excellence is a constant journey, never a destination.” 

    Mr Harnek Singh, President of the APQO, said: “Singapore has established itself as a leading financial centre. OCBC was amongst the first banks to win Singapore’s pinnacle award – the Singapore Quality Award – recently. This speaks volumes about the visionary leadership and well-entrenched, effective systems and processes that steer OCBC’s business excellence journey. With technology and innovation being increasingly a key competitive advantage, OCBC has successfully leveraged on technology and innovation as an enabler to offer innovative customer-centric offerings, cut costs, respond to changing customer expectations and create the agility needed to capitalise on opportunities in the market. OCBC has successfully offered a slew of award-winning, innovative products and services.” 

    OCBC Bank’s strengths in performance and business excellence are underscored by a focus on customer centricity and a competency in mining customer data through analytics to deliver intelligent customer experiences. OCBC was the first bank in Singapore to offer banking facilities at branches on Sundays, developed the ground-breaking OCBC 360 account (a deposit account that rewards customers with higher interest rates for banking more with OCBC Bank) and grew its youth segment – FRANK by OCBC – through intensive data analytics and research on how youths behave and desire to be engaged.

    OCBC Bank is also a leader in banking digitalisation. Over the past three years, it has introduced numerous first-to-market innovations in digital and mobile banking in Singapore to meet customers’ needs. Many of the bank’s customer touch points have been digitalised: Voice biometrics has replaced traditional identity verification when customers call its Contact Centre, the OCBC Open Account app now enables customers to apply for the popular OCBC 360 Account via their mobile phones or tablets without ever visiting a branch, and OCBC OneTouch uses fingerprint recognition to give customers quick and easy access through their mobile devices to their account balances and transactions. OCBC Bank has also launched a mobile application – OCBC One Wealth – that is a one-stop wealth management app providing customers with convenient access to market information, investment ideas, personalised alerts about their existing investments and even the ability to directly purchase unit trusts using their mobile devices.

    Mr Patrick Lim, Director of Business and Service Excellence at SPRING Singapore said, “OCBC Bank’s Consumer Financial Services Division was awarded the Singapore Quality Award in 2014 for having developed innovative new banking products and customised channel delivery, enabling it to be among the top banks in the highly competitive financial sector. Its recent GPEA win highlights the bank’s dedication to achieving business excellence. Recognition at GPEA proves the bank’s ability to demonstrate outstanding management capabilities while delivering superior performance and results.”

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  • 2C2P’s Online-To-Offline E-commerce Service Now Available At Over 320,000 Locations

    2C2P’s Online-To-Offline E-commerce Service Now Available At Over 320,000 Locations

    2C2P, the leading Southeast Asian payments company which processes billions of dollars in transactions each year, has announced 320,000 offline payment locations for its ‘123’ payment solution. ‘123’ is an alternative payment service. Through it, consumers of 2C2P’s merchants across Southeast Asia (SEA) can pay for their online purchases with cash or alternate means at these 320,000 offline payment locations. 2C2P’s merchant partners include some of the largest online retailers across Southeast Asia, spanning the travel and tourism, retail, food and beverage and hospitality industries, among others.  123 enables these online retailers to bring online commerce to the region’s unbanked population which, according to KPMG, spanned 73 per cent of the region’s population, or 438 million people.  

    At online check-out, their consumers will have the option to pay for purchases using 123. They will be provided a bar code which can be printed out or scanned from their mobile devices, enabling them to then pay with cash or alternate means 2C2P’s extensive network of offline payment locations – available through 2C2P’s channel partners. Payment channels include cash over-the-counter at retail chains and agents, ATMs and electronic kiosks (such as AXS, SAM, SingPost), as well as internet banking and mobile banking. These locations are available across Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

    Bringing e-commerce capabilities to rural Myanmar

    123 has increased its payment locations across the SEA region, with 12,000 new locations added in Myanmar in 2016, near ten times the network of the country’s largest bank. It has achieved this by establishing partnerships with Myanma Post Offices, Myanmar Awba Group and ABC convenience store chain. Retailers and merchants including Myanmar National Airlines (MNA) and Oway are among the first in Myanmar to actively offer 123 to their customer base.

    MNA is the largest airline carrier, and one of only two international carriers in Myanmar. It has the most extensive route network within the country. With 123, its customers can book their tickets online and then pay at over 12,000 physical locations across Myanmar, or pay through AYA Mobile Banking and branches. Customers of Oway, Myanmar’s largest online travel agent, can use 123 to make travel bookings more convenient and accessible – all without a debit or a credit card.

    Aung Kyaw Moe, CEO and Founder of 2C2P said, “2C2P has made extensive efforts to open up Myanmar’s unbanked population to e-commerce. As the country continues to see increased mobile penetration, rising urbanization and improved consumer spending, there is an urgent need to modernise its e-commerce and payments infrastructure. 2C2P’s vision is to bring e-commerce to every single person in Myanmar, and more broadly, in Southeast Asia. In so doing, we look to build the region’s e-commerce future.

    “2C2P, through 123, looks to bring convenience to Myanmar’s citizens, particularly those that remain underserved by banking and financial institutions – lacking banks accounts, credit and debit cards or access to a bank branch. They can now, for the first time, tap into the fast-growth of national, regional and global e-commerce by paying for their online purchase at a convenient offline location via 2C2P’s extensive network of physical channel partner locations,” added Aung.

    Myanmar’s Ministry of Hotels and Tourism estimates 6 million annual inbound tourists for 2016, a 25 per cent increase from 2015 (4.68 million). This number is predicted to cross 7.5 million by 2019. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is optimistic that tourism will drive the country’s overall economic growth. It forecasts tourism revenues to have increased by 19 per cent from 2014 to 2015 to US$2.1 billion – representing over 4 per cent of Myanmar’s GDP.  Asia-Pacific will overtake North America to become the largest digital travel market globally in 2019, according to eMarketer.

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  • PayPal appoints Somwang Luangphaiboonsri as Country Lead for PayPal Thailand

    PayPal appoints Somwang Luangphaiboonsri as Country Lead for PayPal Thailand

    PayPal, a global leader in digital payments, has appointed Somwang Luangphaiboonsri as Country Lead of its Thailand subsidiary. 

    As Country Lead, Mr. Somwang will be responsible for assisting PayPal to capitalize on the explosive growth of cross-border e-commerce in the Thai market. Together with the newly-established PayPal Thailand team, Mr. Somwang will also be focused on educating Thai merchants on the growth opportunities available in the global e-commerce marketplace. 

    Rahul Shinghal, General Manager for PayPal Southeast Asia said, “I am pleased to announce Somwang’s appointment as the Country Lead for the Thailand office. Somwang has been instrumental in many of our partnership dealings with Thai merchants, including Thai Airways.  I am excited to see the growth of our offerings to customers in the market.” 

    Having spent more than 16 years in the finance and technology industries, Mr. Somwang is a veteran in the e-commerce space. Prior to joining PayPal, Mr. Somwang co-founded a domestic online payment service provider and built the company to be the platform of choice for many Thai consumers. He is well-entrenched in the Thai payments scene, and is also a secretary of the Thai E-Commerce Association and the secretary of Thailand ePayment and eMoney Association.

    “Fintech is a hot topic right now and Thai businesses will need guidance to help them navigate through the fast-changing payment innovations in order to tap on the consumer growth opportunity. I am looking forward to PayPal introducing new solutions for its Thai merchant partners for their evolving customer needs and building PayPal’s presence in Thailand,” said Mr. Somwang. 

    The appointment of Mr. Somwang is just one of the latest steps taken by the digital payments company to reinforce its position in Thailand this year. PayPal has been actively building its merchant portfolio to enable Thai businesses to have access to a seamless cross-border payment experience. In August 2016, an MoU was signed with the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) to promote and facilitate cross-border trade for Thailand’s small and medium sized businesses. PayPal also onboarded leading travel businesses including Centara Hotels & Resorts, Centre Point Hotels Group, and Thai Airways as merchant partners that same month, being the sole payment provider for their cross-border online payments. 

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  • Rupiah strengthens to 13,045 as of Monday afternoon

    Rupiah strengthens to 13,045 as of Monday afternoon

    The interbank exchange rate of rupiah in Jakarta moved higher by 23 points, reaching 13,045 rupiah per one US dollar compared to 13,068 rupiah previously.

    “Rupiah strengthened against US dollar in line with the growth indicated in the just released domestic economy data,” said Woori Saudara Indonesia Tbk money market watcher Rully Nova in Jakarta on Monday.

    According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Indonesias economy experienced a 5.02 percent growth in the third quarter of 2016, thus reflecting that the cumulative growth has reached 5.04 percent by the third quarter of the year.

    The strengthening of the domestic currency has a lot to do with the market players confidence in Indonesias economy amid an uneven global economic scenario, spurring an interest in assets with rupiah denomination.

    At the same time, Nova believed the strengthening of the currency was still relatively limited, corresponding with commodity prices, especially the worlds crude oil price which is still at US$50 per barrel, indicating the psychological level of investors.

    The WTI Crude Oil was at US$44.76 per barrel as of Monday evening, while Brent Crude Oil was at US$46.11 per barrel.

    “The crude oil prices are expected to show an upward trend, sustaining rupiahs fluctuation in a positive area,” he noted.

    Meanwhile, Indonesias Central Bank recorded on Monday that rupiahs the middle exchange rate moved higher to 13,082, compared to 13,103 on Friday.

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  • Goldman’s Instructed by ANZ

    Goldman’s Instructed by ANZ

    It has been an interesting week for Australian bank ANZ. On Monday it agreed a deal with Singaporean bank DBS to dispose of its Asian wealth units. Now it appears the bank has hired Goldman Sachs for another deal.

    According to a report the bank has appointed Goldman Sachs to lead the sale. Also involved in any transaction will be the Melbourne-based boutique Flagstaff Partners.

    Insurance Units Next to go?

    Flagstaff has worked with ANZ on several occasions including as a financial adviser to the ANZ Banking Group on the sale of ANZ Trustees to Equity Trustees. It also acted as a financial adviser on the acquisition of the remaining 51 percent shareholding in the ANZ-ING wealth management and life insurance joint venture.

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  • Ex-UBS Executive Director Joins HSBC

    Ex-UBS Executive Director Joins HSBC

    A former Executive Director, Wealth Management at UBS, Singapore, has crossed the street to take up a senior role with rival HSBC Private Bank.

    In a statement HSBC Private Bank said: «We can confirm the appointment of Shang-Wei Chow as a Market Head, Domestic (Singapore) team at HSBC Private Bank, effective 3 November 2016. His appointment underpins our continued efforts to enhance our client servicing capabilities and deepen our engagement with clients.»

    Chow is a seasoned private banker with nearly 15 years of experience managing client relationships and wealth portfolios in Southeast Asia. As a Market Head of the Domestic team he will be responsible for new business development and deepening existing client relationships in line with HSBC’s strategy. Prior to joining the bank he was Executive Director, Wealth Management at UBS, Singapore.

    A Year of Change

    HSBC has seen numerous changes to its Singaporean private bank throughout 2016 including the departures of HSBC veterans Rob Ioannou to DBS and Michael Hua to LGT Private Bank.

    HSBC Private Bank in the city-state has also appointed several new bankers including a Head of Investment Counselling together with a new Head of Ultra High Net Worth Investment Counselling.

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  • AI, Gamification and Blockchain at DBS Hong Kong Accelerator

    AI, Gamification and Blockchain at DBS Hong Kong Accelerator

    Showcasing innovative fintech solutions that leverage artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, gamification and more, the founders of seven startups from Hong Kong and around the world met with hundreds of potential investors at DBS Accelerator Demo Day, the finale of the second DBS Accelerator programme in Hong Kong.

    Accelerators play a vital role in the Asian startup ecosystem and in supporting innovation. Providing vast resources, mentor support and dedicated work and office space, DBS Accelerator aims to create opportunities for innovators from across Asia and globally.

    Financial Innovation Evolving Rapidly

    The seven startups in this year’s programme are Flowcast, FOMO Pay, Hampen Technology, Mindlayer.io, NetGuardians, Playbasis and XinGuo Technology. They were selected from more than 150 applicants from around the world, including Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Thailand and the U.S.

    «We believe FinTech has the ability to go beyond mere disruption and make a tangible difference to the experiences customers have in using financial products and services,» said Lawrence Morgan, CEO of Nest.

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