SME finance under stress, new Razorpay products, and Hong Kong's Web3 Strategy | TWIF - 23rd Feb, 2025

Banks and payment cos. in India await payouts of the government subsidy for Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions processed.

Kinara Capital, a small business lender, breached loan terms due to NBFC stress and plans to sell some of its stressed assets while working through INR 1,772cr ($205M) in breached financial covenants related to its borrowings.

Karnataka Bankreported a suspicious cross-border Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transaction of INR 18.87 crore (USD 2.22M) to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Fino Payments Bank, a payments bank in India, plans to convert to a small finance bank and expand its lending business.

Indian bankssaw a 20% increase in provisioning for non-performing assets (NPAs) in the December quarter, driven by a sharp rise in private sector bank provisions.

Global fintech investment declined to $95.6B, a 7-year low according to KPMG.

HSBC India, a leading global bank, reported $1.7bn pre-tax profit for India operations in 2024, growing 11% YoY.

Razorpay is in talks to invest in Pop, a startup offering rewards for Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions.

The government of India is considering raising deposit insurance limit above current INR 5 lakh ($5,800).

PaisaWapas, a cashback and coupons startup, grew revenue by 24% YoY to INR 68.9cr ($8M).

According to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, in FY25 Q1-Q3, only 1.3 firms went into liquidation (an improvement from 5.06 in 2017-18), though resolution timelines are getting longer with 74% of cases exceeding the 270-day limit.

LiquiLoans, a P2P lending startup, reported INR 696cr (USD 79M) revenue in FY24, growing 3.4x YoY.

Paytmpartnered withSBI Mutual Fund to launch mutual fund SIP product starting from INR 250 ($3).

Plum, a group health insurance startup, launched personal insurance products.

EaseBuzz, a payment gateway startup, partnered withPICE to launch business payments products.

Indian Overseas Bank, a public sector bank in India, launched Aadhaar OTP-based account opening and API banking services for customers.

Sammaan Capital, a mortgage lending company, launched a unsecured loans.

Razorpaylaunched multiple new features including Magic Checkout, OmniSaving Account, and WhatsApp QR Checkout.

PhonePepartnered withVisa and Mastercard to launch device tokenization for credit and debit card transactions.

FalconlaunchedSurgeFX, a credit card user engagement product.

RBIlaunched a new mobile app called RBIDATA that provides access to over 11,000 economic data series related to the Indian economy.

RBI (central bank): Invited comments on the draft circular on ‘Responsible Lending Conduct – Levy of Foreclosure Charges/ Pre-payment Penalties on Loans’. Superseded the board of New India Co-operative Bank and appointed an administrator.

IRDAI (insurance): Formed a committee to review Insurance Act, 1938 and make recommendations for revisions.

SEBI (securities): Mandated new Investor Charter for Stock Brokers, aiming to promote investor protection and education.

Waterfield Advisors, an India-based wealth advisory firm, raised $18M.

Credit Fair, a solar finance startup, raised $5M in debt.

Paytmacquired 25% stake in Brazilian fintech Dinie for an undisclosed amount.

MobiKwik, a digital payments company, acquired 3.4% stake in Blostem Fintech, a B2B banking infrastructure platform.

EBANX, a Brazilian payments company, secured in-principle approval for a major payments institution license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) launched the ASPIRe virtual asset market roadmap, outlaying a foundation for the city's Web3 financial ecosystem.

StraitsX, a Singaporean stablecoin issuer and digital payment infrastructure provider, partnered withStandard Chartered to strengthen the reserve management of its U.S. Dollar (XUSD) and Singapore Dollar (XSGD) stablecoins.

Thunes, a Singapore-based cross-border payments company, expanded its services in Taiwan to enable businesses to accept digital payments from major payment partners globally.

YouTrip, Singapore-based multi-currency mobile wallet, partnered withRabbit LINE Pay, a top e-wallet in Thailand, to offer seamless payments and remittances for Thai users.

Robinhoodplans to launch crypto offerings in Singapore by late 2025 through its acquisition of Bitstamp.

DongA Bank, a Vietnamese bank, rebranded its digital banking brand to 'Vikki'.

Aspire, a Singaporean SME banking startup, partnered withVisa to launch a corporate card for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in Hong Kong, offering expense management and cashback rewards.

Endowus, a Singapore-based digital wealth platform, launched a US dollar time deposit service in Hong Kong, allowing clients to invest in fixed-term deposits denominated in US dollars (USD).

Mobilink Bank, Pakistan's digital bank, partnered withNymCard and Dellson Associates to launch digital financial services products and solutions.

Coins.ph, a Philippines-based regulated cryptocurrency exchange, partnered with other regulated crypto exchanges in Southeast Asia to launch Union Chain, a blockchain-based cross-border settlement network.

UOB, Singapore's third-biggest bank, reported net profit of S$1.52 billion ($1.13 billion) from S$1.40 billion a year earlier on the back of higher net interest income supported by loan growth.

Thai banksreported a 0.4% decrease in lending in Q4 2024 according to the Bank of Thailand.

Grabreported a 17% YoY increase in fourth-quarter revenue for 2024 to $764M, while customer deposits in Grab's digital banking operations in Singapore and Malaysia grew to $1.2bn in Q4.

MariBanklaunchedMari Invest Income, an investment product that allows Singaporean investors to access the global bond market with a low minimum investment of just S$1 and no transaction fees.

GoTyme Indonesia partnered withDanabijak and Olsera to introduce a Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) program, aimed at providing quick and flexible financing to MSMEs.

BSP, the central bank of the Philippines, announced plans to establish a Financial Cyber Resilience Council aimed at strengthening the cybersecurity posture and resilience of the financial services sector.

Mizuho Bank, a Japanese bank, partnered withGenZero, a climate analytics firm, to launch a transition credit framework to support clients in reducing greenhouse gas emissions through loans and investments.

Atome Financial, Singapore-based buy now, pay later platform, raised USD 80M in credit facility.