News
Thailand’s SCB enforces SIM name match requirement
Thailand’s SCB enforces SIM name match requirement
Customers can still make transactions as usual on ATMs and branches.
HSBC appoints Runa Baksi as head of SEA for global trade solutions
Baksi will oversee GTS across Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
South Korean banks to tighten household lending standards in Q3
This was due to the strengthening of household debt regulations.
Australia floats removing surcharge on card payments, lowering interchange fee cap
Lowering the cap could save businesses $1.2b in fees per year.
BofA appoints new heads for Global Payments Solutions in APAC
Lin Guo and Kitty Yen are head of GPS China and GPS Taiwan, respectively.
GXS Invest embeds insurance coverage with Singlife
Coverage will be up to three times the investment amount capped at S$100,000.
GoTyme Bank reaches $525.7m in deposits, expands into the SM Store
By Q3 2025, it will have kiosks in over 70 locations of the department store.
Japan’s SMFG eyes $1.1b additional investment in India’s Yes Bank: report
The Japanese megabank may raise its stake to 25%, sources said.
UnionBank opens new branch in Cebu City’s Aboitiz Corporate Center
This is the Philippine bank’s 200th branch in the region.
Banks drop OTPs as fraud drives SNA adoption
66% of critical attacks now target the finance sector.
StanChart rolls out digital assets trading service
It includes spot trading for Bitcoin and Ether through its UK branch.
GXS Bank launches GXS Invest
Customers can invest in the Fullerton SGD Cash Fund (Class G) from as low as S$1.
Chinese banks’ loan growth forecast lowered to 6% by 2028
Economic data likely indicates continued weak credit demand in the coming months.
Bangladesh’s banking sector strained by structural problems
Asset quality strains are expected to extend through 2026.
DBS nabs Deutsche Bank banker as head of private banking for MEA
Loic Voide was most recently CEO of Deutsche Bank (Switzerland).
American Express opens Centurion Lounge at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport
Cardholders will have access to a specialty drinks and sweets bar.
Cambodian banks face pressures from real estate and weak tourism
Bad loans may rise to up to 10% of outstanding loans by 2026.
Commentary
From automation to agency: Asia’s wealth leaders can reinvent, not just streamline
Singapore aced its FATF evaluation — now comes the hard part
Are Asia’s digital banks prepared for the stablecoin era?
Why APAC is building home-currency stablecoins
Why Southeast Asian wealth managers must design the business before buying the technology
Why trust in Asian banking increasingly gets built off the record
Hong Kong cleared stablecoins for take-off. Getting them to work across Asia is the hard part
The financing challenge behind Asia’s wealth transfer