Digital Conversation on The Future of Fintech in Southeast Asia

By 2030 ASEAN will be the fourth-largest economy in the world, with a forecasted population of 717 million and an expected GDP of £5.43 trillion. By 2030, the ASEAN consumer will be better digitally connected, have a higher disposable income, live longer and have better access to financial services. This discussion on the Future of Fintech in Southeast Asia will provide an understanding of the region’s fintech landscape and the opportunities that lie ahead.

Speakers include:

• The Rt Hon. William Russell, Lord Mayor of the City of London
• Adrian Gunadi, Co-Founder and CEO, Investree, Indonesian ASEAN BAC Member
• Joel Yarbrough, Vice President Asia Pacific, Rapyd
• Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid, Chairman, ASEAN Business Advisory Council – Malaysia

This UKABC Digital Conversation is co-hosted with the ASEAN Business Advisory Council in partnership with the City of London. It will begin at 09.30 in the UK / 15.30 in Vietnam and Indonesia / 16.30 in Malaysia and Singapore on Wednesday, 8 July. It is free to attend.

Overview

Over 70% of the adult population in Southeast Asia are either underbanked or unbanked with limited access to financial services. SME’s, the backbone of business in the region, also face significant funding gaps.

While large, it is the composition of ASEAN’s population that is most exciting. 67% are under the age of 35, 63% have access to the internet, the smartphone penetration rate is 132% and within two years over 50% of ASEAN will be middle class. With the region looking to roll out 5G, fintech offerings are set to grow significantly. Investments are pouring into the region with fintech ‘unicorns’ being some of the best-funded digital start-ups and are expected to triple revenue from £8.9 billion to £30.1 billion by 2025.

The landscape is becoming increasingly competitive. As incumbent banks are rolling out their digital platforms, they are facing growing competition from start-ups, as well as leading tech companies moving into financial services such as Indonesia’s ride-hailing app GoJek’s GoPay. Facebook’s recent investment in GoJek reflects the potential in the region and their possible interest in rolling out their own digital payment systems.

Fintech will also help ASEAN achieve the goal of financial inclusion, a key part of the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025. As it helps people and business to store money as well as send and receive payments it will open the door to the global digital economy creating opportunities for increased prosperity and improved livelihoods.

The UK is a global leader in Fintech and innovation. This position has developed from the strength of the UK in financial services, the nature of UK consumers and the UK regulatory environment. London has the world’s highest concentration of financial and professional services firms and is second only to San Francisco for the number of FinTech companies and FinTech unicorns created by a city.

Programme

Welcome remarks by co-hosts:

• Baroness Neville-Rolfe DBE CMG, Chair, UKABC
• Dr Doan Duy Khuong, Chair, ASEAN BAC

Keynote address by The Rt Hon. William Russell, Lord Mayor of the City of London

Panel Discussion on The Future of Fintech in Southeast Asia

What are the opportunities for Fintech in Southeast Asia? What does ASEAN need to do to develop Fintech in the region further? How can innovation lead to financial inclusion?

• Adrian Gunadi, Co-Founder and CEO, Investree, Indonesian ASEAN BAC Member
• Joel Yarbrough, Vice President Asia Pacific, Rapyd
• Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid, Chairman, ASEAN Business Advisory Council – Malaysia
• The Rt Hon. William Russell, Lord Mayor of the City of London

Chaired by Baroness Neville-Rolfe DBE CMG, Chair of the UK-ASEAN Business Council

Further Reading

Fintech Enabling Financial Inclusion in ASEAN. CARI

The Future of Southeast Asia’s Digital Financial Services. Bain & Company

The ASEAN Fintech Ecosystem Benchmarking Study. University of Cambridge

ASEAN Fintech Ecosystem Census 2018. EY

Fintech in ASEAN: From Start-up to Scale-up (2019). UOB

Fintech in ASEAN. Economist Intelligence Unit

Powering the Fintech Revolution. City of London

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