Singapore FinTech Festival 2024 – Day 2 Wrap Up
Here are the key announcements and highlights from Day 2 (November 7) of the Singapore FinTech Festival (SGFF) 2024 concerning Cambodia and the broader ASEAN region.
Liquid Group Launches roamQR – Cross Border Payment To Cambodia Expected In Q1 2025
Liquid Group has announced roamQR, the next phase of SGQR+, a QR payment switch solution designed to enhance interoperability among local and international e-wallets, mobile payment apps, merchant acquirers, and national QR networks.
The SGQR+ proof of concept (POC) was initially launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in November 2023. The latest phase will further improve experiences for both consumers and merchants across 11 international markets.
In Q1 2025, Liquid Group expects to expand its domestic and international rollout to key markets including in Cambodia, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Brazil, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Australia, and India. This effort is expected to connect approximately 50,000 merchants in Singapore and over 50 million merchants globally.
“We use the concept ‘roam’, just like how you would with your mobile phone roaming on another network when you're overseas,” said Jeremy Tan, Founder and CEO of Liquid Group, during an interview with B2B Cambodia.
roamQR is about interoperability between countries, meaning, if you have an app on a network in one country, you can use it in another, just like telecoms
“The benefit is that when you enter a different country, you are able to scan the QR that's most popular in that country without having to download a new app. So as a merchant that accepts QR payments, not only can you accept domestic QR payment apps, you can also accept apps from other countries,” added Tan.
Stay tuned for B2B Cambodia’s full interview with Jeremy Tan.
_20241108_121247.jpg)
Panel: Accelerating Global SME Growth Through Digital Innovation – H.E. Dr. Chea Serey
H.E. Dr. Chea Serey, Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), took part in a panel discussion titled, “Safeguarding The Economy's Backbone: Accelerating Global SME Growth Through Digital Innovation”, alongside the Minister of ICT and Innovation of the Republic of Rwanda and senior representatives of global FinTech companies Ant International, Amazon and GCash.
The discussion focused on strategies to accelerate financial inclusion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) globally through digital financial services. Dr. Serey highlighted the important role SMEs have played in stimulating economic growth in Cambodia post-COVID-19, as well as the ongoing challenges faced by SMEs, including a limited access to finance, and higher pressures to expand operations. These challenges are even more pronounced in a context when tourism growth in Cambodia has been limited.
Dr. Serey also spoke of some of the Cambodian government and NBC’s initiatives to foster SME development, through the improvement of business environment, access to finance, and an enhancement of cooperation in the development and connectivity of Cambodia’s payment system to other countries in the region and the world.
_20241108_121658.jpg)
Announcement Of Global FinTech Hackcelerator And FinTech Excellence Awards
The MAS and the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA) announced the winners of the Global FinTech Hackcelerator and the Singapore FinTech Festival FinTech Excellence Awards, which recognises the innovative solutions and efforts made by financial institutions, FinTechs, solution providers and individuals.
Global FinTech Hackcelerator – Innovative And Market-Ready Solutions To Improve Financial Health
The following top three teams (in alphabetical order and in no order of merit) will receive SGD 50,000 each in prize money:
- KaiOS Enable Tomorrow – China (focused on financial literacy)
- WeGro – Bangladesh (an Agri-FinTech platform leveraging Open Banking and peer-to-peer lending)
- Your Financial Wellness – Australia (tackling global challenges of financial literacy and wellness)
Singapore FinTech Festival FinTech Excellence Awards
Over 200 submissions were received this year, and eight winners across six award categories were eventually selected by an international panel of industry experts across multiple domains.
The winners for the Corporate categories for the SFF FinTech Excellence Awards 2024 are:
- Emerging FinTech Award: Walee Financial Services
- Financial Inclusivity Award: PolicyStreet
- Regulatory Leader Award: Napier AI
- Sustainable Innovator Award: Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation
- Thematic – Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Champion: Tencent
The winners for the Individual category (in recognition of FinTech mentors) under the SFF FinTech Excellence Awards 2024 are:
- Andrea Baronchelli, CEO and Co-founder of Aspire
- Dr Dorian Selz, CEO and Co-founder of Squirro AG
- Frans Wiwanto, CEO-APAC of Flywire (Singapore)
Stay tuned for more of B2B Cambodia’s coverage of the Singapore FinTech Festival 2024.
_20241108_121855.jpg)