California, USA – Marqeta, a global modern card issuing platform, has announced its added expansion to the markets of Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines, making the platform’s presence in total to 39 countries globally. According to the company, they have acquired certifications across these three new markets for their payments platform to be used.
With new certifications in the said markets, Marqeta’s platform is now enabled in five countries in the Asia-Pacific region, having announced its Australian office and supporting its first customers in New Zealand in 2021. The company plans to establish Singapore as its APAC regional hub, building a broader team to support the region in 2022.
Marqeta will initially target fintechs and local disruptors in Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines that are looking to transform payments by creating a digital-first customer experience. These new markets have a common commitment to improving payment infrastructure, with a focus on interoperability between countries, making them a good fit for Marqeta’s modern card issuing technology.
Vidya Peters, chief operating officer at Marqeta, said, “Marqeta is a single, global platform, allowing our customers to build once and launch anywhere. We’re constantly assessing where our customers are looking to launch, and what markets hold the most immediate potential for our technology. We’re excited to support new card programs in these new markets and to enable our customers’ global expansion ambitions throughout 2022.”
The Singapore Business Times reports that in the Asia-Pacific region, more than 21% of the population is unbanked. This is most apparent in Southeast Asia, where more than 44% of people do not have bank accounts. The disparity between the banked and unbanked in the region creates opportunities for digital financial services to close the gap, with the acceleration in adoption already being seen in Southeast Asia. A 2021 report from MoEngage reports a 55% increase in daily users across all digital banking activities.
Source: MoEngage
This movement is led primarily by millennials and Gen Z, who have readily embraced services from online banking to digital wallets. In Singapore and Vietnam, for example, commercial banks have launched digital banking solutions targeted specifically for their younger consumers. UOB, a Singaporean multinational investment bank and financial services company, launched TMRW, an AI-powered mobile-only bank. And MSB, Vietnam’s leading commercial bank, launched TNEX, the first digital-only bank in the country.
Another fast-emerging trend is mobile payments, stemming from the increased usage of mobile phones in Southeast Asian markets. The Fintech Times reports that in the Philippines, there are at least 1.59 mobile phones for every person. Acceptance of mobile payments by both consumer and retailer has paved the way for non-financial companies like Grab, a leading mobile app for transportation and food delivery services in Southeast Asia, and regional e-commerce platforms like Lazada and Shopee, to offer their consumers new cash payment methods.
While giants like Apple, Google, Alibaba, and Tencent have led the way for card-based mobile wallets in more developed markets, stored value mobile wallets are more popular in emerging markets. Credit-card and debit-card usage are lower in the latter, paving the way for local players to grab a share of the growing pie. Some of the top mobile wallet players are GCash (Philippines), GrabPay (Malaysia), Ovo (Indonesia), TrueMoney (Thailand), and MoMo (Vietnam), per a 2021 Boku report.
The growth of digital finance technology and adoption is uncovering new opportunities for marketers in 2022 and beyond, and there are four ways in which these opportunities could be unlocked.
1. Delivery of hyper-targeted ads and end-to-end experiences
The growing scale and data captured by apps with digital finance components provide opportunities for hyper-targeted advertising, where audiences are selected based on their financial capability and purchasing behaviour. Moreover, the loop from awareness to purchase to loyalty can be closed all in a single platform.
Grab is one of the largest mobile apps in Southeast Asia with a 142m estimated number of users from 400 cities and towns. GrabPay, its financial arm, has been showing robust growth with total payments increasing by 60% year-on-year. The app allows for targeting of audiences based on day-to-day transactions and activities such as the type of card and size of spending along with restaurant visits and shopping behaviours, going beyond the typical interest and affinity-based targeting that relies on proxies of engagement.
Source: Grab
Alongside targeting the right audiences, marketers can drive awareness and consideration through Grab’s placement assets, conversions are fluidly done through GrabFood or GrabMart and loyalty points can be provided through GrabRewards.
2. Providing more meaningful offers and incentives
Based on the survey of global insurance provider Swiss Re, 58% of respondents across Southeast Asian markets actively searched for new insurance policies during the pandemic and nearly half are open to purchasing new policies because of the outbreak. Digital finance companies are increasing the accessibility of policies through micro-insurance with low cash outlays, especially appealing to Gen Z and millennials.
Marketers can now use digitally distributed policies to make offerings and incentives more relevant for younger generations. For instance, Digi Telecommunications, a mobile service provider in Malaysia, partnered with AXA Affin, a multinational insurance and finance company, to provide free life insurance to its new prepaid plan subscribers. Similarly, Tiki, an e-commerce site in Vietnam, partnered with FWD, a life insurance company, to provide free coverage for 100,000 customers.
3. Scaling promotions beyond point-of-purchase
One of the key benefits of digital finance is the ease of distribution of digital vouchers and rewards. Mobile wallets are already being used as distribution channels for relief funds or e-vouchers of food and medicine. Brands can capitalize on this phenomenon through digital-based promotions and sampling, giving them a broader scale versus on-ground activations. This is especially relevant in the pandemic environment wherein mounting events or delivering items are more challenging due to varying restrictions. Instead of manually handing out coupons and prizes, marketers can now partner with e-wallet apps for cashback promos and automated rewards redemption.
4. Increasing the accessibility of products and services
Traditionally, purchasing big-ticket items can only be done by the small base of affluent consumers paying with cash or with credit cards. Today, even the unbanked can pay in instalments with convenient applications and fast approvals through e-commerce platforms. Ecommerce platform Lazada partners with financial apps in the Philippines and offers LazPayLater in Indonesia to allow non-credit card customers to pay in increments. Shopee offers SPayLater in Indonesia and Thailand, wherein loans of select unbanked customers are approved in as fast as 10 minutes.
As more consumers try to stretch their money, they will be more open to purchasing in instalments with minimal interest. Instead of relying solely on credit cards, marketers now have the option to expand their financial partners to e-commerce websites and digital loan providers to enable more audiences to buy their products.
Digital finance adoption is accelerating as consumers become more knowledgeable about the industry’s products and services. Digital finance has created new possibilities for brands and retailers across a myriad of marketing touchpoints, and marketers should be capitalizing on these opportunities to be the first in reaping its benefits.
Elizabeth Shie (left) and Abygayle Brani (right)
This article was written by Elizabeth Shie, senior regional strategist at UM APAC, and Abygayle Brani, regional marketing & communications strategist at UM APAC.
The article is published as part of MARKETECH APAC’s thought leadership series What’s NEXT.This features marketing leaders sharing their marketing insights and predictions for the upcoming year. The series aims to equip marketers with actionable insights to future-ready their marketing strategies.
If you are a marketing leader and have insights that you’d like to share with regards to the upcoming trends and practices in marketing, please reach out to [email protected] for an opportunity to have your thought-leadership published on the platform.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – HSBC in Malaysia has launched its first multi-currency digital wallet catered to the local small-and medium enterprises (SMEs), which will allow businesses to make and receive international payments simply and securely from one single global account.
The wallet is fully integrated within HSBC’s existing business banking platform, HSBCnet, and by using the bank’s global payments network, allows SMEs to ‘pay and receive like a local’. SMEs can send and receive money in 10 currencies, and hold and manage those currencies by establishing a single banking relationship with HSBC Malaysia.
Shayan Hazir, head of global liquidity and cash management at HSBC Malaysia, said “Global Wallet removes these pain points and challenges for SMEs by enabling them to quickly and securely transact with their suppliers and clients around the world in the destination currency. Global Wallet simplifies payment processes so that SMEs can grow their business internationally, be able to transact with their suppliers and clients around the world seamlessly and have better control over payment flows which is critical for efficient cash flow management.”
The solution currently supports 10 currencies including the US dollar, Japanese yen, renminbi, Singapore dollar and euro. Paying and receiving like a local allows for these transactions to be done within the same or next day.
Meanwhile, Andrew Sill, country head of commercial banking, HSBC Malaysia, commented, “As the trusted international bank of choice for SMEs, the launch of HSBC Global Wallet cements our commitment to scaling up our SME banking capabilities in Malaysia and supporting SMEs as they expand internationally. Drawing on HSBC’s deep digital expertise and wide global network, we are helping SMEs to build resilience and trust within their global supply chains whilst making everyday banking easier.”
Sill added, “As the payments landscape continues to evolve, we are leveraging real innovation that comes from a blend of human collaboration and new technologies to transform. HSBC is transforming alongside our customers as we collaborate and co-create innovative products, services and ideas to build smarter businesses together.”
Singapore – Global payments platform Airwallex officially launches in Singapore this year, following a beta test in November 2021, and an approval grant from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MSA).
Through the market expansion, Singapore businesses can now benefit from Airwallex’s suite of global payments services including global account issuance, domestic and cross-border money transfer at market-leading rates, multi-currency wallets, and online payments acceptance.
In addition, Airwallex’s global customers will also be able to receive funds locally in Singaporean dollars, making their businesses more accessible to the Singapore market.
For Nazim Ali, CEO at Airwallex Singapore, Singapore has established itself as a major international hub for global technology and innovation, supported by a dynamic business community across startups, major financial service institutions and a growing talent pool.
“That said, many Singapore businesses – SMEs or larger enterprises – still face challenges with international payments, and are looking for better partners like Airwallex that help them tackle that cross-border payments complexity. Since we were founded, we have enabled the global growth of many businesses. With this official launch we’re pleased to be able to empower Singapore businesses in the same way by supporting their payment needs across their entire transaction life cycle,” Ali explained.
This was not the first time Airwallex ventured into the Southeast Asian market. In September 2021, the company secured a money service business (MSB) license in Malaysia with an expected launch in the coming months, raised US$300m in its Series E and E1 fundraising rounds, and increased its valuation to US$5.5b.
“Our launch in Singapore is just the beginning of a wider journey. Growing our presence and payments capability across Southeast Asia is part of our ambitious expansion plan for 2022, and Singapore is no doubt instrumental to this growth. We look forward to expanding our product suite and supporting businesses in Singapore, as well as tapping into its influence as a leading tech and innovation hub to better serve our customers in the region,” Ali concluded.
Manila, Philippines – ASEAN Fintech Group (AFG), a venture corporation focusing on fintech acceleration has acquired digital payments provider JazzyPay, marking the venture corporation’s expansion to the Philippines. The acquisition value of JazzyPay is valued at US$1.8m.
With the acquisition, AFG looks to leverage JazzyPay’s existing partnerships with leading national banks, e-wallets and payment processors of the metropolitan city. The platform’s team of founders and key management personnel will continue to spearhead the business’ growth, with accelerated resources and support at the group level.
Kathleen Acosta-Marindo, co-founder and COO at JazzyPay said, “We believe working together and being a part of AFG’s fast-growing portfolio of companies will enhance our capabilities across ASEAN, fast-tracking the advancement of Southeast Asia’s fintech ecosystem and digital future.”
AFG’s expansion to the Philippines is part of its 2022 plans, which include expansion into Vietnam and Cambodia. AFG aims to create a regional omnichannel platform in the fintech space.
To date, AFG has in total invested more than US$10m to date on strategic mergers and acquisitions of burgeoning fintech startups within the region. Founders and institutional investors of the startups joining ASEAN Fintech Group were further incentivized with newly issued AFG shares, forming new partnerships with aligned interests towards the growth of the group.
For Douglas Gan, executive director at ASEAN Fintech Group, with fintech in Southeast Asia seeing a tremendous growth in 2021, they are bullish that this rapid growth will continue into 2022 as they continue to acquire and merge with companies in the ASEAN region showing solid fundamentals.
“In fact, most of the companies that have joined us come with strong founders whose businesses are either profitable or near profitability. We also see a more matured fintech regulatory framework, guiding us through the complexities of each market. We are at a true inflection point for ASEAN fintech and we are honored to have the support of the fintech ecosystem at large,” Gan stated.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – MyMy, a proudly Malaysia-made fintech, has announced its new card and app features as it gears up for targeted beta testing in 2022.
The fintech offers a numberless prepaid card that enhances the security of physical payment transactions. As for online transactions, MyMy introduces a seamless biometric feature to authenticate transactions – an element of security that replaces risks associated with other cumbersome authentication methods.
Furthermore, MyMy users can enjoy additional quick control abilities on its app such as lock card, pin reset, on and off control for overseas, and online and contactless transactions, as well as allowance and limit setting for ATM withdrawals.
Joe McGuire, MyMy’s co-founder, noted that they take the rise of digital payment fraud and online scams very seriously.
“That’s why we’ve identified the necessity to implement biometric features as part of our security measures, and very soon, facial recognition capabilities as well. Our numberless card also provides enhanced security to reduce fraudsters from committing unauthorized purchases,” said McGuire.
Kishore Samuel, MyMy’s co-founder and CEO, shared that the team is currently working diligently on perfecting MyMy’s app and product offerings.
“We are also well in progress to kick-off the new year with our Beta Testing phase which will involve our very supportive and enthusiastic pre-registered users. We are organized for growth, and there is going to be much innovation and opportunity from MyMy moving forward,” said Samuel.
MyMy has also announced that from 15 to 25 December 2021, it will be giving away RM100 credit with MyMy’s 10-Day Christmas Countdown Challenge this Christmas season. This is a special 10-day seasonal campaign limited to participating contestants who successfully collect winning points by referring a minimum of 10 friends to register at MyMy’s website, as well as by following MyMy’s social media platforms on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
Australia – As part of Brighte’s commitment to providing consumers affordable solar, battery, and home improvements, the green financer has launched a new campaign to help Australians bring ‘the sun’ home.
The new campaign, created in collaboration with independent creative agency Paper Moose, aims to boost Brighte’s name among Australian homeowners, building on its new visual identity and brand platform, ‘Bringing Sustainable Home’.
Featuring the song ‘Brighte Here Brighte Now’, which is a take on the classic by Fatboy Slim, the campaign explores the energy, excitement, and benefits of getting solar for your home.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PqVGk8bJJI&t=1s
Malini Sietaram, Brighte’s chief revenue and marketing officer, points out that while a lot of Australians want to add solar to their home, reducing both their energy bills and CO2 emissions, they don’t know where to begin.
“Brighte helps you get solar sooner by removing the upfront cost through our 0% interest payment plans and our trusted network of tradies means you can start immediately. We love Paper Moose’s thinking with ‘bring the sun home’, as it shows Aussies how they can shift power back to their homes through the sun and start Brighte here, Brighte now,” said Sietaram.
She added, “The sun is the perfect fit for us. It’s our brand essence and central to our identity, it shines bright. For us at Brighte, we live for the sunrise and sunset. The possibilities of each new day and the optimism that the future is Brighte.”
Meanwhile, Nick Hunter, Paper Moose’s CEO and founding partner, commented “Brighte is a dream partner for Paper Moose and so helping them on their mission to make every home sustainable has been a personal endeavor for the entire team. And props to eco-minded Norman Cook for the perfect tune to help us all bring the sun home.”
The campaign adds to the growing line of purpose-led work by Paper Moose, which recently repositioned to ‘The change makers’ and launched the ‘Buy One Give One’ initiative to support innovators working to decarbonize the economy.
Singapore – Pace, the fintech solutions company based in Singapore that allows customers to use BNPL service, has launched its latest campaign, transporting Singaporeans back to Technicolor 1980s.
Titled ‘I Got This’, which was created in collaboration with sole proprietor STUDIO AUTOMATIKA on the creatives, the campaign aims to bring shoppers back to an era that heralded the start of a fashion-conscious generation when pop culture and technology intertwined with everyday life.
Through this, Pace will be releasing a series of video shorts, shot with the era’s distinctive VHS effect which can be viewed on social media and Pace’s YouTube page. It will also be running across OOH in order for commuters to spot the campaign’s distinctive retro-futuristic decals on platform doors at Harbourfront station, and a fleet of double-decker buses wrapped with imagery reminiscent of classic shopping advertisements from the period.
Moreover, the campaign has started roaming island-wide to showcase Pace’s value proposition.
Daren Goh, Pace’s head of growth, shared that they took inspiration from the golden age of 1980’s advertising to show everyone their inner ‘I Got This’ element.
“This series of OOH, online and social media activations are aimed at letting people know how it feels to finally be able to grab what they want now and pay for it later with Pace,” said Goh.
Kristal Melson, STUDIO AUTOMATIKA’s creative director, believes that living in an increasingly homogenous world where people are more inclined to ‘keep up with the Joneses’, purchases that speak to their individual expressions and sense of self become less of a priority.
“When thinking of the creative concept for Pace on this campaign, we wanted to borrow the energy and nostalgia of the 1980s and find a spirited, exciting way to say ‘stuff it!’ to keep our desires at bay, to be daring and go forth and buy things that speak more to us as individuals,” said Melson.
Sydney, Australia – Fintech lender Plenti has partnered with advertising agency Howatson+Company to launch a new campaign that aims to inspire Australians to stop putting their big ideas on hold and instead make them real.
Plenti assists Australians with loans through smart technology. Its proprietary technology platform provides automotive, renewable energy, and personal loans to help bring their big ideas to life.
Titled ‘Destroy Your Dreams’, the campaign nods to the fact that most Australians are using ‘inspiration boards’ on social media sites including Pinterest and Instagram, to plan their dreams, and it remained just that, living inside boards and not brought to life.
In addition to the ad film, Plenti has released a suite of product films, social assets, and is facilitating a ‘Destroy Your Dreams’ consumer promo.
Daniel Foggo, Plenti’s CEO, commented, “We’re excited to be launching a major brand campaign and customer competition that highlights how Plenti can help people achieve their dreams. It highlights just how exciting it is to bring people’s big ideas to life as we continue to build Australia’s best lender.”
Meanwhile, Samantha Saunders, the head of marketing at Plenti, believes that the brand is young and still relatively new to the consumer marketplace.
“We needed a cut-through brand campaign that would resonate with our affluent customer base. As a modern lender, with modern customers, we were prepared to take risks with the creative, so long as the work reflected who we are and where we’re going,” said Saunders.
Gavin Chimes, Howatson+Company’s executive creative director, shared, “This campaign is about shaking people out of their complacency and inspiring them to take action. And by creating it, we got to fulfill one of our very own dreams, blowing stuff up in an ad.”
Manila, Philippines – Mynt, the fintech company under telecommunications company Globe, has recently raised US$300m in funding, therefore valuing the company now at US$2b. Said funding has been led by investors Warburg Pincus, Insight Partners and Bow Wave.
Mynt has been at the forefront of the digital transformation among Filipinos as the ‘go-to’ payment and financial services solution to over 48 million users, nearly half of the national population.
With the continued relevance of the app among its users, Mynt is on track to reach ₱3t of gross transaction value, 3 times more than last year’s record number. The company has also recorded peak daily app log-ins and daily active transactions of 19 million and 12 million, respectively.
For Martha Sazon, president and CEO of Mynt, this is further proof that their growth and achievements have not gone unnoticed.
“We have been able to continuously expand by introducing game-changing innovations while improving our profitability profile. We are excited about our new partnership with Warburg, Insight, Itai Tsiddon and Amplo, as they each bring strategic value to our team in the pursuit of our vision towards finance for all,” Sazon stated.
Meanwhile, Ernest Cu, chairman of the board of Mynt and president and CEO of Globe, commented, “Their investment in Mynt and GCash further validates the strides the company has made in providing access to innovative financial services to more Filipinos and highlighting the Philippines to the global investor audience. Together with the continued support of Mynt’s existing shareholders, we are confident of furthering Mynt’s market leadership and creating positive and transformative disruption in the Philippine financial services sector.”
Mynt offers a full array of financial services, spanning credit, savings, insurance, loans, and investments. Assets Under Management (AUM) for its GSave product has grown to over ₱9b, from ₱5b in 2020, while its GInvest product has already captured 70% of the domestic market of total UITF accounts. GInsure, GCash‘s microinsurance offering launched in 2020, accounts for 1/3 of all new insurance policies issued in the Philippines.
In addition, GCash’s GCredit disburses over ₱1b worth of loans each month, with ₱15b worth having been disbursed as of June 2021, and boasts the best repayment rates locally with the lowest past-due and non-performing loans. Mynt also piloted GLoan, a cash loan product that allows qualified users to borrow as much as ₱25k, with repayment spread over 12 months.
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