Promoting innovation and inclusive growth in financial services

The financial services revolution continues to gain momentum and Ant International identifies artificial intelligence (AI) and Web3 as key drivers of innovation.

“Our priority remains to drive inclusive and sustainable growth through innovation in financial services,” said Douglas Feagin, President of Ant International, a Singapore-based digital payment and financial services provider.

For example, advances in Web3 technologies will support greater innovation in tokenized bank deposits, making global fund transfers and liquidity management more secure and efficient.

Still in its infancy, Web3 refers to a decentralized internet where users have more control over their data and interactions.

Meanwhile, wider adoption of AI will improve risk management and help smaller firms manage their foreign exchange (FX) risks. Artificial intelligence will also enable greater personalization of digital services, he said.

Backbone of innovation

AI powers Ant International’s diverse businesses and supports five key technology pillars: credit, platform, payment, risk and wallet.

“Over the years, we have continued to leverage artificial intelligence to not only improve the efficiency and security of transactions, but also provide greater cost savings and stability for traders,” Feagin said.

One example of this is the company’s AI-powered FX engine, which Feagin says predicts foreign exchange demand over hours, days and weeks with great accuracy.

This helps traders reduce working capital requirements and manage exchange rate fluctuations, providing greater predictability and cost savings in international transactions.

In risk management, Ant International’s AI systems detect deepfakes, helping companies prevent fraud, identify suspicious customers, and reduce risks such as money laundering and credit card fraud.

Credit technology solutions are also helping lenders assess the creditworthiness of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), expanding their access to finance (see story below).

Promoting partnerships

Asked about the consolidation of the industry, Feagin stated that payments are a broad field and allow different players to serve different needs.

“Ultimately, it comes down to customer centricity and the value each player offers to consumers.”

The region’s leading fintech players have also evolved beyond payments by integrating services that meet daily needs, such as travel and financial services.

Feagin emphasized Ant International’s commitment to working with regulators, banks, other fintech companies and others in the ecosystem to “create a better, digitally enabled future.”

The company’s ecosystem of Alipay+ partners includes more than 30 payment applications. Its partners in Southeast Asia include Touch ‘n Go eWallet in Malaysia, GCash in the Philippines, TrueMoney in Thailand and OCBC Bank in Singapore, which use Alipay+ technologies to enable overseas payments.

At the upcoming Singapore FinTech Festival, Ant International plans to announce the following developments:

• Expansion of Alipay+ merchant coverage in popular travel destinations;

• A new SME payment product;

• New embedded financial services partnerships; And

• A sustainability initiative to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Feagin noted that regulators play a vital role in fostering an environment that encourages both the development and adoption of AI solutions.

He sees regulators playing two roles: “(First) as a platform to foster a high-trust environment that will give innovators the space and confidence to push technological boundaries.

“And (second) as an arbiter to facilitate consensus on the values ​​and norms that will inform the sustainable and ethical use of AI.”

“We believe financial services innovation will unlock huge opportunities across communities and across the entire value creation chain,” he said, “and the only way we can achieve this is through collaboration.”

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Support for SMEs

SMEs are a key focus for Ant International. “They form the backbone of the global economy,” Feagin said.

“When they succeed, we all benefit, which is why many of our innovations focus specifically on strengthening this business segment.”

Ant’s initiatives for SMEs aim to help them:

Reach worldwide

• Cross-border payment solution Alipay+ enables 90 million global merchants, mostly SMEs, to accept payments from customers abroad via QR codes. According to Ant International, Alipay+ transactions made via SGQR (the country’s unified payment code) at hawker stalls in Singapore increased by 52 percent in the first half of 2024 compared to the previous six months.

• WorldFirst, a digital payment and financial services platform, supports over one million SMEs and facilitates international payments in over 100 currencies in over 200 markets.

Convert digitally

• Merchant payment and digitization services provider Antom, a subsidiary of Ant International, connects merchants to hundreds of payment methods, including mobile wallets, with Alipay+ partners. Supports sellers in more than 40 markets.

• Antom’s D-store solution helps merchants, especially SMBs, to set up online stores, launch it on regional mobile wallets, and integrate online and offline operations. More than 5,000 stores in Southeast Asia have used this solution.

Access finance flexibly

• Ant International’s Singapore digital wholesale bank Anext Bank, which launched in 2022, and global digital lending service bettr offer embedded financing options to MSMEs.

• Anext Bank allows business owners to create an account virtually and offers loans ranging from S$5,000 to S$500,000. Approximately 70 percent of its customers are microbusinesses in Asia and beyond. The digital bank recorded a sixfold increase in cross-border transactions last year.

Develop skills

• Ant International partners with a variety of organizations to provide resources, networking and training to SMBs and underserved communities. Its initiatives include 10×1000 Tech for Inclusion global fintech education platform and SisBerdaya, a women’s entrepreneurship program in Indonesia.

It was produced in partnership with the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Global Finance and Technology Network.

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