CRED raised $900M at $4.5B valuation; Airwallex raised $320M at $11B valuation | TWIF Asia - 27 Jun, 2026

Skydo received a Canadian international payments licence, enabling direct two-way India–Canada collections and payouts for businesses.

Optimo Capital, an MSME-focused lending startup, reported 5X revenue growth to ₹68.5cr ($7.3M) in FY26.

HDFC Life reported 12% premium growth and 43% retail protection growth in FY26, with profit of ₹1,910cr ($200M).

India's active credit cards crossed 120M in May 2026, with net additions surging 34% YoY to 1M, though spending grew just 6.3% YoY to ₹2 lakh crore ($21bn).

Indian banks maintained credit growth at 17.7% while deposit growth eased to 12%.

LEXI received in-principle approval from International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) as a Payment Service Provider (PSP) at GIFT-IFSC.

Zerodha launched target date funds (2036 and 2041 variants) with automated asset allocation that shifts from equity-heavy to conservative as investment goals approach.

CARD91 launched its UPI issuance product, for full UPI lifecycle across issuance and acquiring.

Punjab National Bank (PNB) partnered with Zaggle to launch biodegradable co-branded twin credit cards offering Visa and RuPay networks.

WazirX launched AI-powered trading assistant and subscription model, targeting recovery and market share restoration.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued updated Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) Directions 2026, rationalising regulatory framework and removing due diligence requirements for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sellers.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) relaxed certification requirements for Persons Associated with Investment Advice (PAIA) in sales and non-core services roles.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) proposed Common Advertisement Code (CAC) allowing mutual funds celebrity endorsements at brand level, not specific products.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised large exposure limit for upper-layer NBFC-IFCs to 45% from 35%.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) mandated uniform regulatory treatment for UPI-linked credit facilities equivalent to traditional credit products.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) expanded digital fraud protection and introduced compensation for victims up to ₹50,000 ($549).

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) mandated kill-switch mechanisms for all AI models deployed by banks, requiring instant override capabilities and robust human oversight.

CRED raised ₹4,720cr ($500M) in primary capital at a ₹42.5K cr ($4.5B) valuation.

StashAway, a Singaporean wealth management startup, grew revenue 44% YoY to $10.5M FY24, driven by asset management fees, while narrowing net losses.

Ant Group invested $5.2bn in research and development in 2025.

Worldpay reported credit cards accounted for 58% of Japan's e-commerce value in 2025.

DBS and OCBC attracted $59bn in net new AuM from its wealth clients.

Tasdeeq, a Pakistani credit bureau, filed its papers for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on Pakistan Stock Exchange.

Visa found 67% of Hong Kong Greater Bay Area (GBA) northbound travellers prefer digital wallets, with seamless payment experiences driving increased travel.

SBI Holdings [launched]() JPYSC, a trust bank-backed yen stablecoin, aimed at institutional and cross-border settlement use cases.

SaaScada, a London based core banking software company, launched in Singapore.

Payfuture partnered with Atlantic Partners Asia to expand cross-border payment capabilities into emerging markets through a single integration.

Aspire launched Model Context Protocol (MCP) integration enabling businesses to access financial data and perform operations through Claude, ChatGPT and other AI platforms.

Xweave, Singapore-based payments company, deployed Solana for stablecoin-powered settlement across Asia Pacific institutional treasury operations.

Thredd launched Visa Cloud Connect across Asia Pacific, centralising cloud-based card issuing infrastructure in Singapore to accelerate programme deployment and improve platform reliability.

Inter-Board Coordination Commission (IBCC) in Pakistan launched IBCC ePay, a digital payment platform enabling worldwide users to pay service fees online via Visa and MasterCard.

Maybank partnered with Swiss fintech Evooq to deploy AI-powered advisory platform Advisor Assist across its regional franchise.

Bank of Thailand drafted Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) oversight measures as accounts grew to 6M, amid household debt concerns at 87% of gross domestic product (GDP).

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) studied the feasibility of PayNow Gen2 upgrades across QR interoperability, online checkout, government payments, and business capabilities.

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) established Future of Finance Institute (FFI) to accelerate artificial intelligence (AI) and tokenisation adoption.

Airwallex, a cross border payments startup, raised $320M $11bn valuation.

Maybank Investment Bank Vietnam raised $50M to expand margin lending and transition to wealth management platform.

Pints AI, a Singapore-based agentic AI startup for financial institutions, raised an undisclosed amount.

SBI Holdings acquired Bitbank, a Japanese crypto exchange, $289M.