According to the latest EY Global Fintech Adoption Index 2019, Asia is taking the lead in consumer adoption of financial technology products. The two most populous nations in the world, India and China, have more than 50% online consumers regularly using fintech services, a 2017 survey conducted by Ernst & Young said.
Reasons why Asia is the hub for the fintech revolution
1. Fintech target audience is small businesses & unbanked households, which are in plenty in Asia.
2. In 2018, only 47% of individuals in Asia had bank accounts, and only 1/3rd of SMEs had access to credit. That’s a huge potential for fintech.
3. Asia harbours ‘Tech-literate but financially underserved’ markets, which are perfect for fintech growth.
4. Asia’s population is open to new technologies. More than 50% of adults are early adopters of online financial services in China and India.
In 2019, forty-two firms from the Asia Pacific region were included in the Fintech100. This demonstrates the growing leadership of the region on the global fintech market.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the financial companies which you need to watch out for in 2020.
5 Finance Companies in Asia to Watch Out For in 2020
1. MoneyTap, Vietnam
A lot of personal loan apps made their presence felt in Vietnam in the fintech boom of 2019. This was also the time when MoneyTapin partnership with FE Credit introduced Asia’s first app-based credit line in Vietnam. MoneyTap is one of the best personal loan apps in Vietnam. Its key feature is no use, no interest. This means you pay interest only on the money you borrow from the credit line. You can borrow from VND 3 million to VND 50 million.
Some of the best features of MoneyTap are:
- Quick and easy online loan application
- Flexible monthly instalment period ranging from 2 months to 36 months
- Access to money, 24/7
- No use, no interest
- A great tool for financial emergencies
- Available to you for a lifetime
2. Ant Financial, China
Ant Financial is an affiliate company of the Alibaba Group, one of the biggest companies in the world. Its business ecosystem consists of several offerings: Alipay is an online payment platform with over 1 billion users; Ant Fortune is for wealth management;Zhima Credit solution is a lending platform to serve the underserved, and Mybank is an online bank for entrepreneurs and SMEs. It also offers an Ant Financial Cloud platform to enable fintech companies, big and small, to build safe, secure, efficient IT systems.
3. Paytm, India
Paytm is India’s most popular platform for recharges, money transfer, and online payments. With total funding of $2.2 billion, Paytm offers payment solutions to merchants by enabling customers to make online payments through their bank accounts, digital credit accounts and cards. The company is the pioneer of QR-based mobile payments in India. Recently, it introduced Paytm Payments Bank, a digital-first bank where the customer can hold and transact through a saving, salary, and current account.
4. Grab, Singapore
Grab, a popular fintech startup in Asia, is also the second most innovative company globally. The company, with total funding of $9.9 billion strives to pursueits objectives to provide safe access to everyday services, create scalable economic opportunities and ensure financial access to underserved. Its offerings include GrabPay, an e-wallet for instant payments and fund transfers and a PoS for merchants; GrabInsure, offering affordable insurance solutions; GrabFinance, a lending product for merchants, enterprises, and drivers. It also has its own loyalty program for its customers.
5. Gojek, Indonesia
With a funding of $3.3 billion, Gojek is a super app with platforms for users, drivers and merchants. The digital payment division of Gojek offers a host of services: Gobills, for paying entertainment, lifestyle, and utility bills fast and easy; Gopay, a wallet service for credit top-up, money transactions and splitting bills; Paylater, offering small consumer loans; Gopoints, for getting rewards and collecting points.
