Frances Gagua
South Korean banks to tighten fresh lending in Q3
South Korean banks to tighten fresh lending in Q3
Rising household credit risks and tougher lending rules put a damper on lenders’ plans.
China’s top brokers downgrade senior bankers’ travel perks to cut costs: report
Managing directors are asked to fly coach for domestic travel.
Bank of Singapore factors in ESG in loan quantum assessment
Those secured by a mutual fund with an ESG rating of AAA or AA will have their advance ratio increased by 5 ppt.
South Korean incumbent banks’ profits at risk as Kakao Bank expand loan services
The internet-only bank plans to launch mortgages and merchant loan products.
SEA named world’s fastest-growing mobile wallet region
The number of active mobile wallets is expected to reach 439.7 million by 2025.
Malaysia’s Public Bank offers 6-month moratorium to customers
This is in line with the Pemulih stimulus package announced by the government.
Citi APAC pilots program to help young social entreps scale up their operations
They studied ways to expand to new markets, and refined marketing and growth strategies, amongst others.
MAS, France complete wholesale cross-border payment experiment using CBDC
It simulated cross-border transactions involving multiple CBDCs on a common network.
J.P. Morgan boss predicts banks’ trading slump gone after pandemic: report
But shareholders may not share the same optimism once they see investment banks’ Q2 results.
South Korea mulls normalizing eased rules on banks’ FX derivatives: report
The country relaxed rules in March amidst a severe dollar crunch.
Hong Kong banks’ credit losses to revert to pre-COVID levels before end-2022
The increase in credit losses in 2020 was manageable compared globally.
Refinitiv launches electronic trading service in Indonesia
This is the country’s first interbank electronic marketplace for the trading of rupiah.
Real-time payment ties cash as preferred payment method in SEA markets
Three in five consumers from four markets name it as their favoured way of paying.
Citi APAC raises record $25b in sustainable funds for clients in H1 2021
Amongst the transactions is Alibaba Group’s $5b four-part offering in February.
Citi appoints 5 Singaporeans to senior positions across APAC
This includes the new head of Integrated Corporate Bank for its Taiwan business.
Southeast Asia’s neobank market to grow 50% in 2021
Funding and winding down of the pandemic’s impact on the economy will push this market.
Singapore extends ESG loan facility to banks, FIs
Since being launched in April 2020 it has disbursed S$13.3b to FIs in support.
Commentary
Beyond the code: How mobile banking is weaving a new financial narrative in Asia