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

Zooming into China-Asean cross-border flows could play to its strengths

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Sharanya Pillai

Sharanya Pillai

Published Tue, Jun 14, 2022 · 05:50 AM
    • On Jun 6, Ant added to its regional presence with the unveiling of its long-awaited Singapore digital wholesale bank, Anext Bank.
    • On Jun 6, Ant added to its regional presence with the unveiling of its long-awaited Singapore digital wholesale bank, Anext Bank. Anext Bank

    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.

    Ant GroupAlibabaSingapore digital banksSMEs

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