FinovateAsia Digital is in the books! A big thank you to our sponsors – DreamQuark, InterSystems, and CleverTap – our demoing companies – Amber, Crayon Data, Dreams, FinBit.io, QuickFi, and Strands – our speakers and, of course, our attendees. Your innovations and insights helped make our second, all-digital FinovateAsia conference a great success.

What did we learn over the two days of our Asia-focused fintech event? Everyone’s experience is different. But here are four things we heard and saw this week at FinovateAsia that we will be thinking about in the days and weeks to come.

Regulators who get it

It may not be any surprise that entrepreneurs and companies tend to thrive in regions where regulators and governments are constructively engaged in their success. But it is a point worth underscoring. When looking at those places in the APAC region where fintech is emergent – countries like Indonesia and Vietnam – often a progressively-minded regulatory authority or a determined government or government agency is involved. This engagement may be in the form of legislation or licensing that makes it easier for individuals to launch businesses or forge cross-industry partnerships. Constructive engagement can also take the form of creating the necessary infrastructure that companies and entrepreneurs need to create and test their technologies, deploy their solutions, and grow their businesses.

Keep an eye on the southeast

Given the high degree of fintech innovation in China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, it is understandable that companies and entrepreneurs in these areas are receiving the lion’s share of the attention. But, as this year’s FinovateAsia reminded us, some of the countries that are only a few steps behind the leaders in terms of economic development are nonetheless the scene of major demographic and social trends. These forces – such as a digitally-oriented Millennial generation entering family formation years and an even more tech-savvy Gen Z right behind them – are also driving innovation in financial technology. Where to look? We’ve got our eyes on Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

India is Asia

In the same way that we should keep southeast Asia in mind when thinking about fintech innovation in the APAC region, it is also worthwhile to remember India’s role in the overall Asian fintech ecosystem. India, which shares a border with China and the Bay of Bengal with Myanmar, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Thailand, is a major fintech player in its own right, with both Indian companies and Indian-born entrepreneurs bringing new innovations to market around the world. The impressive number of companies from India that have demoed their technologies at FinovateAsia over the years – to which we add FinBit.io from this year’s event – is a reminder of India’s importance to the Asian fintech scene writ large.

Everyone wants to do business in Asia

It has been a cliche for decades that every company would love to do business in the rapidly growing markets of Asia. But the COVID pandemic may have been the biggest challenge to this trend since the Great Financial Crisis. Hopefully, the arrival of both COVID vaccines and a new, more globally oriented administration in the U.S. will bring a resumption of the trend toward greater international economic activity, partnership, and integration that existed before the once-in-a-generation pandemic.

Photo by Artem Beliaikin from Pexels

FinovateAsia Digital is less than two weeks away. If you are headquartered in the APAC region, do business in the region, or would simply like to know more about the fintech trends in one of the most technologically innovative parts of the world, then FinovateAsia Digital, held on the 22nd and 23rd of this month, deserves a space on your fintech calendar. Visit our FinovateAsia Digital hub to register and pick up your ticket today.

Last week we previewed some of the major themes that our distinguished speakers and panelists will cover at this year’s conference. Below, we introduce our main stage keynote addresses and speakers to give you an even better sense of what we’ve got in store later this month at the show.

Reshaping the future of digital banking – stories of success

Investigates how a leading digital player is shaking things up, working differently, and building financial services in new and innovative ways. With Keng Swee Koh, Executive Director and Head of Wealth Management, DBS

Enabling a Data-Driven Enterprise

Reveals what top analysts are calling “the future of data management,” and how it is being used to streamline both compliance initiatives and accelerate strategic business initiatives at top financial services firms. With Joe Lichetenberg, Global Head of Product and Industry Marketing, InterSystems

Shaping the Future of Payments

Examines the core trends that are fundamentally transforming global payment systems. Shows how banks will embrace more and more digital payment trends and introduce multiple options for clients to make payments when, where, and how they choose. With Jeremy Balkin, Managing Director, Global Head of FinTech and Innovation, JPMorgan Wholesale Payments

Brand Intimacy & Fintech: Creating Stronger Brands through Emotional Science

Reveals the financial services, technology, and telecom findings of MBLM’s Brand Intimacy COVID Study and also discuss brand intimacy’s positive correlation with financial performance. Demonstrates how to build better connections with customers and the power of brand intimacy: the emotional science behind the bonds we form with the brands we love. With Mario Natarelli, Co-Author, Brand Intimacy, A New Marketing Paradigm

Transparency and trust: How to reach, engage and retain customers post-COVID-19

Explores how large incumbents and fintechs have managed COVID responses, and how a strategy of transparency has benefited companies in increasing consumer trust. Explains who are the winners and losers in the fight for authenticity, and how you can educate your users to enhance reputation and loyalty. With Araminta Robertson, Marketing Consultant, Mint Studios

Photo by Geraldine Tay from Pexels

When it comes to trends, Asia has always been ahead of the rest of the world. Because of this, it’s worth paying attention to the fintech themes that will be popping up at FinovateAsia.

Taking place digitally June 22 and 23, FinovateAsia will highlight discussions featuring the latest thought leaders in the industry. Tickets are still available; book before June 4 to receive a discount.

Here is a highlight of some of the topics you can expect to see throughout the two day event:

Embedded finance

After last year’s transition to digital, embedded finance has more potential than ever. During the panel titled Embedded Finance and the Future of Finance, our experts will address how to harness the power of data and digitization to build new models of finance across verticals and how to empower customers through better offerings. The group will share new models for meeting customer needs, and discuss how incumbent firms fit into the new picture.

The customer experience obsession

Asia is known for its hyper-focus on the customer experience. What are some of the lessons firms can learn from super apps like Alipay that delight customers? Our customer experience panel will discuss changing customer demands in line with the current climate, as well as address how to build successful partnerships and distribution channels with customers in mind.

Empowering ESG

ESG is one of the hottest topics in fintech this year, and it’s no longer limited to investing. The ESG panel at FinovateAsia, titled Leveraging Emerging Technologies to Meet ESG Goals, will assess the activities that can be done around ESG, look at how banks can make ESG a commercially viable product and scale up ESG initiatives, examine how regulators are approaching sustainability, and discuss how sustainability goals are encouraging new ways of partnering.

Cross-border payments and real-time payments

When it comes to cross-border payments, the future is real-time and global. FinovateAsia’s panel titled Integration between cross-border payments systems – The evolution of RTP across Asia will look at what the industry needs to do to support the regulatory agenda and at the additional services and value banks can offer. The team of experts will consider current progress with the interoperability of RTP systems and what the industry needs to do to overcome obstacles.

Partnerships

If there’s one thing we’ve learned in the fintech industry over the past few years, it’s that partnerships are key for survival. In a panel titled, Overcoming challenges and fostering successful partnerships across new ecosystems, we’ll host a range of bank executives as they share expert advice on how banks can best cooperate with startups, make the most of their networks, work quickly without sacrificing quality, and develop an entrepreneurial mindset throughout the organization.

Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash