Niche focus could help Ant’s digital bank shine amidst gloom

HOPE of a revived listing of Chinese fintech giant Ant Group emerged last week, but regulators quickly denied the reports. In a way, this latest episode prolongs the uncertainty surrounding Ant since the axe fell 2 years ago on its planned US$37 billion listing.

But when it comes to the tech giant’s aspirations in South-east Asia, the picture turns a lot clearer.

The company had launched cross-border payments solution Alipay+ in 2020; in March, it named a new general manager for the region. This was followed by an announcement in April of an investment into Singapore fintech 2C2P, to add to its portfolio of South-east Asian fintech investments.