Hi fintech friends, I'm Osborne, investor in early stage startups.

Please enjoy all the news and updates from the past week in today’s edition. If you feel TWIF brings you value, please share it with your friends (and maybe suggest they subscribe too).

Are you considering starting up? I’d love to help. DM me here: superdm.me/osborne

🧐🏆 Posts of the Week

📈 Chart of the Week

🇮🇳 India

📰 Market Updates

1. Turtlemint, an insurance distribution startup, filed confidential Initial Public Offering (IPO) documents with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
2. Sundaram Home Finance launched 8-10 emerging business branches in smaller Karnataka towns in first expansion phase.
3. SWIFT engaged with India's finance ministry and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to accelerate cross-border payment speeds, targeting G20's goal of completing 75% of transactions within one hour by 2027.
4. Temasek-backed Fullerton Financial increased investment in Lendingkart Finance by INR 2,000cr ($231M) planning to disburse secured loans from its own balance sheet in fiscal year FY26.
5. Gold ETFs in India reported INR 2,189cr ($250M) in August inflows, representing 74% MoM growth and 36% YoY increase, driven by portfolio diversification and global economic uncertainties.
6. ICICI Bank opened a specialised branch in Bengaluru targeting startups, offering comprehensive digital and personal banking services with dedicated relationship management.
7. Life insurance industry in India reported 6.2% YoY growth in new business premiums from INR 1.54 lakh crore ($17bn) to INR 1.63 lakh crore ($19bn), driven by private sector's 10% premium increase despite 8.87% decline in policy volumes.
8. Bajaj Finance is targeting INR 10 lakh crore ($113bn) loan book by FY2029.
9. Indifi Technologies, a small business finance startup, reported INR 360cr ($41M) revenue in FY25, growing 22% YoY with EBITDA of INR 107cr ($12M).

🚀 Product Launches

1. HDFC Bank partnered with INDmoney to enable seamless trading, instant savings accounts, and unified customer journeys through native API-based collaboration.
2. PhonePe partnered with Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) to offer digital Udyam Assist Platform registration for micro enterprises, enabling access to government schemes and digital payments ecosystem.
3. JioBlackRock Mutual Fund launched FlexiCap Fund on Sep 23, using BlackRock's Systematic Active Equity platform with 95% technology-driven investment process.
4. Viyona Fintech received NPCI approval to operate as Third-Party Application Provider (TPAP), enabling UPI services through GraamPay platform targeting farmers and local merchants

📝 Regulatory Updates

1. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) updated Angel Investment Fund (AIF) Regulations, providing new compliance guidelines for angel investors.
2. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) considered giving lenders permission to remotely lock mobile phones purchased on credit if borrowers defaulted on small loans below INR 100,000 ($1,133).

💰 Financing Announcements

1. GrowXCD Finance, a small business finance startup, raised INR 200 Cr ($23M).
2. OneAssist, a post-sales device service startup, raised INR 108 Cr ($12.3M) in a mixed debt and equity funding.
3. Presolv360, an Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) startup, raised INR 41 crore ($4.7M).
4. AutoDukan, an automobile aftermarket and financing startup, raised $100K.

1-min Anonymous Feedback: Your feedback helps me improve this newsletter. Click UPVOTE 👍🏽 or DOWNVOTE 👎🏽

🌏 Asia

📰 Market Updates

1. Toss, a South Korean fintech unicorn, launched its finance super-app in Australia and will explore won-based stablecoin by end of 2025.
2. Siam Validus, a joint venture between Validus Group and SCG Distribution, joined Thailand's National Credit Bureau (NCB), enabling near-instant loan approvals for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and improving credit data transparency.
3. JCB launched new brand identity in Vietnam, incorporating Dong Ho folk art and weekend discounts at multiple merchants, targeting deeper market engagement.
4. LemFi partnered with GCash to enable instant, zero-fee money transfers to 94M Filipino mobile wallet users in North America, United Kingdom, and Europe.
5. Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke urged Hong Kong to view ASEAN as a unified bloc of 700M people, highlighting potential for fintech, green finance, and logistics innovation across 10 member states.
6. Singapore registered 207% YoY rise in identity fraud in 2024, with AI-generated scams becoming increasingly sophisticated and deepfake attacks growing 240% in the Asia-Pacific region.
7. Fireblocks introduced global payments network supporting stablecoin transactions across 100+ countries, connecting local payment rails and processing over $10tn in digital asset transfers.
8. Naver Financial, KakaoPay and Toss and South Korea turned profitable and accelerated global market expansion strategies in Q2 2025.
9. Ant International's Bettr launched an AI-driven accounts receivable financing solution for online sellers, offering rapid working capital access through advanced credit risk assessment.
10. Stripe launched Stripe Capital in Australia, offering fast financing to Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) using payment processing data, targeting businesses experiencing growth challenges.
11. Experian in Singapore launched a Perpetual Monitoring solution to support Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, enabling continuous customer data monitoring and risk flagging for financial institutions.
12. State Bank of Pakistan started CBDC research to develop digital currency alternative to physical cash, targeting improved financial inclusion and transaction traceability.
13. Vietnam initiated a five-year cryptocurrency trading pilot program to explore regulatory frameworks and support regional fintech innovation.
14. Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) launched Green Investments Partnership (GIP), raising $510M from public, private, and philanthropic investors to support sustainable infrastructure projects across Southeast and South Asia.
15. Recoveris, a Swiss blockchain intelligence firm, raised CHF 1M ($1.1M) from Singapore-based VerifyVasp to develop AI-driven blockchain investigation platform.

💰 Financing Announcements

1. Send Payments, a Sydney-based cross-border payments startup, raised $5M.

🌏 Sponsor on TWIF

Mail us at sponsor@thisweekinfintech.com / click here

If you’ve made it this far - thanks! As always, you can always reach me at osborne@thisweekinfintech.com. I’d genuinely appreciate any and all feedback. If you liked what you read, please consider sharing or subscribing.

1-min Anonymous Feedback: Your feedback helps me improve this newsletter. Click UPVOTE 👍🏽 or DOWNVOTE 👎🏽

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn