When Grab shut down its retail investment offerings in Singapore in September 2023, it was a remarkable reversal given how the company had previously hyped its potential as a wealth management provider. #wealthmanagement hubs.li/Q02F9gZ20

Having finally swung to a profit, an emboldened Revolut will likely double down on its APAC expansion. However, success is far from assured. Especially in India. #revolut #payments #india hubs.li/Q02F_tYl0

Compared to mBridge, we reckon Project Nexus may fare better. While CBDCs still often look like a solution in search of a problem, central bankers in Southeast Asia have long sought a regional real-time cross-border payments network. #projectnexus hubs.li/Q02Gv1D60

MBridge recently took an important step forward with the completion of its minimal viable product (MVP) stage and the decision by Saudi Arabia to join the project, but questions remain about the long-term prospects of the initiative. #cbdc hubs.li/Q02H1DKM0

Without a compelling value proposition, Sea's Singaporean digibank MariBank could struggle to build a deposit base large enough to finance high-margin banking services. #seagroup #digitalbanking hubs.li/Q02Hnxbc0

CBDCs make the most sense for countries with pressing financial inclusion needs and limited existing payments infrastructure. Laos checks both of those boxes. #cbdc #laos hubs.li/Q02HHv-r0

Riding high on its new $75 billion valuation, Revolut is challenging Klarna on the Swedish BNPL firm's home turf. Never shy about swinging for the fences, Revolut is also eyeing the broader Nordic banking market. Incumbents take heed. #Revolut #Klarna glinsight.com/revoluts-nordi…

With the Philippine stock market hitting a five-year low on Nov. 11, and then plunging even lower on Nov. 14, it is no surprise that high-flying GCash has hit the brakes on its IPO plans, despite a strong financial position. #mynt #philippines glinsight.com/why-did-gcash-…

Q3’25 fintech funding is finally thawing, with AI agents and stablecoins grabbing a big share of new capital. That looks like a genuine shift – but it also has all the ingredients of a new hype cycle. Real wins = real use cases + compliance. #fintech #AI spglobal.com/market-intelli…

After nearly a decade in operation, Kakao Bank is finally starting to see its growth plateau—though it may not be evident at first blush. After all, monthly active users reached an all-time high of 19.97 million in September, top among Korean banks. glinsight.com/kakao-bank-rec…

Brazil's Nubank is eyeing future expansion is the United States. While the U.S. is a mature and ultra-competitive banking market, Nubank believes there are opportunities in certain regions and states such as Florida, Texas, and California. glinsight.com/how-nubank-con…

In contrast to most of East Asia, in South Asia, digital banking could become a big business because the market need is real, regulators are motivated to support the digibanks, and incumbents have limited capability to co-opt digital upstarts. glinsight.com/south-asia-fin…

Viva Republica is eschewing a domestic listing in South Korea to seek a better valuation overseas. While the company seeks a valuation of more than US$10 billion, it could potentially be valued at more than $15 billion if market conditions are optimal. glinsight.com/toss-bank-post…

How many people, ultimately, prefer to bank with the same company they use to book taxis and order pizza? Or their mobile phone service provider? Pure-play fintechs just seem more focused on, well, you know, financial services. glinsight.com/why-is-gxs-ban…