Fintech in S'pore - from hype to reality in 2017

"SILICON Valley is coming". Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JP Morgan, one of the world's largest banks, used this simple phrase to issue a warning about the potential of fintech (financial technology) startups and the impact they could have on the banking sector. The warning was issued in his annual letter to the bank's shareholders in April 2015.

Nearly two years later, his words are coming true, for the most part. Fintech startups are shaking up not just the traditional banking, but the entire financial-services sector including insurance, trading, wealth management and investment.

However, there is one thing that Mr Dimon, like many others, may not have seen coming: the rapid growth of fintech being driven by Singapore.