Grab set for US listing through merger with Altimeter SPAC at US$35bn valuation; The listing will see Grab raising US$2.5bn through a private investment in public equity deal; About US$1.2bn will be funded by Altimeter; The deal could take as soon as this week. More here

SoftBank co-leads US$640mn in pre-IPO Series E of Singapore retail-tech unicorn Trax; Its retail cloud platform combines computer vision with IoT hardware to provide companies with granular visibility of changing store conditions; With hubs in the US, Singapore, Israel, Trax serves customers in over 90 countries. More here

AirAsia to raise US$300mn for digital unit to fuel super-app ambition; As per a Bloomberg report, it is in discussions with at least one advisor for its digital unit’s first financing round; In March, founder and CEO Tony Fernandes estimated that AirAsia’s super app would record a turnover of US$250mn this year; Recently, the airline said it’s looking to enter the ride-hailing business. More here

Play Ventures closes US$135mn fund targeting gaming startups; Launched in 2018, Play Ventures portfolio consists of 24 early-stage gaming startups across over 10 different countries; Its investees include Vietnam’s Gamejam and Singapore’s Potato Play. More here

Line operator Naver invests US$150mn in Indonesia’s Emtek; The investment is aimed at jointly finding new growth opportunities in SEA with its regional partners; Emtek owns and operates several internet properties, including DANA and Bukalapak; Naver has been aggressively investing in promising startups and businesses in SEA, where the online business growth potential is greater than in other regions. More here

MatchMove’s talks with VCs to raise US$50mn fall through; As per a DealStreetAsia, this follows the S’pore fintech firm’s failure to secure digital banking licence from MAS; MatchMove had forged consortium to apply for a digital bank licence to bolster its existing banking-as-a-service portfolio. More here

Indonesia’s B2B commerce startup Sinbad set to close in on US$15-20mn funding; As per a DealStreetAsia report, MDI Ventures and Genesia Ventures are understood to be backing the startup’s latest round; Sinbad provides a platform for retailers and merchants to place orders directly with principal manufacturers and product distributors. More here

Hyperganic brings 3D printing software to Singapore with a US$7.8mn funding; The company shared this decision was driven by Singapore’s investment in deeptech, specifically in AI, robotics and industrial 3D printing; Germany-based Hyperganic uses computer algorithms to create digital renderings of complex parts such as rocket engines. More here

SIRCLO acquires Eduardo Saverin-backed Indonesian parenting platform Orami; The deal states that Orami will operate as an independent entity that is integrated within SIRCLO’s line of services; Orami CEO Ferry Tenka and President Hendrawan Kartika will take on the roles of SIRCLO’s CMO and CFO, respectively. More here

SEA’s VC landscape will soon get more specialised, says ADB Ventures; There is now a rapidly growing pool of young entrepreneurial talent, some of who are moving into sectors that can have a significant impact; The impact VC firm is launching a US$100mn+ debt fund targeting tech startups that are slightly further along the commercialisation lifecycle. More here

Flash Coffee raises US$15mn to take on the likes of Kopi Kenangan in SEA; Investors include White Star Capital, Delivery Hero-backed DX Ventures, GFC; The tech-enabled coffee chain now operates in 50 locations across Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, with majority of its stores already achieving profitability. More here

‘Microinsurance will play a pivotal role in accelerating financial inclusion in SEA’: Raunak Mehta of Igloo; Insurtechs have to overcome the distribution challenge and identify, develop and grow more avenues for insurance products to be made available to consumers. More here

Singapore startup Glints snags US$22.5mn Series C; Investors include PERSOL Holdings (lead), Monk’s Hill, Wavemaker Partners; Glints is an online platform for career development and recruitment in SEA; The funds will be used to develop new features and expand its presence in Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Taiwan. More here

Singapore-based Circus Social secures US$1mn led by Inflection Point Ventures; The startup allows companies to track competitors, benchmark performance, analyse sentiment and predict trends using AI and Machine Learning; It has clients across multiple industries in over 15 countries in Asia Pacific, including Fortune 500 firms. More here

SEED Ventures’s new fund VDF1 can pay interest-free loan of up to US$38K to startups ‘within 5 days’; Although it won’t be taking any interest from startups, the shareholders will be incentivised with small amounts of equity; VDF1 is receiving interest mostly from F&B companies. More here

Singapore’s fintech Friz raises pre-seed funding from YC, 500 Durians, others; The startup is focused on providing financial services for freelancers; The capital raised will be used for the expansion of its engineering and marketing teams, as well as to expand into markets such as the Philippines and Thailand. More here

Twitter said to have held acquisition talks with Clubhouse on potential US$4bn deal; Twitter, however, has its own product very similar to Clubhouse — Spaces; Clubhouse, meanwhile, just launched the first of its monetisation efforts, Clubhouse Payments, which lets users send direct payments to other creators on the platform, provided that person has enabled receipt of said payments. More here

EY survey: SEA region to generate most M&A opportunities; Driving this acquisition appetite are concerns about tariffs and trade flows, strengthening of technology, talent and new capabilities, and growth into adjacent business sectors or activities; Top investment destinations (cross-border and domestic) among SEA corporates were India, Singapore, Japan, Thailand and China. More here

8 Indian startups join unicorn club this year; Startups that have turned unicorns in 2021 include infra tech provider Infra.Market; health-tech provider InnovAcer; non-bank lender Five Star Business Finance; e-pharmacy API Holdings; social commerce startup Meesho; and fintech companies Digit Insurance, Groww and Cred. More here

Cloud technology is on a rise in SEA; The cloud computing market is expected to reach US$40.32bn by 2025, according to IDC; Startups now no longer compete regionally or locally, but on a global scale and cloud technology offers cost-effective, adaptable, and easy access alternative to the present and future needs of the organisation. More here

Singapore to pump extra US$51mn into Tourism Development Fund (TDF); Initiatives supported by the TDF include the Experience Step-Up Fund; the Kickstart Fund to test innovative lifestyle concepts; and the Training Industry Professionals in Tourism grant, which covers part of the cost of sending employees for tourism-related skills upgrading. More here

How will digital banking benefit Malaysians?; The biggest impact here will be seen in financial inclusion, especially for Malaysia’s underserved and unserved population; Digital banking may also provide better accessibility to those in rural areas who can benefit from similar financial products, as they won’t have to access physical bank branches that are commonly located in urban areas. More here

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Image Credit: Play Ventures

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In an age of prescribed social distancing, in order for innovative tech solutions to flourish, it is imperative that founders and tech entrepreneurs connect with their audiences. To bridge gaps between corporate buyers and solution providers. This requires strategic networking and the opportunity to showcase one’s products and services in a platform that is reputable, credible, and full of possibilities.

Through strategic matching, technology ventures and startups are not only able to display their solutions to a curated audience of potential corporate buyers and regional investors, but they are also exposed to other new innovations that can help inspire better ideas in the future.

One institution spearheading efforts to connect startups with corporates and investors is the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP). HKSTP recently announced that it will be hosting the Global Matching 2021 from 26 May to 2 June 2021. Harnessing its resources as Hong Kong’s innovation hub, HKSTP will be powering the Corporate Innovation Summit, as well as workshops for corporate buyers to drive innovation adoption at speed and scale.

Also read: Malaysian tech companies making waves in Indonesia, shine on a global stage

The 6-day programme offers startups and technology ventures a platform to expand their business network and connect with potential corporate buyers and investors. Local and international technology ventures are invited to submit their online proposals in one of nine designated industry verticals, namely Consumer and Services, Education, Manufacturing and Logistics, Travel and Hospitality, Banking, Financial Services and Insurance, Healthcare, Construction and Real Estate, and Government and Smart City.

Albert Wong, CEO of HKSTP, said, “Entrepreneurs need the right environment to unlock ideas and sustainably bring them into fruition. Pooling our resources of knowledge, network and R&D expertise together, HKSTP is honoured to provide the support for these innovators to be productive and to succeed.”

“This event is a two-way learning ground for entrepreneurs and investors. Our corporate partners get to discover emerging solutions that could potentially fill a need in their industry. Technology creators, on the other hand, gain a swift introduction to regional investors, along with market-entry insights and funding from interested partners. Ultimately, we are able to accelerate the production of solutions that could revitalise and move industries forward with innovation and technology,” added Wong.

What to expect from the Corporate Innovation Summit 2021

Around 300 technology ventures from across the globe are expected to participate in the programme for an opportunity to get matched with potential new corporate customers and partners during the Global Matching sessions.

The event builds upon the success of last year’s virtual Global matching event, which saw over 320 one-on-one matching meetings between 160 global tech ventures and over 200 industry corporates and regional investors. This year’s matchmaking sessions will combine online and onsite business-and-investment matching activities, followed by two-minute pitches to be delivered by shortlisted technology ventures over an online platform.

The pitches will be publicly live-streamed and then made available via video-on-demand, extending the exposure for entrepreneurs to potential investors.

The Global Matching 2021 is now accepting applications from global technology ventures on or before 16 April 2021.

For further event updates and the latest list of corporate buyers and regional investors, please visit our event website.

About Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation

Comprising Science Park, InnoCentre and Industrial Estates, Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) is a statutory body dedicated to building a vibrant innovation and technology ecosystem to connect stakeholders, nurture technology talents, facilitate collaboration, and catalyse innovations to deliver social and economic benefits to Hong Kong and the region.

Also read: KiWi New Energy: Making green energy available to all

Established in May 2001, HKSTP has been driving the development of Hong Kong into a regional hub for innovation and growth in several focused clusters including Electronics, Information & Communications Technology, Green Technology, Biomedical Technology, Materials and Precision Engineering. We enable science and technology companies to nurture ideas, innovate and grow, supported by our R&D facilities, infrastructure, and market-led laboratories and technical centres with professional support services. We also offer value-added services and comprehensive incubation programmes for technology start-ups to accelerate their growth.

Technology businesses benefit from our specialised services and infrastructure at Science Park for applied research and product development; enterprises can find creative design support at InnoCentre; while skill-intensive businesses are served by our three industrial estates at Tai Po, Tseung Kwan O and Yuen Long. More information about HKSTP is available at http://www.hkstp.org/.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by 
HKSTP

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Oyo, a SoftBank-backed Indian budget hotel chain, has dismissed the news  reports that it has filed for bankruptcy after the fallout of a contractual dispute over a claim of US$22,000.

Ritesh Agarwal, founder and CEO of Ayo, stated in a Twitter post dated April 7 that the text messages and documents carrying these claims are “absolutely untrue and inaccurate”

He noted the company has paid the disputed amount and has challenged the claim.

Similar to its counterparts in the tourism industry, Oyo has been hit by the lockdown measures implemented by various countries. Agarwal disclosed in April last year the hotel chain saw its revenues and occupancy rates drop by up to 60 per cent during the height of the pandemic.

However, it seems Oyo is not letting the pandemic headwinds affect them. Last month, its Singapore unit secured a US$204 million loan facility from SB Investment Holdings (UK), a unit of SoftBank. This move is aimed at bolstering Oyo’s operations, which have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Several reports have also noted the company has managed to sustain its gross margin to 100 per cent of pre-COVID-19 levels.

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Image Credit: Oyo

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Australian fintech company Finder has bought Singapore-based GoBear’s brand, including its trademark and digital assets.

Digital assets bought include domains, website content and GoBear’s social media channels in seven markets, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

As per the deal, GoBear’s website content will be integrated into Finder. However, its social media and email channels will continue to remain independent.

The financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed.

GoBrear had ceased operations early this year.

Finder said in an official note that there is a great alignment between the two brands, and the acquisition can lead it to further strengthen its presence in Singapore.

“Like GoBear, Finder is committed to helping customers improve their financial wellbeing and our mission is to help people all over the world make better money-related decisions every day. We want to continue to honour GoBear’s vision and are proud to be continuing to serve the people of Southeast Asia,” the Finder said.

Also Read: GoBear shuts down amidst decreased demand for its financial products, services

“They [GoBear] had developed thousands of guides and education pieces, which were aligned with the way Finder approaches comparison, so those articles will now go live on Finder,” Finder’s founder and CEO Frank Restuccia said in an interview with Mumbrella.

Founded in 2015 by CTO Ivonne Bojoh and Chief Commercial Officer Marnix Zwart (both left the firm in November 2019), GoBear operates a platform for insurance, banking and lending products in seven markets across Southeast Asia.

GoBear was initially meant to be a metasearch engine, before making a transition into financial services. As of May 2020, it had over 100 commercial partners, including banks and insurance providers, and its services were used by over 55 million people.

The GoBear platform was shut down in January this year amid the COVID-19 crisis, as demands for its financial products and services plummeted.

Founded in 2006 in Sydney, Finder also helps people make better financial decisions by comparing different financial products. It compares more than 200 different verticals ranging from personal finance products such as credit cards, home loans and savings accounts to online shopping, cryptocurrency, and share trading.

Today, it has offices in Australia, the US, the UK, Canada, Poland and the Philippines, and claims to be serving more than 10 million consumers across 80+ countries every month.

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Image Credit: GoBear

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Indonesia’s e-commerce enabler SIRCLO announced today it has acquired local parenting platform Orami for an undisclosed amount.

Post-acquisition, Orami will operate as an independent entity that will be integrated within SIRCLO’s line of services.

SIRCLO will leverage its technical capability as well as infrastructure to strengthen the enabler services and bridge brands to a broader consumer base.

At the same time, Orami’s role within SIRCLO will be to serve as the extended effort to make that mission a reality — with a strength that lies in the community network of mothers who actively shop for their parenting needs through e-commerce.

As per the deal, Orami CEO Ferry Tenka and President Hendrawan Kartika will take on the roles of SIRCLO’s CMO and CFO, respectively.

Founded in 2013, SIRCLO helps businesses across various scales sell online. It claims to have served over 100,000 well-known brands across 34 provinces in Indonesia.

Last year, SIRCLO claims to have recorded up to a four-fold transaction surge, owing to changes in consumer behaviour that took place during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On the other hand, Orami is a Jakarta-Indonesia-based company that enables the combination of parenting content, commerce, and community under one ecosystem.

Also Read: [Updated] Orami is raising another round of funding, set eyes on acquisition

Backed by the likes of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, Ardent Capital, and Velos Partners, Orami claims to be recording over five million monthly active users.

“We see this synergy as a really big opportunity to accelerate Orami’s growth. In parallel, it enables us to accommodate the needs of brands and consumers,” said Tenka.

“This corporate action can expand the enabler services that SIRCLO offers to brand owners who are seeking to enter the online market. Orami has a shopping site that facilitates established brands from the mom and baby category in selling their products. Therefore, we have a joint mission to combine our strengths in helping brands sell online in a more strategic, scalable, and efficient manner,” SIRCLO founder Brian Marshal added.

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Image Credit: SIRCLO

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Singapore-based VC fund management company SEED Ventures has announced the launch of a new sector-agnostic venture debt fund.

Christened ‘Venture Debt Fund 1’ (VDF1), it plans to provide an interest-free loan of US$15,000-US$37,500 to 30 seed-stage ASEAN startups each by the end of 2021.

What makes the fund unique is that it is able to dispense funds in just five days of completing due diligence (typically one to two weeks), with a repayment term of two years.

“It is definitely tough to get a bank loan within the first two years of starting up. VDF1 allows the fund to disperse US$15,000 within just five days,” Nison Chan, Business Development Partner at SEED Ventures, told e27.

“At the seed stage, due diligence is pretty straightforward, so cash flow will be easier for our portfolio companies. Our General Partners and Limited Partners do have the network to either provide sales channels or further fund-raise at the next stage,” he added.

Although SEED Ventures won’t be taking interest from startups in exchange for investment, it has clarified that the shareholders of the fund will be incentivised with small amounts of equity.

“We will be taking maximum equity of up to 10 per cent. It can, however, be decreased to a base minimum when companies complete their debt repayment in about six months. At the end, we will still hold a base equity of 2-5 per cent per startup,” Chan explained.

Also Read: What will VC funding look like post-COVID-19?

For instance, if a startup pays back the loan six months earlier, the 10 per cent equity it provided to the shareholders at the beginning will come down to eight per cent.

Besides financial support, SEED Ventures will also assist its portfolio companies with strategic industry help in business, distribution and sales.

Moreover, it will support startups with accounting and data protection services at near cost, so startups can use their funds on revenue-generating operations.

VDF1 is receiving interest mostly from F&B companies.

“What sets us truly apart is our relationship with the founders of the portfolio companies. We focus very much on the morale of our founders and CEOs. They seek business advice at different stages and we do meet up once a week, depending on the situation. We do check in from time to time to ensure that their morale and health of the company are well. In this current era, maintaining great relationships with founders/CEOs means almost everything in business,” Chan concluded.

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Image Credit: SEED Ventures

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Play Ventures, a Singapore-based VC firm focused on funding gaming startups, has announced it has hit the final close of its second fund at US$135 million.

This brings the firm’s total assets under management (AuM) to US$175 million.

Launched in 2018, Play Ventures portfolio consists of 24 early-stage gaming startups across over 10 different countries. Investees include Vietnam-based Gamejam, Singapore’s Potato Play and Finnish firm Savage Game Studios.

“With Fund II, we continue to believe that gaming will be the most impactful and dominant form of entertainment in the 21st century,” Play Ventures said in a statement.

Also Read: Charting the rise of hyper casual gaming: An insight into the massive mobile industry

The firm has its sights on investing in Indian and Latin American gaming startups. “We have a strong conviction that the best gaming teams can be founded and built anywhere in the world,” it noted.

Play Ventures disclosed that it recently invested in India’s All-Star Games’s US$1.5 million pre-Series A round. It is currently in the process of closing multiple new deals worldwide.

Driven by lockdowns brought about by the pandemic, the gaming industry has outperformed both movies and sports combined last year as the biggest moneymaker in entertainment.

Globally, the gaming industry was valued at US$162 billion in 2020, with analysts expecting the figure to double within the next five years.

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Hyperganic, a German company developing software that generates 3D printings, is expanding into Singapore. This comes off the back of its US$7.8 million funding round co-led by German funds HV Capital and VSquared Ventures.

As per a press note, Hyperganic will use Singapore as a key pillar of its development strategy.

The company shared this decision was driven by the city-state’s investment in deeptech, specifically in advanced manufacturing technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, robotics and industrial 3D printing.

Hyperganic is partnering with the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster (NAMIC) to “orchestrate and implement” strategies for the future of production. NAMIC was set up as part of Singapore’s five-year RIE (Research, Innovation, Enterprise) plans.

Also Read: Uncovering the rise and challenges faced by deep tech startups in Singapore

Founded in 2017, Hyperganic aims to accelerate innovation in design, engineering and production of physical objects. The company uses computer algorithms to create digital renderings of complex parts such as rocket engines.

The resulting objects are traded digitally and manufactured in digital factories based on industrial 3D printing.

“Humanity’s biggest challenges can only be solved through a giant leap in technology. We’ve created Hyperganic to fundamentally change how we design and build the things around us,” shared Lin Kayser, co-founder and CEO.

“Singapore is one of only a few countries that have recognised the seismic shift happening through digital factories based on additive manufacturing (3D printing). The products designed by our Singapore AI engineers will be game-changers for many industries that are highly relevant to the region,” he added.

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Brankas, Curlec among the 4 Asian startups selected for VISA programme

The story: Visa has picked four Asian startups which, over the next four to six months, will focus on creating defined commercial opportunities to collaborate on new payment solutions with Visa and its extensive network of bank and merchant partners

The startups are:

Brankas (Singapore)

A fintech startup that provides financial software and solutions for companies.

Curlec (Malaysia)

A fintech company that makes it easy for businesses of all sizes to collect recurring payments.

Open (India)

A neo-banking platform for small businesses.

DigitSecure (India)

An omnichannel payments acceptance platform that supports small businesses in managing and streamlining their operations digitally.

Facebook, Google partner to boost internet capacity in Southeast Asia

The story: Facebook is planning to build two new undersea cables to connect Indonesia, Singapore and the US and boost internet capacity in Southeast Asia.

More about the story: Facebook will be partnering with Google and Indonesian telco XL Axiata to complete the cable by late 2023.

It will also team up with Telin, a subsidiary of Indonesia’s Telkom, and Singaporean conglomerate Keppel, for the development of a separate cable named Bifrost, which will be finalized in 2024.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: AirAsia to fly into Grab’s territory in Malaysia; SEA gets new massive startup funds

Canva raises US$71M in latest funding, valuation rises to US$15B

Investors: Dragoneer Investment Group,  T. Rowe Price Global Technology Fund, Blackbird Ventures, and Skip Capital.

More about the story: Canva said that it has surpassed US$500 million in annualised revenue this year, a 130 per cent year-on-year increase while remaining profitable.

As of today, it has more than 55 million monthly active users.

MDEC launches new work in tech initiative

What it is: A training and hiring incentive programme aimed at boosting the digital business services sector and developing tech talents in Malaysia.

Who can join: Only Malaysian citizens

More about the story: The programme is estimated to create 6,000 job opportunities and produce at least 1,000 quality tech talents.

About MDEC: MDEC is an agency under the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia and is tasked with spearheading the development of the country’s digital economy.

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Image Credit: Unsplash

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Startups are regarded as the seeds for economic growth around the world, and fintech startups in Hong Kong in particular are in the right place, at the right time. Amid the challenges of COVID-19, the city’s fintech sector proved itself to be a resilient, economic oasis, with companies continuing to hire and grow.

Bucking the global trend, we’ve seen a thriving fintech sector in the city not least with the launch of multiple virtual banks and fintech startups. As a part of the ecosystem, we have also seen an acceleration in everyday fintech adoption which is an encouraging sign for the future of the sector.

Recently I had the honour to become a judge of a fintech startup pitching competition. This was a good chance to reflect on where the emerging opportunities are and what are the traits of successful startups.

Let’s take the payments space as an example. The move to online shopping was already a trend prior to 2019 but the pandemic has accelerated this. This has created new challenges, and therefore new opportunities for startups to address.

One such challenge is the increasing complexity and choice in payment options. Hong Kong is unique in that it has a very diverse range of payment options, ranging from stored value card to digital wallets and QR payment codes.

With even more payment methods expected to come into the market, there remains a need for a solution to integrate these payment methods and manage the increasing complexity across the payment ecosystem to provide consumers an enhanced user experience.

Another opportunity is addressing increasing growth demands. Brands and merchants are actively looking to expand into new markets. Last year our Hong Kong Merchant Survey found that 45 per cent of the merchants we had spoken to were actively looking abroad to expand their addressable market.

Also Read: Three lessons from building a fintech startup that is 80 per cent women

Yet entry into new markets comes different challenges, such as language barriers, currency exchange issues and new regulatory requirements.

In both of these examples, fintech startups have the chance to turn challenges that have emerged from the pandemic into business opportunities. With this in mind, I am often asked what I look for when judging startups. Most startups I screened had really strong propositions.

However, here are some aspects that are apparently in those with the potential to truly scale up.

The first thing is passion. Founders should be starting a startup because they are passionate about the challenge they are solving, not simply because it is a hot sector. Startups should not be tempted to forcibly retrofit AI or blockchain into a solution or the sake of doing so.

Not only will it not increase their valuation, but they are also likely to lose any competitive advantage they might have had prior. Start with the problem and look at the best solution, technology and approach to addressing it.

Next, everyone knows the fable of how David defeated the Goliath. In Hong Kong, smart startups are those that understand how David can harness Goliath to scale up. Traditional financial institutions are increasingly open to working with startups, and indeed become their customers. In fact, this is where Hong Kong excels.

Hong Kong’s financial institutions have proven to be progressive in their adoption of technology. According to an industry survey, the rate of fintech adoption in Hong Kong is higher than that of the US, Japan, or France.

At PayPal, we see partnerships as growth opportunities. By allowing our partners and ourselves to focus on our unique values, as well as leverage each other’s strengths and assets, we are able to move faster and drive meaningful progress on fintech and digital payment adoption.

Another trait that I look for is how well the founders and their company build trust. It is possible to have a highly differentiated business model and technology supremacy, however without any trust, there isn’t a scalable business.

Also Read: How fintech in Asia is enabling and making education affordable for everyone

In fact, an HKTDC survey on startups, last year found that winning the trust of customers was the single greatest challenge Hong Kong’s startups faced, therefore it is not as easy as it would seem.

On the road from startup to scale up, there will no doubt be a number of opportunities, challenges, and discoveries along the way. Fintech is a fast-paced sector that is evolving at the pace of markets and society, if not faster. Strong entrepreneurs are those that are not afraid to shift to a new strategy and pivot.

If a company is always playing catch-up, if there is too much competition or the market has become saturated, then these are signs that a pivot might be required. It is all part of the problem-solving process to determine what’s needed to survive and thrive.

There has never been a better place nor time to be in fintech. The key to success is understanding these principles and harnessing Hong Kong’s fintech environment. And as a part of this wider ecosystem, we hope to nurture promising fintech startups and see even more success stories come out of our city.

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