financial services
ING next foreign bank to exit retail banking in the Philippines
Dutch financial services group ING Bank is exiting the retail banking market in the Philippines, just shortly after US banking giant Citi did the...
Indonesia’s Tokopedia raises $1.1 billion from Alibaba, Softbank
Indonesia’s leading e-commerce portal Tokopedia said on December 12 it has raised $1.1 billion in funding from investors including Japanese tech holding SoftBank’s Vision...
Myanmar stock market to kick off in October
The Myanmar government has now confirmed that it will open its first-ever professional stock exchange, the Yangon Stock Exchange (YSE), in October this year...
Myanmar’s central bank urges investors to be patient
Myanmar’s central bank confirmed it will continue to take a measured approach to economic liberalisation, despite facing criticism that the country is taking too...
Indonesia falls behind in mobile banking
Mobile phone banking has already transformed the provision of financial services in emerging markets such as Kenya, Mexico and even remote and poverty-stricken Papua...
Indonesia to allow more private stakes in banks
Indonesia may consider cutting public stakes in banks and imposing lending quotas in an effort to channel more credit to industry, as policy makers...
Malaysia seeks to boost outsourcing business
Malaysia’s outsourcing industry achieved a higher overall revenue of $490 million last year as compared to $385 million in 2012 from overseas outsourcing opportunities...
Singapore wants to be Asia’s gold trading hub
, an Asian hub for banking and finance, is ramping up its bid to become a center for gold trading that may one day...
Kasikornbank eyes wealth management business in Laos, Myanmar
Thailand's Kasikornbank (KBank) aims to target affluent customers in neighbouring countries as part of its efforts to push towards 10 per cent growth in...
RHB Group expands to Laos
The RHB Banking Group on June 6 extended its regional presence with the establishment of RHB Bank Lao Limited in Vientiane, Bernama reported. The...
Myanmar to face foreign investment competition from Cambodia, Laos
Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos are the potential “hidden markets” of Southeast Asia for investment opportunities, a business study said, but they could end up...
Indian IT firm plans new BPO centers in the Philippines
Tech Mahindra, an information technology-business process outsourcing company based in India is expanding its footprint in the Philippines on the back of bright prospects...
Is The Islamic Economy Focused On People?
It’s amazing how little we actually focus on ‘people’ in business in spite of the fact that it is people who make everything happen....
DBS to buy Societe Generale’s Asian private banking
DBS Bank, one of Singapore's three banking majors, announced on March 17 that it has agreed to acquire Societe Generale's Asian private banking business...
Japanese bank launches Shariah branch in Malaysia
Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp (SMBC) will launch a fully Shariah-compliant Islamic finance operation in Malaysia, Japan’s Jiji Press reported on March 10. The...
Singapore economy rebounded in 2013
Singapore's economy grew by 3.7 per cent in 2013, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on December 31, as he stressed the need for...
Indonesia plans new risk standards for banks
The Indonesian government plans to require banks to follow more extensive risk assessment standards and pay a levy, the Financial Services Authority said as...
Emirates NBD ventures into Southeast Asia
Emirates NBD, the UAE's second largest banking group by assets, is making Indonesia its core market in Southeast Asia as it expands beyond its...
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Thailand, Singapore most vulnerable to potential US recession
Southeast Asia could be seriously affected in case the US falls into recession, but some countries would be more badly hit than others, economists...