Franklin Tong, CEO of Astri, talks about Hong Kong's fintech industry influence on China; provides insight on how his company is using applied science to enhance Hong Kong's competitiveness in fintech; Astri was founded by the Hong Kong government and is focused on research and development for a range of solutions. Source
Chen Wei accumulated losses of over 489,400 yuan ($71,154) from lending platform Jiedaibao, operated by Renrenxing; the Chinese platform facilitated transactions between borrowers and lenders, allowing lenders to set their own interest rates and manage their own credit lending strategies; Renrenxing managed oversight of the platform including responsibility for collections; Chen's strategy was to borrow from platform lenders at low rates and lend to borrowers at higher rates, benefiting from the difference; Chen initially reported success but then increased borrower defaults led to losses of over 489,400 yuan ($71,154); Chen was subpoenaed by Jiedaibao for the funds he owed; Jiedaibao later dropped the case but Chen is now suing Renrenxing for the money owed from borrowers; more than 30 users have now filed court cases against Renrenxing for payments totaling over 22.5 million yuan ($3.27 million); new regulations have now been instituted to stop intermediaries from offering protection against losses. Source
Chinese conglomerate HNA has reported it will buy a 25% stake in Old Mutual's US asset management unit; HNA will pay approximately $445 million; following the sale, Old Mutual will own 26% of the US asset management business, a decrease from 51%; Old Mutual is expected to also sell the remaining portion of the company with a number of offers from strategic buyers and private equity groups; HNA has been increasingly adding financial services companies to its portfolio with recent acquisitions including Deutsche Bank and Anthony Scaramucci's SkyBridge Capital. Source
Singapore hosted the 3rd Singapore-Shanghai Financial Forum this week helping to strengthen relationships in the region; over 200 participants were in attendance; the theme of the event was "Strengthening Singapore-Shanghai Collaboration in a Changing Financial World Order" and discussions were centered around deepening financial connections between Singapore and Shanghai; Jacqueline Loh, deputy managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, was a featured keynote speaker at the event and spoke about the opportunities for fintech collaboration in the region. Source
Indian online multi-lender Indifi has raised $10 million in a Series B funding round led by Omidyar Network; the multi-lender specializes in connecting micro, small and medium-sized businesses with a network of lending institutions; the firm intends to use the funds for expanding and improving its products and technology. Source
A report from the Beijing Bureau of Financial Work says 90% of P2P platforms will struggle to stay in business in 2017; if their predictions are correct that would reduce the total number of P2P companies from 4,856 to approximately 500; companies will begin to undergo a review by regulators and it is expected that a run on deposits is likely to occur; regulators will be checking for a number of variables including two new requirements: the appointment of a custodian bank and full disclosure of the use of deposits; other factors under review will include risk management, business scale, IT infrastructure, investment sources and shareholders' credibility; firms will either be granted a P2P lending license or be required to liquidate; in 2016 the industry accounted for 800 billion yuan and according to the Beijing Bureau of Financial Work it is likely that 2017 will end drastically different for the industry overall. Source
Alibaba's affiliate Ant Financial has reported an investment in payment provider Mynt which has its business focus in the Philippines; Mynt currently has three million registered customers and reports one billion pesos ($19.9 million) worth of transactions per week; it provides services for consumers, merchants, and organizations primarily through its GCash and Fuse Lending businesses; GCash serves as its micropayment service provider and Fuse Lending offers online personal and business loans. Source
In an opinion article, one investor shares emails that have been leaked at Chinese marketplace lender Yirendai (NYSE: YRD); leaked emails show the company's chairman requiring parent company employees at CreditEase to invest in a fund to purchase undisclosed US equities; the author states the fund is likely purchasing shares of YRD and presents his case for shorting the stock; the stock recently saw volatility following China's new regulatory guidance for P2P lenders. Source
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Bloomberg and Quartz have recently been granted access to one of the largest bitcoin mines in the world operated by Bitmain; this Bitmain mine generates about a quarter of a million dollars a day worth of bitcoin; Bitmain's valuation is in the billions and the company is preparing for a possible IPO; Bitmain is also investing in an expansion to US. Source