In a bold move to empower female entrepreneurship across Southeast Asia, OCBC Bank has set its sights on a big goal: to provide social loans to 10,000 women entrepreneurs by 2030. This initiative, aimed at small and medium enterprises (SMEs), spans Singapore,…
The bank has launched a digital wallet for businesses in Singapore, which enables them to send, receive and hold cash in multiple currencies. HSBC’s Digital Wallet, which aims to significantly reduce the time it takes for SMEs to make business payments, is…
Global leading ICT provider Huawei launched its SME Support Program with trusted ecosystem partners in Asia Pacific, aiming to deliver further technical support for economic recovery amid the fight against the pandemic in the region. Small and medium…
Alibaba.com, the global B2B e-commerce platform of Alibaba Group, launched a landmark initiative Monday to help companies in Vietnam go online and reach an enormous pool of qualified global buyers. As an international extension of the 2020 Spring Thunder…
Kiwi small businesses are struggling as they wait for an estimated $7.4 billion in overdue payments, Xero has revealed. The Wellington-based tech company, which provides software for small businesses, based the estimate on anonymous data drawn from a sample…
HSBC has announced a range of measures intended to help struggling businesses cope with challenges from the China-U.S. trade war and the anti-government protests in Hong Kong. As the Hong Kong economy is facing its worst crisis in a decade, HSBC has become…
UOB seeks to expand its banking base in Asia’s small to medium-sized enterprises with the latest targeting of trade association in Malaysia. The bank will collaborate with three trade associations (SME Association of Sabah, Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce…
Amazon has brought its small business-focused Launchpad initiative to Australia. Launching on Tuesday, the program aims to help startups and entrepreneurs sell in a wider market. Over 150 local and international brands are already on board. As part of the…
Fado, the first Vietnam cross-border e-commerce platform, plans to help local SMEs go global. “Vietnam has so many quality products but local suppliers don’t have an official platform to sell them worldwide,” Fado CEO Pham Tan Dat said. “Our mission is to…
Unlike traditional banks which could take days to approve loan applications, Jack Ma’s online bank usually takes a few minutes. At Jack Ma’s MYbank operating in China, borrowers only need a few taps on their smartphones to receive cash almost instantly, if…
HSBC, which has been present in Singapore since 1877, said it intends to increase its share in its target small-medium-enterprise (SME) market from the current 10 percent to 15 percent by 2021. HSBC classifies SME clients as those with a turnover of $5-$100…
Ebay Singapore and the Institute of Retail Studies have partnered in an e-commerce training program. Called “Let’s Ebay with SIRS”, the full-day workshop aims to help aspiring entrepreneurs kickstart their e-commerce business and connect with the global…
Following a successful Series B funding round, SME lending platform Validus Capital is launching in Indonesia. SME lending platform Validus Capital has launched in Indonesia, its first Southeast Asian market outside its home country of Singapore, the firm…
Lee Jung-min, who runs a small business in Seoul, has been trying to figure out how to cope with the rise in labor costs expected for next year. “We take home whatever we have left after paying all the expenses,” said the businessman in his 30s. “Every penny…
Visa has teamed up with FinTech platform Validus to provide SMEs with virtual card solutions designed to help scale their businesses. The partnership seeks to unlock capital for SMEs to reinvest in their products and services. The solution has already been…
Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat’s Budget 2017 has placed a strong emphasis on helping businesses stay competitive and grow in an increasingly global marketplace. Helping Singapore SMEs Go Digital Mr Heng has emphasized the importance of digital capability as…